Lovable Holly sums up what SHAK is all about

The next instalment of our weekly series dedicated to Alnwick-based dog sanctuary, SHAK.
Meet SHAK dog Holly.Meet SHAK dog Holly.
Meet SHAK dog Holly.

‘Quite simply beautiful, but equally as challenging’. Meet Holly, one of SHAK’s long-term residents, who sums up just how important the work of the charity is.

Sharing her story, SHAK founder Stephen Wylie said: “Holly came to us a few years ago from another rescue after we’d stopped her being destroyed for the second time.

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“Her issue was, and still is, guarding things. Her infatuations switch between the sublime to the ridiculous, but they make her so easy to read.

“In her last home, she decided the bottom step of the stairs was the most important thing in the world and wouldn’t let anybody else have it.

“She was imported from Ireland into this country as a puppy, grew too big for the owner to handle and spent the first six months of her life chained up in a garden.

“I believe that is where her resource guarding stems from. Given that start in life, can you really blame her?

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“She is a super girl though, great fun and enjoys her countryside retreat. She loves everybody and everybody loves her, making her a real favourite with the volunteers and staff.

“She really is a great example of one of the areas we work in – giving a dog like Holly somewhere to have her life, to have friends and to have a little bit of freedom without having to worry about keeping anything just for herself.

“Her issues mean we can probably never re-home her, which doesn’t make her a bad or aggressive dog, it simply means we understand her needs. Watching her play with everyone makes me think she knows and appreciates that.”