Name: Rumour
Nicknames: La Ru, RuRu, Slugdog, Dozer, Dobby (when she was a puppy)
How did Rumour get her name: 9 years ago, I had just started working as a student vet nurse, so I wanted a unique name for my soon to be new puppy. I was also living at home with my parents and we already had 4 dogs. Dad said if we got a 5th, he was moving out. So, I figured if I called the pup Rumour and he asked if I was getting another puppy, I could just say ‘just a rumour’. Side note: he didn’t move out when I bought her home and loves her.
Age: Almost 9
Home: Hunter Valley, NSW
Breed: American Staffy
How old was she when she came to live with you: 10 weeks.
Favourite food: Everything… chicken is up there.
Favourite activity: Sleeping or going to the beach.
Favourite toy: Anything my brother has.
Other pets she lives with: Archie, a 5 year-old Rescue GSP from Fetching Dogs Rescue; horses Ninja and Zavi.
Most unusual things she has chewed: As a puppy she would only destroy my mum and brother’s things. Never mine. She took a particular liking to my brother’s books – more than once, she ate the last book in a series!
Funniest moments: Everybody says how human like Rumour is. Her eyes are extremely expressive, you know exactly how she feels about things. If someone asks her to do something she doesn’t want to do, she gives “the look” – you know she isn’t happy about it.
She can also be super lazy, and she has been known to use her front legs to drag herself on her bed to the water bowl!
Interesting fact: I got Rumour knowing she wasn’t 100%. The breeder’s vet diagnosed her with irritable bowel syndrome. I took her to my vet 2 days after I got her, and it turned out she actually had intussusception (part of her intestine had telescopes onto itself causing it to start dying). She had major surgery that day.
For anyone considering getting a dog for the first time, what advice would you give them? Research your breed thoroughly! Understand that dogs need mental exercise just as much if not more than physical exercise – get creative with it.
