2. The
Beginning
Of
Happy
Dogs
Rescue
Even
as
a
young
girl,
Lyn
Williams
absolutely
adored
animals,
and
particularly
dogs.
As
she
grew,
so
did
her
love
for
them.
During
Lyn’s
childhood
her
family
always
had
a
lot
of
animals.
Her
mother
particularly
loved
dogs,
which
rubbed
off
on
Lyn.
At
the
age
of
12,
her
daily
rout
to
school
took
her
past
a
house,
where
there
was
a
dog
that
was
always
tied
up
and
very
scrawny.
He
never
had
any
water,
there
wasn’t
any
shelter
and
therefore
exposed
to
all
elements,
with
only
the
hard
ground
for
his
bed.
Even
on
returning
frequently
at
different
times
to
check,
the
dog
was
always
there.
“One
day
when
it
was
raining
heavily,
I
couldn’t
bear
it
any
longer.
I
sneaked
into
the
garden,
untied
him
and
took
him
home
with
me,“
says
Lyn.
When
her
father
returned
from
work
that
day,
he
said
she
had
to
take
the
dog
back
to
where
he
belonged.
Because
it
was
a
small
village,
everyone
knew
everyone,
and
the
local
policeman
came
around
and
said
that
this
was
stealing
and
that
Lyn
had
got
to
take
him
back.
Lyn
refused.
“When
you
grow
older
you
know
better,
but
at
that
time
I
didn’t.
The
policeman
must
have
known
which
man
this
dog
belonged
to.
He
went
round
there,
and
when
he
came
back,
there
was
a
lot
of
talk
in
the
porch
with
my
dad.
He
was
invited
into
the
front
room
as
we
called
it
and
he
held
a
speech
about
stealing,
and
that
I
should
never
steal.”
Much
to
her
father’s
amazement
and
Lyn’s
delight,
the
owner
had
said
to
the
policeman
that
they
didn’t
really
want
the
dog
because
he
was
old,
and
that
she
could
keep
him.
And
she
did,
until
the
end
of
his
days.
It
seemed
that
this
was
the
real
start,
as
she
was
continually
finding
herself
looking
after
dogs
for
people,
sick
animals
were
brought
to
her
and
so
it
continued.
A
big
heart
“Every
place
I
went,
I
sort
of
accumulated
them.
Even
when
I
met
Ted,
now
my
husband,
I
still
found
myself
having
stray
or
abused
dogs
brought
to
me.
Even
though
he
had
a
very
responsible
job
and
continually
travelled,
having
to
remain
in
some
areas
for
as
long
as
two
or
three
years,
I
felt
that
I
had
no
choice
but
tend
the
dogs
needs
until
a
suitable
home
for
them
was
found,”
says
Lyn.
When
Lyn’s
granddaughter
was
born,
30
years
ago,
they
moved
down
to
Ringwood.
They
brought
12
dogs
with
them,
cats,
geese,
2
donkeys,
tortoises,
parrots
and
a
few
other
animals
that
people
didn’t
want.
“It
has
just
escalated
from
there.
I
think
it
was
17
or
18
years
ago
I
registered
the
name,
Happy
Dogs.
The
reason
why
I
did
that
was
because
I
wanted
people
to
be
able
to
see
where
the
money
went.
We
are
all
volunteers
and
nobody
is
paid.
My
home
is
used
as
a
sanctuary
and
all
the
dogs
live
here
with
us.
That
is
how
Happy
Dogs
works.
The
volunteers
do
a
lot
of
fundraising,
we
have
a
big
dog
show
every
year,
a
lot
of
supporters,
and
we
just
about
manages.”
Lyn
doesn’t
deny
that
Happy
Dogs
means
a
lot
to
her.
She
says
that
it
is
not
possible
for
her
to
be
around
animals
and
not
have
joy.
But
she
admits
that
it
has
a
downside
too.
Especially
when
the
dogs
get
ill
and
their
spirits
are
broken,
and
she
can’t
do
anything.
When
they
come
in
and
they
3. have
been
so
abused
that
even
Lyn
can’t
bring
them
back
and
she
just
has
to
let
them
live
at
Happy
Dogs,
quiet
in
their
own
world.
“That’s
the
downside.
When
you
lose
them
when
they’re
young,
when
they
are
so
ill
that
you
have
to
let
them
go.
Putting
them
to
sleep
is
something
I
never
get
used
to.
Somebody
once
said
to
me,
not
so
long
ago
actually:
“You
have
to
get
used
to
this
now
Lyn”,
and
I
said:
“Never”.
The
day
I
get
used
to
it
and
the
day
it
doesn’t
affect
me,
is
the
day
I
stop
doing
this.
Each
time
it
happens,
it’s
like
losing
a
friend,”
says
the
78-‐year-‐old.
When
it
comes
to
the
emotional
feelings,
Lyn
admits
that
the
hardest
thing
emotionally
to
do
is
to
put
them
to
sleep.
For
what
ever
reason.
“I
mean,
last
year
I
had
a
little
dog,
we
reckon
he
was
about
three-‐years-‐old
and
he
was
so
tormented
to
such
a
degree,
that
his
brain
couldn’t
compute
with
anything.
He
would
run
at
the
wall,
get
in
the
corner
and
snap
all
the
time.
I
tried
so
hard
to
get
him
out
to
me.
After
a
while
he
would
come
out
from
the
corner
and
sit
beside
me
in
a
chair,
but
just
for
a
second.
He
was
all
the
time
watching
around
him.
If
something
came
within
his
vision
that
he
could
see,
he
went
berserk.
We
found
out
that
even
his
vision
wasn’t
right
and
that
was
terrible
to
see.
So
after
about
a
month
I
realised
that
even
I
couldn’t
bring
him
around.
I
called
the
vet
out
and
we
put
him
to
sleep
in
the
living
room,
and
laid
him
in
the
garden.”
Not
an
easy
job
Lyn
says
all
the
dogs
are
different
but
it’s
not
until
you
actually
live
with
them
that
you
see
all
this.
“They
are
wonderful
creatures.
I’m
not
saying
it
is
easy,
because
it
is
a
hard
job
too.
When
you
get
up
in
the
morning
and
you
find
out
that
two
of
the
oldest
dogs
have
become
sick
in
the
middle
of
the
night
and
have
diarrhea.
It’s
all
over
the
kitchen
flour
and
the
other
dogs
are
running
through.
Not
only
do
you
have
to
wash
all
the
dogs
that
are
running
through
it,
you
need
to
find
out
what’s
wrong
with
the
two
dogs
that
are
sick
and
you
need
to
clean
it
all
up.
That
is
another
downside,
but
it
is
worth
it.”
Although
Lyn
loves
her
work
the
physical
part
inroads
on
her.
When
she
was
younger
she
used
to
walk
the
dogs
around
the
field,
but
now
the
walking
is
the
hardest
part.
Then
six
years
ago,
they
decided
to
buy
the
field
to
make
it
easier.
The
field
is
fully
fenced
so
the
dogs
can
run
around
and
play
together,
which
Lyn
thinks
is
much
better.
“After
we
bought
the
field
I
don’t
really
find
anything
I
do
for
the
dogs
hard
work.
I
get
tired
at
the
end
of
the
day,
but
I
am
a
78-‐year-‐old
woman
so
I
suppose
I’m
bound
to
get
tired,
aren’t
I?”
Lyn
is
an
inspiration
to
animal
lovers
everywhere.
Even
though
it’s
hard
work,
she
gets
to
do
what
she
loves
the
most;
help
stray,
unwanted
and
often
abused
dogs
to
get
a
better
life.
That
she
has
spent
over
fifty
years
of
her
life,
taking
dogs
in
to
Happy
Dogs,
shows
what
an
amazing
woman
she
is.
By:
Lise
Marie
Hanssen
4. The
Story
About
Max
The
Dax
Max
came
to
Happy
Dogs
with
what
appeared
to
be
a
miner
injury
in
his
back
legs.
But
after
a
visit
to
the
vet,
it
turned
out
to
be
much
worse.
Seven
years
ago
Max
the
Dax,
as
everyone
calls
him,
joined
the
permanent
residents
at
the
Sanctuary
because
he
couldn’t
walk
properly.
He
came
in
from
a
family
who
said
that
his
back
legs
had
just
gone.
After
being
at
Happy
Dogs
for
about
a
week,
his
back
end
wobbled
all
over
the
place.
Lyn
decided
to
take
him
to
the
specialist
down
the
road,
hoping
it
was
his
legs
that
were
affected
and
they
could
mend
that.
But
when
Max
arrived
at
the
vet,
they
found
out
it
was
his
back
that
was
the
problem.
The
Spinal
Colum
had
been
damaged.
No
one
understood
how
this
little
dog
could
have
had
these
injuries.
After
an
examination,
the
vet
came
with
shocking
news:
Max
had
either
been
caught
in
the
door
or
he’d
been
kicked.
After
a
talk
with
the
vet,
he
said
that
he
could
operate,
but
there
was
no
guarantee.
He
explained
that
it
may
be
fine
at
first,
and
it
may
last
a
week
or
three,
four
or
five
years,
but
that
it
will
eventually
come
back
again.
Lyn
thought
about
it
and
decided
if
she
could
only
give
him
three
or
four
normal
years,
without
the
pain,
it
would
be
worth
it.
The
operation
was
quite
successful.
And
for
about
five
or
six
years
Max
managed
really
well.
But
seven
months
ago
his
backend
flopped
again
and
his
back
legs
started
to
refuse
to
do
what
they
were
told.
Max
had
to
try
to
pull
himself
around
on
the
disobedient
back
legs.
Lyn
needed
to
find
a
way
to
help
the
ten-‐year-‐old
Dachshund,
so
he
could
run
around
with
the
other
dogs
again
and
be
“normal”.
Then
a
kind
lady
gave
Max
a
cart,
but
the
problem
was
that
it
was
made
for
a
poodle,
and
Max’s
legs
are
much
shorter.
Lyn
really
liked
the
idea
and
thought
that
if
Max
had
one
that
fitted
properly
it
would
be
perfect.
That’s
when
she
got
some
friends,
Jo
Hayes
and
Jim
Colla,
to
make
him
a
cart
at
a
terrifically
reduced
rate.
Jo
was
the
kind
lady
who
donated
the
money
and
the
gentleman;
Jim,
built
it
to
fit
Max’s
short
legs.
Lyn
was
very
pleased
with
the
result
and
couldn’t
wait
to
see
Max
roll
around.
At
first
he
didn’t
really
know
what
to
do.
It
must
have
felt
strange
not
to
have
his
back
legs
on
the
ground.
Although
Max
likes
the
cart,
he
finds
it
difficult
to
manage.
Lyn
believes
it
has
something
to
do
with
his
back
injury.
When
he
first
came
in,
his
front
legs
had
a
funny
gate.
Because
it’s
not
a
proper
gate
the
way
he
moves
his
shoulders,
he
is
not
able
to
move
the
cart
too
much.
This
worried
Lyn
a
bit,
so
she
spoke
to
the
vet
who
said:
“Well,
at
least
he
is
resting
his
legs.
They’re
not
getting
injured
or
scraped
or
sore.”
And
that
was
the
main
reason
why
Lyn
acquired
the
cart
in
the
first
place.
This
way
Max
can
move
without
dragging
his
back
legs
on
the
floor
as
he
did
before.
She
also
makes
sure
that
it’s
not
unpleasant
for
Max.
She
doesn’t
leave
the
cart
on
the
whole
day,
just
an
hour
in
the
morning
and
an
hour
in
the
afternoon.
Another
great
thing
about
the
cart
is
that
he
can
go
into
his
bed,
flop
down
and
go
to
sleep
in
it.
Because
there
is
not
a
lot
of
cart,
it
is
easier
for
Max
to
handle
it.
Although
Max
has
had
a
hard
time,
he
is
a
happy
dog
who
loves
all
the
other
dogs,
his
bed
and
food.
Lyn
is
confident
that
Max,
with
a
little
practice,
one
day
will
beat
the
other
dogs
to
the
gate
at
the
field.
And
when
Algie,
the
other
Dax,
gets
his
cart
fitted,
it
might
encourage
Max
to
try
a
bit
harder
5. to
drag
his
backend
along.
Algie
the
Pug
has
also
trouble
with
his
very
disobedient
back
legs
because
of
spondylosis.
That
means
that
the
bones
of
his
spinal
column
have
fused
or
joined
together,
which
causes
him
to
feel
plenty
of
difficulty
in
its
day-‐to-‐day
life
while
moving
around,
sleeping
or
walking.
Jo
and
Jim
have
made
a
cart
for
Algie
too
and
Lyn
can’t
wait
to
get
it
fitted.
Lyn
thinks
it
would
be
nice
for
them
to
chase
one
another
up
and
down
the
field
like
all
the
other
dogs
do.
Even
if
Max
find
it
difficult
to
walk,
he
has
a
tremendous
zest
for
life.
Lyn
describes
him
as
a
brave
soul
and
having
him
and
the
other
dogs
with
all
their
baggage
and
problems
has
enriched
her
life.
To
gain
their
trust
and
give
them
joy
is
all
she
asks.
Although
Max
need
to
stay
permanently
at
the
Sanctuary,
he
will
roll
around
happy
until
the
end
of
his
days.
By:
Lise
Marie
Hanssen
