My name is: Peanut
I came from: Romania
Now I live in: Hertfordshire
My favourite things are: Meat of any kind, any type of cheese, my squeaky ball (I have one for outside and one for inside!), chasing squirrels, ripping the stuffing out of soft toys, morning cuddles with my mum and dad
Follow me on Instagram: @peanuttherescuepup

Peanut’s story

Since the time I learned how to write, I have put a dog on my wish-list for every birthday and Christmas year after year, but I was never lucky enough to own one. When I met my partner in 2014, I told him I would be getting a dog at some point and if he was not on board this would be a deal breaker. Six years later, we were home-owners and a month before my birthday, he asked me if I would be ready to adopt a dog. I instantly agreed and couldn’t believe my luck that he had finally come around to the idea. 

I began looking at rescue sites online, Underdog being one of them. As soon as Peanut’s picture popped up, I knew she was perfect for us. We wanted to make sure we adopted a dog that suited our lifestyle, so we needed a small dog that wasn’t noise sensitive as my partner is a drummer! I applied for Peanut straight away (I didn’t even consult my partner, who was sleeping at the time!) because I knew how quickly people would jump at the chance of adopting her. Shortly after, we had an online home visit with Amy, who was lovely and took us through the process of how things would work. We showed her our flat and our garden and had a talk about our lifestyles. Two days later we received an email saying we had passed our home check and we got the ball rolling with paperwork and fees, which Underdog made really easy and hassle free. We were aware there was a bit of a delay as we were attempting to adopt Peanut during a global pandemic, so we knew it may be a few weeks before we met her! The anticipation was almost too much to bear but finally, around five weeks later, we had the message that she was on her way and a photo was sent to us of Peanut in the van on the way from Romania. Needless to say there were a few tears of joy!

On the day of the pick-up, my partner was very tense and I could barely sleep with excitement! We found out where she was on the journey and chose to drive 30 mins into London so we could meet her at 5pm as opposed to 3am in Hertfordshire where we live. She was taken out of the van and put straight into my arms. The whole way home I sat in the backseat with her and gave her treats to try to build a bond and show her we were going to care for her. We got home and went straight in the garden where she did lots of wees and a poo! She cuddled up to us straight away and I shed a lot of happy tears feeling so blessed that she was finally home. 

We started doing command training and toilet training straight away and she took to both like a duck to water, so much so that my partner wonders if she had a home before she was rescued off the street. Initially she would not come up onto the sofa or our bed, and only wanted to sleep or stay under furniture. We learned to respect this as it was her safe place and it was probably what she did to keep safe on the street. Over time she has become more secure and comfortable cuddling up to us and now she loves snuggling on the sofa or coming to sleep or lay on our bed. One of the most challenging things was crate training her, but I am very glad we persevered. For the first week, she barked and scratched at the crate for up to 30 minutes, which was horrible to listen to. But again, this gradually lessened as we crate trained her more and built up the positive reinforcement. After about 6-8 weeks, she had completely changed and was quiet and would settle in the crate straight away. Peanut can be a little protective of us also, and she sometimes is not the most playful with other dogs - she is a bit of a diva and is fussy, just like her mother! She likes who she likes, but it warms our hearts when she makes a new pup-pal and zooms around with them. 

When we first got her, we were so scared she would have an instinct to explore or run away. She had been described as curious and as a little dog who liked to run through your legs or through fences. Taking her off-lead came with its own challenges, but we very quickly realised, she wanted to stay with us and had no plans to go anywhere. Now she follows me around the house wherever I go like my shadow. Every day we marvel at how lovely she is; her temperament, her playful, sweet nature and her intelligence (to name but a few qualities). Over the last eight months we have seen her grow so much in confidence and we have developed such a bond that we can’t imagine our life without her. She has explored the snow, the beach and fields and has enjoyed all of them immensely. Thanks to the lovely people at Underdog, the piece of our puzzle that was missing was found and we were able to provide Peanut with a safe and loving home she could call her own. When we adopted her, we thought we were saving her, but really, it was her who saved us. 

- Emily