Ziggy's Story

This is the story of a Basset Hound bitch, one of five, rescued by the Basset Hound Club of Wales from a kennel that was about to be closed down. She was soon found to be in pup, and Ann and John were asked if they could help - needless to say the answer was a resounding yes and the rest is, as they say is history.

Ziggy came to stay as expected in the late spring of 1992, at that time she was approximately five weeks into her pregnancy. We immediately put up the whelping box in our living room, we felt this would give her as little disruption as possible; she had already been through more than enough - being moved and not knowing what would happen to her - this was a place of her own, to come and go as and when she wanted. There would be no demands on her here. She was a darling; although very unsure of us at the beginning that was only natural and to be expected, we were complete strangers to her. We soon discovered how special she was, a pleasure to have with us.

Unlike the typical Basset Hounds we all know and love, Ziggy would do whatever we asked of her in an instance but asked for absolutely nothing in return. It was a learning curve for all of us; we wanted to make up for all the time she had been in that “horrible place” give her the love and introduce her to all kinds of things she had obviously missed out on. Introducing her to every day life was easy; she took to that like a duck to water. .

On the other hand she didn’t understand what love was. Anyone with a Basset knows if you sit on the floor it will come and sit as close to you as it possibly can, even to the extent of climbing onto you, rub its head and/or body into you. Not Ziggy, we would sit for hours with her, cuddle her, and smooth her, talk to her etc., etc. She would sit by you but it was always us who made the physical contact with her, it was obvious she had not had that sort of relationship with any human prior to being taken from the kennel

As the weeks went by it was now early June, Ziggy had been given all of the “extras” expectant mums have, she became more and more settled with us. Her time was now coming close and we were ready, or as ready as we could be, not knowing what to expect from her. We should have known better, she had been the perfect houseguest and this was not going to be any different. Her labour started and out of concern for her we watched from a distance. It was obvious Ziggy had done all of this before, and probably many times. She did it all alone with no help for anyone and with little fuss. Just letting out a howl after each pup arrived. .

Mother and babies were well and doing fine, seven in total 2 males and 5 female - all tri colours many of them with broken markings. The photograph was taken when the puppies where about 12/14 days. As you can see Ziggy was certainly proud of her little family

The pups were doing well in fact they were flourishing; they were typical “Basset Babies” into everything and in this photographs they are approximately 5/6 weeks old. It had been decided from the start that the puppies would be found loving permanent homes.

And any donations received for them would go towards the funds of Basset Hound Rescue, to those who still needed help. These puppies were treated no differently to those Ann and John had bred, the very best was wanted for each of them. Prospective owners began to get in touch and like all prospective puppy owners each and everyone was vetted.

Then disaster struck. One of the puppies began to go down hill, and it was rushed to the vet, where puppy’s big head disease was diagnosed a serious Staphylococcal infection. It began with a few spots or swollen areas on the head, but progresses very rapidly to swelling of the lymph glands in the neck, which grossly enlarges the ears, eyes, nose etc., in extreme cases, the swelling can almost cover the whole body. The swellings turn into abscesses to release their burden of puss. Basically the head becomes one big abscess.

The vet advised that this would be a long and difficult job, obviously considerable time and care would be needed to give any hope for the future of this pup. But after agreeing to take on Ziggy, Ann and John were not about to let anything happen to one of her puppies were they and certainly not without giving it a fighting chance? The poor little mite, although such a painful sight to look at remained surprisingly cheerful, eating and continuing to grow.

Its head had to be supported allowing it to breath easier so old socks were stuffed with old tights and wool and placed under its jaw and around its neck. The vet was fantastic she had seen it before and was a great help during this anxious time, initially she tested to find the best antibiotic to fight the infection and kill the bacteria, then prescribing corticosteriods reduce the inflammation, while all of the time the lesions on the pup’s head had to be spotlessly cleaned and which was continuous job! Thankfully the infection was caught early enough and made the treatment far more effective; had it been left longer perhaps the outcome would have been different.

Weeks of intensive nursing went into getting the puppy well. In fact Ann didn't leave its side. The photographs here shows a puppy well on the road to recovery although still very badly scared around its eyes and on its foreface. Ann on the other hand although not shown is fast asleep - absolutely exhausted from the care she gave.

Eventually after many weeks this puppy was back to being a normal Basset baby and had a short while with its brother and sisters before they left. The disease is thought to be a failure in the pup’s immune system or a hypersensitivity to bacteria and one that can be carried for life. A puppy that has had this disease should never be bred from and serious consideration should be given to breeding from its dam again. We were told that the disease is one that can occur repeatedly, so the bitch may have had similar cases in previous litters - something we would never know but doubt any puppy born to Ziggy in the kennel would have been given a similar chance to life as the one above. Probably the time, expense and commitment required would be considered out of all proportion to the money the kennel could charge for the price of a pup

On a brighter note, Ziggy produced in one of the males a super star - Henry! All of the pups were healthy but he stood out, possessing super bone, in contrast to the other six pups even though they were all fed in exactly the same way with exactly the same as Ann and John fed their own stock. Over the next three weeks or they noticed his coat was a little different too. It soon became apparent Henry was a “LONG COAT” which is thought to be a throw back to the Clumber spaniel. He was a strange looking puppy who stood out from his littermates, but that made him the very one that everyone was most interested in. They were fascinated by everything about him and he could have sold him many, many times over, but Henry was destined for have a special home with a very special lady and her daughter. Henry can be seen in the photograph above with his littermates at 5/6 weeks - he is the one on the left in the mouths of three other puppies!! He stayed with Ann and John until he was nearly 6 months old building work on the cottage where he was going to live had to be finished for his safety.

He soon preferred to sit on a chair rather than the floor - a taste as you can see he never lost. Even to sharing his favourite chair with George, his friend and partner in crime. Ann’s Motto - don’t let them do at 10 weeks what you don’t want them to do at 10 months or indeed 10 years! You can see the reason why! Left is Henry sitting in a baby's rocker and right Henry at 10 years old sitting in his favourite armchair with friend George the Jack Russell Terrier!

Henry a true "long-coat" taken from both sides that show him in his full glory! These photos show the beauty of his coat and its "feathering", along with the massive bone that is always associated and evident in true long coats. He was 12 years old when this photo was taken and soon after went to live in Cornwall with his friend George. Henry lived to the ripe old age of 15!

Ziggy stayed until all of her puppies were homed. One went to live in the next valley to us; one to Swansea; Bristol, Oxford; North Wales; London; one with her owners eventually lived just down the road from Brigett Bardott in the South of France.

Ziggy went to a loving home with a couple from Ashby De La Zouche. Every weekend they spent on their converted barge on the canal network. She can be seen here with her friend Zinka photographed on a towpath at one of their stops along the way. No one knew exactly how old this sweet person was, but she went on to live - a long, full and happy life with love and good friends to share it with. Ann and John will never - ever forget or regret one moment of the time they shared with Ziggy and her family. It was very hard when the time came to part, as she had become one of their family. If they had the chance would do it all again.

Footnote:
This story had a happy ending, many puppy farm breeding bitches don't get the chance for a life that Ziggy had. When they are "finished with" what awaits them? Some are turned out into the woods or to run the roads and take their chances, but will probably die as a result of an accident. Many are destroyed and not always humanly....! This isn't meant to shock you, but it is a fact it is down to Joe Public! The ones who don't bother to find out about the breed, and/or reputable breeders and who almost invariably want an immediate puppy. These are the ones who help to keep these people in business. One thing is for certain a puppy with an infection as severe as the one in this story would have ended its life in a bucket of water....no vet or sleepless nights would be spent on something so easy to replace. Thats what sets reputable breeders aside from "puppy farmers" the love of their breed and their devotion to it!