Dogs Trust dog gets his own blog: Junior

There are many things to love about the Internet, but as a charity's social media bod I am lucky enough to come across blogs written by people who have adopted a dog from us and are giving them the wonderful life they deserve. What always strikes me is how much people adore their pets and how very open-hearted they are about that. But then, I suppose I can't resist working my cat into every other post... (like now).

A new blogger on the scene is Chris Norton, who along with his wife has just recently adopted Junior from Dogs Trust Kenilworth. Junior was only ever going to go to a very special home as he's a little nervous and needs careful support and training to help with his behaviour.

Settling in quickly alongside his fellow pets (at the moment rabbits and chickens, with bees to come), Junior is already showing signs of progress. Chris and his family are so committed to helping him grow in confidence that before they'd even taken him home they were aiming to see a behaviourist. It's wonderful for the staff at Kenilworth to hear about how their former resident is getting on, as well as helpful for other blog readers who might be struggling with training their dog as they are inspired by Chris and Junior's journey.

Thanks, Chris! Now, everyone, pop over and read the blog...

George's Diary of a Collie's forever home

When two-and-a-half year old George first arrived at Dogs Trust Harefield (West London), he was such a nervous wreck that he wasn't even available for rehoming for six long months. As staff painstakingly built up his confidence, they began to wonder if a really special family would come forward to work with the timid boy and get him enjoying life.

Step forward Toni and Brian. Having just lost their beloved dog, Bonnie, they were looking for a pet who could help fill the depressingly empty space in the house. Having spotted George, they came back to visit him several times before finally taking him home just eight weeks ago.

In those eight weeks, George has begun to undergo an amazing transformation. He's able to walk off the lead and is mastering basic recall and other commands. Best of all, he's starting to display the confidence and friendliness we all knew he was capable of in the right hands.

Toni and Brian know that it can be a challenge to train a dog who has had a rough start in life. So they've put George online, where 'he' writes a blog explaining his achievements such as the first time he managed to spend a night away from home.

Well done Toni and Brian and most of all well done George. We're proud of you too!

Dogs Trust makes Alltop's pet list | Tell us a story

For people who spend a lot of time on blogs looking for the best posts and articles within their area of interest, content aggregators are very helpful. They are sites which peel off the best of the top blogs, video sites and more and deliver it to you on one page. 'Best' is sometimes categorised by peer review, rating and recommendation or sometimes by editorial choice.

Alltop is creating dedicated channels for the most popular and, in the editorial staff's opinion, best blogs related to any given topic. Their new Pets channel lists none other than this blog in its ranks! So now you can catch up with all the latest from Dogs Trust and cast a quick eye over what else is going on in the world of the pet blog.

Also, I'm hoping to include more of your stories in our blog. A lot of you do send in lovely tales and photos of rehomed dogs having a wonderful time in their forever home, such as this one of Bonnie that was on our DoggySnaps community site. If you'd like to see yours featured on this blog, then email me (including a pic if possible) and you never know - the next post you read could be about you and your four-legged pal.