Henry O’Neill – Irish Retriever Rescue

A VERY SPECIAL ADOPTION

Henry, strictly speaking, is not an IRR Adoptee but his story is inspirational and typically depicts the true spirit and ethos of Irish Retriever Rescue.

Ian told us “Back in 2016, Carole and I joined a meet up with the Dorset and Hampshire Golden Retrievers group. We took along our Murphy and Lucy and we joined a walk along with thirty or so other Golden Retrievers. It was chaos but very enjoyable chaos. During the walk we saw a very large cream Golden Retriever who was right in the midst of the fun. He was one very handsome boy for sure. That was Henry.

Wind forward to September 2017 when I received a message from Richard Hexter (Henry’s owner). Richard was a member of the same Golden groups as me so we knew of each other. He said that he and his wife Ann were bringing their caravan down to Charmouth so could we meet them and Henry on the beach. We readily agreed and we got to spend a very enjoyable hour on the beach with the irrepressible Henry. Murphy and Lucy loved him. Ann told Carole that Richard’s cancer had come back and that he would soon be starting chemo.

In November, I had a message from Ann. Richard’s cancer was far more advanced than they feared and he really was very ill. She told me that they wouldn’t be able to keep Henry and both she and Richard wanted Henry to share the life that Murphy and Lucy were enjoying. Would we have Henry?

I spoke with Carole and we both agreed that he would come to stay with us. So, on the 14^th November, I drove across to Chippenham and Richard and Ann asked me to take Henry that day.

I loaded all Henry’s toys and belongings into my car then turned to them and said, ‘if you change your mind I will bring him back.’ ‘No,’ said Ann, ‘this is the best thing for Henry.’ The two of them were distraught. It truly was the saddest thing I’ve ever done.

When I brought Henry into our house we fed him alongside Murphy and Lucy. They immediately accepted him. But Henry spent the night sat at our back door. It was heartbreaking.

The next day we took them all to Charmouth Beach and they had great fun. I filmed it and posted on Facebook. Ann messaged me and said Richard was delighted to see the video and kept watching it. I made a point of posting regularly so he could see how his boy was doing.

Henry is a larger than life character and it didn’t take him long to adapt to the fun and games in our house. Actually he was the instigator of most of them!

Sadly, Richard died the following March. I will be forever full of admiration for what Richard and Ann did for Henry. They made the ultimate sacrifice so their boy would be happy. Henry’s character shines bright and you haven’t lived until you’ve had one of his extra special welcomes into our house!!”

Henry helped the family recover from the loss of Murphy and, now, for sure, this big hearted boy will be doing his best to help Carole, Ian and Rosy come to terms with the unexpected passing of their darling Luce.

With the loss of the irrepressible Luce, life is going to be quieter but, for sure, the dogs will, as always, give Carole and Ian their unconditional love and devotion.