Introducing Sir Maxelot... who's been at the heart of our move into off grid life in Spain!

Let me formally introduce you to the legend that is, Sir Maxelot. Our furry baby... our rescue greyound who's the size of a mini pony and Prince of our new off-grid kingdom and generally... ruler of our lives.

When we'd been living the highlife in Hong Kong... we'd often said we'd love to have a dog. But we kept putting if off saying 'it's not the right time'.

Two years later and we were out on our asses and living back in Scotland... we were depressed, seriously skint and wondering WTF were we going to do. My partner couldn't get a job... and I was putting everything I had into building my healing and channelling practice online and in person, to support us. It might not sound it, but it was a seriously tough time for us.

So when my partner said... "Let's just do it... let's get the dog we've always wanted... I mean, what are we waiting for?"... my stomach leapt and lurched at the same time. The responsibility of taking on a dog, when we were only just scraping by, seemed just another burden to carry and, in all honesty, a step too far.

But The Universe had other ideas. All of a sudden, one of my friends was volunteering and walking rescue greyhounds... and my Facebook newsfeed was full of pictures of sad looking dogs with their great big pleading eyes. When we looked into greyhounds as a breed, we were surprised to discover that they don't need much exercise and they are just great big mushballs of lurv.

Some of the horror stories of greyhound racing and the cruelty they go through, totally broke our hearts and we found ourselves trawling through rescue websites for 'The One' that we could give a forever home to. Considering we lived in a 4th floor flat in the city, we were relieved to find out that they were one of the top breeds suitable for that exact environment because, they basically just want to lie on the sofa. Full stop.

The long story short is that we ended up being interviewed by the Scottish Greyhound Society. Yup... we were put through our paces and our home inspected. I felt old childhood patterns of desperately needing approval and even more desperately wanting to be liked, surfacing again... and I was more nervous than I'd been in years.

And on a grey, rainy Saturday afternoon in central Scotland in 2016, we went to meet some potential dogs. But none of them were The One. We felt guilty and disappointed at the same time. And then a last minute phone call came through.

"Do you want to go and see Max? You're only half an hour away?!" So we said, "Sure... why not?"

We drove up to the equestrian centre in the rain and initially thought we were in the wrong place but we were greeted as great big wooden doors slid open and welcomed in. There was a very large white horse standing close by and just as Max was brought over to us and we were being told "He's not good with men," Max pushed up to my partner and shoved his head between his knees..

There was a moment of stunned silence.

And a love and deep connection between species was born.

My man seriously choked back the tears.

It was a done deal... and OMG, he was just sooo special. His eyes, his demeanour... his aloofness. He was understated, reserved....deep... wise....he was everything. We all fell in love.

Five days later, Max walked through our front door... and his into his new, forever family. But jeez... he was massive. He hadn't looked that big at the stables.... but in our flat... he was the size of a mini pony!

Over the next weeks and months, we all got to know each other and we gently settled into new routines. Max was an old boy, who just wanted a quiet life... and we were introverts, living a quiet life... so we really were the perfect match. He also likes to wipe his face on our bed after eating... he loves a danger pee over something bushy, stingy or prickly... he likes to walk through tall grasses... he likes walking along the edge of drop-offs... he wasn't interested in the sea... he can happily sleep through Strictly Come Dancing... and he loves his food... he loves being in the energy when I channel and do oracle card readings... and he likes us all to go to bed at 10pm with lights out.

We also learnt that as much as Max enjoyed being around other greyhounds... he was not so great around other dogs or strangers. In fact, he was reactive. But we adjusted, loved, adjusted some more, loved some more and adjusted some more... and the love just kept growing.

And then somewhere down the line, Max, became Sir Maxelot...due to his regal demeanour and often 'princely' behaviour... when he was awake, that is. Because most of the time, he was admittedly asleep on the sofa. Again.

There have been some major challenges due to his reactive behaviour and there have been some heart breakingly beautiful moments when a normally undemonstrative Sir Maxelot has shown a tiny bit of affection, wagged his tail and leaned into us. And the rest of the time he likes to be left alone in peace and quiet... on the sofa. I don't blame him after those years of enforced racing.

So when life in Scotland became too much and we made that decision to start a whole new life in Southern Spain, it became a family adventure that would have to support Max's need for quiet stability and routine... and yet still allow us to drive the 2835km into starting a new life.

He was an absolute star. He stayed in budget Ibis hotels through France and Spain with us... surprised us all by making friends with Tanzi the boisterous ridgeback puppy during our mid France layover with friends... he surveyed European motorway life out the boot window... and when we finally arrived at our Órgiva rental in the Spanish Alpujarras... he wandered in, sniffed around and then flopped down onto his hurriedly put down bed with a great big Hurrumph... as if to say "Thank God for that."

Sir Maxelot has been with us 3 years now. He is around 11 years old... and he has us wrapped around his furry little paws. All four of them. He's been on the edge of the dog rainbow a couple of times... but a wonderful naturopath and healer here has helped him find his balance... and basically he has retired into a life of being loved.

And as much as we like to think that we rescued him... the truth is, he rescued us right back.

Love,

Sally xx

PS... if you're thinking about taking in a rescue dog... go get a greyhound!