Can You Offer a Home to a Dog?

Nisha is happy to share her bed with her new sister Maisie

This is Nisha, (sitting with Maisie the kitten) who arrived with us last Sunday from Romania.

I want to tell you about her, not just because she is the newest member of our family, but also to let you know how she came to be with us, in case you might be thinking of adopting a dog yourself.

Our family has always had dogs. Back in the UK our dogs almost always came from a dogs' home where they were waiting to be rehomed after having been mistreated or abandoned. Such places are rare here in Finland, so when it came to finding a new dog, we were very pleased to find out about an organisation called Pelastetaan Koirat (Save the Dogs),

It is a Finnish charity run by volunteers, which specialises in raising funds for and rehoming dogs living in very poor conditions in Romania.


Nisha was one of those dogs. I knew when I first saw her picture on the website that she was the dog for us.  Of course you can never be completely certain what a dog will be like in real life, but I had a feeling about her - and decided that she had to be worth the risk.

The way the charity works is that they have a page on their webiste with pictures of all the dogs looking to be rehomed. Some are still in Romania (in a home called Magda's Place) and some have already been brought to Finland. There is a detailed profile on each, with any background information that is available. (All we really knew about Nisha was that she was two years old, had a gentle nature despite a previously rough life, and that she had been left with only one eye. No one knows how).



To stop me petting the neighbour's dog Nisha tied me up with her lead

Pelastetaan Koirat's policy is to be totally honest about any difficulties the dog might have, so that you know what you are taking on, and placements end up being successful ones.   Once you have identified the right dog for your family, you talk to the volunteer responsible over the phone about your own situation, what you are looking for and what you can offer. Once a match has been approved, it is simply a matter of filling in a form and paying the fee, The fee, apart from the dog itself, covers the necessary checks and vaccinations, chipping, the passport and travel from Romania to Finland.

The Finnish volunteers (who regularly visit Romania) are an incredibly dedicated and sincere group of people who do amazing work. The one thing they all have in common is that they all want a better life for the dogs they have found (sometimes in appalling conditions).

Despite having a good feeling about Nisha, I was still realistic. I knew that the first few days and weeks could be a challenge. I was prepared for toilet-training, barking, whining, ripped cushions and shoes that were chewed.  I thought she might take time to get used to the kittens and the children. But amazingly, after only five days, it is as though she has always been here.  She has not barked once. She eats, sleeps and comes when you call. She hasn't chewed anything and groans with pleasure when you scratch her tummy. She loves cheese and most of the time sits with one paw crossed over the other.

And she is very bright. Today, when I bent down to stroke the neighbours terrier, she didn't like it. But instead of barking or becoming aggressive, she simply walked round me until my legs were tied up by her lead and I could no longer move!

Who knows how much dogs actually think, but I have no doubt at all that at the very least, Nisha knows that now she is safe and she won't get hurt or go hungry every again.

Thank you to everyone at Pelastetan Koirat (especially Hannele Ketola) for bringing Nisha to our family. And if you are thinking of giving a home to a dog....have a look at this website first. www.pelastetaankoirat.com. Not only will you be making a dog happy, you will also find someone who will spend the rest of its life saying thank you.

Minttu decides to be a boy

Minttu has now decided that she is a boy

Having spent last week with a whole bunch of teenagers on their graduation cruise, this week has been all about the little ones. Niko has decided that his ambition of being a police officer is now yesterday's news and that as of today he wants to be a hairdresser.

Perhaps more radically, Minttu has also had a change of identity this week.  She has decided that she is, in fact, a boy. On one occasion, earlier in the week, I made the mistake of  trying to persuade her that she was actually a girl. The result was not pretty. Minttu exploded with rage and screamed until I agreed that she could be a boy for the day. She calmed down immediately at this and went to the nursery to proudly tell everyone about her new identity.

When I went to collect her in the afternoon, one of the nursery staff mentioned that I should probably have a chat with Minttu, as she seemed to be confused about her gender.

"Minttu keeps saying she's a boy" the lady said, looking worried.
"Yes, I know," I replied. "I told her she was."
"Oh." was the response. The lady clearly did not find this funny.

Personally, if my two-year-old daughter wishes to be a boy for a while, I can't see the problem, but others may disagree.

Having seen one of the worst films in cinematographic history yesterday evening, (if you are thinking of seeing the Lego movie....DON'T...), this morning we put aside all issues of gender and did some baking.

Having argued over the butter, the flour, the sugar, the baking tins and which order their biscuits would be baked in, the children finally accepted that they could ALL bake together and they would ALL have biscuits at the end of it.

Nothing like a good row between siblings to get the day off to a good start. Once the sugar had been licked off enough biscuits, Minttu was off to the nursery to be a boy for another afternoon. And then all three of them came home to spend the evening talking about poo. Life can be complicated when you're under five.

Stil, they seemed to enjoy their day. Perhaps there are some lessons about life in there for us all somewhere :)

Somero Students Abi Risteily

I had the privilege this week of being asked to accompany our Somero Lukio third year students on their "Abi Risteily." This is a 23 hour cruise organised in Finland for students to celebrate at the end of their school careers.

Imagine being with 2000 teenagers in the same place at the same time. A little intimidating, you might think. Well, now imagine being with 2000 teenagers who are drinking and partying - on a boat - on the open seas. If you had any sense, you just wouldn't, would you?

Well guess what. I just did...and I have survived to tell the tale.

Along with fellow Somerolainen Arto Seppänen, I was one of two people asked to go along on the cruise to accompany our fifty Somero students. What I saw was an amazing surprise. Having worked as a DJ for many years in clubs several different countries, I have seen a lot of things. A lot of it not very nice...so I was ready to be called upon to break up fights and dry up tears before getting on the floor to wipe up vomit.

But I was completely wrong.  I wasn't needed to do anything...because everyone was perfectly capable of looking after themselves, and they all did. The students partied hard. There were a lot of short black dresses for the girls, checked shirts for the boys and some VERY strong after shave doing the rounds.

And there were also a large number of young people who simply wanted to have a good time - without aggression, without trouble, without feeling the need to scream at each other or insult anyone passing by.

I was proud to be a Finn this weekend, and even more so to be with the students from Somero. If our town's young people have the ability to be mature and responsible and still know how to have a good time...then in my view the parents in this town have done a bloody good job.

Congratulations to all of Somero's Abi students. You really have made the town proud :)