As he get up and comes over for about the tenth time in 30 mins I tell him, "No, lie down Nico," he
does for about 30 seconds and then he potters over again. You see there is never enough cuddling time as far as Nico is concerned, such a cuddly, affectionate, kind soul. He rests his head on my lap and I'm choked with emotion as I now see an old dog looking back at me. His eyes have a blue tinge to them and his beautiful black mask is peppered in grey. His coat is harsh and a brown colour instead of jet black and though his weight is fine his spine is protruding. When did you get to look so old my man? Where did the time go? Oh don't get me wrong as far as I'm concerned Nico is fit and well, and you still wouldn't leave a coat with treats in the pocket anywhere near him, well not if you want it in one piece anyway!
This morning I looked back and with a simple search of "Danko" in my messages I found the original correspondence between myself and Heather, dated 10/8/12 - "Holy hell!!!!!! Rhi, I don't know what to advise lol. However, just to complicate it even more for you we have a gorgeous male here Danko. He's sired by Uno out of Kiara. Coming up 16 months. Hips/elbows normal. We have kept him for Uno's progeny group at the Sieger. He is a gorgeous boy and very showable but would need bit of work re firmness. He's not bad as we have been working him hard for 6 weeks. We got him back from Belgium in a bit of a sorry state but he's looking fab now. And he's 63.5/64 not bigger lol. Good strong head, good angles, slightly stretched, good expression. Not had much training but goes great on lead and moves very well. We don't need another young male so plan on letting him go after Sieger. Although, Rachel who has his brother is desperately trying to get him!!!! He has a super character, sooooo loving and this is despite clearly not being treated great in Belgium. I was devastated when I picked him up, he was a mental and physical wreck."
Next came the photos, but of course there was no going back, from that message, Nico FKA Danko was mine. From the moment he arrived we adored him, but his reaction to some things were as bad as the rescue dogs I'd been dealing with at Freshfields.What the hell had happened to this dog at the hands of a GSD kennels in Belgium? Maybe best I never know? I'm so glad he had a few months with Louis, I'm sure his happy-go-lucky nature rubbed off on Nico, but whatever he soon forgot his past and became such a happy boy. Nico became sound in mind and body, his recovery from hard times showing his strength of character.
It truly was one of the best decision to bring this dog here, not only is he happy and loving life but he has filled our heart with love and affection every single day, he truly has the best kindest character you could wish for. The icing on the cake, well he's changed the path for Blanik. One mating to Ziva produced Sammi - and look at everyone that's come after her, it really was a mating that changed the path of Blanik for the better. This dog has been, and continues to be an absolute pleasure and a privilege to share a life with!
