Britain’s “loneliest” dog has finally been adopted after spending over 1,000 days at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.
Bud, an eight-year-old Greyhound Collie cross, had been at the shelter almost three years. The average stay is 30 days.
The charity said some 5,500 dogs have been rehomed since its longest resident Bud arrived at the Old Windsor branch in Berkshire in November 2013.
Faced with the prospect of spending a fourth Christmas at the shelter, Bud was chosen to appear on Paul O’Grady’s ITV show ‘For the Love of Dogs'.
After the show aired, the charity immediately received a flurry of calls about adopting Bud and a family from Kingswinford in the West Midlands were chosen.
Father Ian Corns said: “When I saw Bud on the Battersea programme I couldn’t stop looking at him. His character shone through and he reminded me so much of our old Collie-cross Rune.
“We called Battersea Old Windsor and they arranged for us to come and meet him. Now we’ve got Bud we can’t believe he’s been looking for a home for so long.
“He fits in so well already. He loves being involved in whatever the family is doing and we’ve all fallen in love with him.”
Bud twice went out to live with volunteers to give him some stability during his wait, having been left by an owner who could no longer take care of him.
Battersea Old Windsor Centre Manager Kaye Mughal said: “Since Bud arrived at Battersea the charity has rehomed over 5500 dogs, yet Bud was constantly being overlooked and we were at a loss to understand why.
“He’s such a wonderful dog with a great personality. When we spoke to Ian and his family everything seemed to click into place - they’re a great match for him.”
TV host Paul O’Grady, who has made regular appeals to find homes for dogs, added he was “over the moon”.
He said: “I can’t think of a better way to end the series than with knowing Bud has found a family.
"It broke my heart to think that he might spend a fourth Christmas without a home, so I’m over the moon to hear he’ll be surrounded by love this festive season.
"Bud is such an amazing dog and he deserves to have a happy ending to his story.”
