My name is: Tiggy
I came from: Cyprus
Now I live in: Brighton
My favourite things are: chasing balls, everything food related, long walks, snuggling on the sofa

Tiggy’s story

We decided we wanted a dog and I'd seen a success story on the Underdog International page. Then we saw 'Lucy’, with her big eyes and even bigger smile. We applied instantly and had a very detailed call with Holly who pre-warned us of what adopting Lucy could be like and was there to answer all of our questions. It wouldn't all be relaxing walks and trips to the pub! She hated being in kennels and was reactive to the other dogs, she'd had a very poor start - having been left to roam, had a litter of puppies very young and then given to a shelter. We decided she was for us and we wanted her to join our family. When she arrived after her long journey, we watched as other adopters collected their dogs from the van - all shaking and nervous, then Lucy (now Tiggy) bound out like a scene in Jurassic Park..!

What we weren't prepared for on our first night was her counter surfing - in our house at the time we couldn't separate her from the kitchen and she spent most of her time jumping up searching for food. Child gates did nothing as she could easily leap these. But why wouldn't a street dog who's never lived in a home understand that's not okay! Cue a crate, where she now happily sleeps at night.

She does still jump on the work surfaces/tables but now will listen to you not to jump up, but you need hawk eyes - often whilst in a meeting when working from home I hear her in the sink and if you leave food out, chances are it's gone! She scavenges food on the floor when out walking, eats dropped chewing gum and poo - not just her own but other animals too. She hates anything with small wheels: suitcases, roller blades, scooters and skateboards - this is improving with distraction games but is taking a long time for her to not react to.

The longer we've had her some behaviour traits have come out - she is a very loyal girl but petrified we're leaving her, it hasn't helped having her during the pandemic as she's spent all day every day with me - this is something we still need to crack. She took a real dislike to my dad - it's as if he reminds her of someone from her past and it's taken a lot of patience and distractions for her to relax in his company and not lunge or bark at him.

Tiggy wants to please and is easily influenced with food - we've been training her through games and this has improved her reactivity to situations. It's taken a lot of patience, 3 steps forward, 2 back but she's so much better - she'll sit, stay, lay down, spin round, weave and recall on command, her favourite game is catch with food and will eat all leftovers - banana and carrot are firm favourites. Tiggy loves an active lifestyle and we often spend time away - she settles quickly and will happily walk/run for hours, in the past year she's had many holidays and loves to explore.

One thing to remember is that you don't always know what happened in their past but to understand there's a reason they've reacted in that way, her life (and ours!) has turned upside down and she's had lots to learn. By adopting an Underdog you're saving a dog from a life on the streets and you're giving them the best opportunity.

Someone said to me before Tigs arrived that you'll know when she's settled as she'll go into a deep sleep, you don't know when in her life she had been able to fully relax and know she's safe. It didn't take her long to snore like a pig..!

Whilst it has been hard, it's equally the best decision. She's our side kick, always there for a cuddle, getting us out for a walk 3 times a day, she’s got the best personality and it's been amazing to watch her develop and learn new tricks.

Forever thankful for the work that Underdog and Eve do - without them we wouldn't have Tiggy 🖤

- Grace