HARRY

Harry was born into a life of captivity in a toxicology laboratory in Budapest. He spent the first two years of his life being subjected to cruel, painful testing and has two numbers tattooed in his ear which is often a sign a dog has been used in two separate experiments. Beagle Freedom Project managed to negotiate Harry’s release in December 2016 and he was eventually flown from Budapest to start his new life in England with me. When Harry arrived he was underweight, had awful teeth full of plaque and really sore gums. He was very timid and used to cower down ever time I raised my hand to stroke him. He didn’t know how to eat or drink from a bowl, because many laboratory dogs are fed or watered through a rabbit feeder. He had no idea how to chew and didn’t understand that he needed to go outside for toileting because he hadn’t been outside before. He used to get so stressed if we took him in the car, he used to drool and suffer from sickness. Harry had no idea how to play with our other dog Buddy so I don’t believe he had socialised or played with other dogs before. It also took a few months for us to hear any sound from Harry, we had feared his vocal cords had been cut which is a common practice in laboratories to stop dogs making noise. Hearing his first “Arooooo” come out was magical, a moment I will never forget.

​Harry has been with me for 5 years this December and is a totally different dog. He is gaining confidence daily, loves meeting people and small dogs (he is a little wary of new big dogs he sees). Harry loves playing with Buddy and is learning to play tug of war although we still often help Harry pull the rope! He is so much better in the car and no longer drools, we have even managed some wonderful holidays in Cornwall and Scotland travelling in the car. I am so proud of him and the way he is overcoming his PTSD.