A Husky Living in a Scrapyard, a Hero Dog and an Ex-Racehorse Animal Saints and Sinners

-Good boy.

-Nearly half of Britain owns a pet.

Nice one, mate.

It's the council and the police, can you open the door, please?

But man and beast don't always live together in harmony.

We have reason to believe it is your dog and that you've had it for a fair few years and not two weeks.

When things go wrong,

animal wardens are there to protect our pets

and keep their owners in check.

I'm not having my dog taken from my house.

-I love you too.

-But for some of us, our animals are more than just pets.

I wouldn't know what to do without him.

They can change and even save lives.

I owe my life to these horses.

This is Animal Saints And Sinners.

-Coming up...

-I think it's a potential of type.

He needs more water.

Dog control officers in Salford

are concerned about two dogs that live in a scrap-yard.

I really hope that someone's taken that dog in.

I'm concerned he's hurt.

We meet a retired racehorse who turned one girl's life around.

We just looked at each other and from then on there was just

a spark between us.

And a heroic dog that put his own life in danger to save his owner.

I was really frightened. I thought I was going to lose my best friend.

All local authorities across the UK

have a duty to deal with stray and lost dogs.

Come here, mate. Do you know him?

Where does he live?

But in Salford, dog control officers Will Harris and Erica Eaton

also work closely with the Greater Manchester Police

to keep an eye on those listed under the Dangerous Dogs Act.

Will, be careful.

-Good boy.

-Look at the side of his head.

He's got quite a big head.

You can always tell by the jaw.

There are four banned breeds of dog in the UK.

But with an application through the courts, some owners can be allowed

to keep them, if it's deemed safe

and certain restrictions are adhered to.

We've been working with the GMP, Manchester Police,

just checking the exempt dogs in Salford,

which means we go to the property,

we check that the dog's muzzled, tattooed, micro-chipped,

neutered and they have insurance

and just to see the general health of the dog

and to make sure that they're caring for the dog

and following the rules of the exemption notice.

In Salford, there are 15 banned-breed dogs that have been legalised.

The police have asked Will and Erica

to do an unannounced house-to-house check.

We're just going to check on Missy, an exempt pit-bull.

We've been before and we didn't see a muzzle

so we're going to make sure that the owner,

a responsible owner hopefully, has got a muzzle this time.

Five weeks ago, Will and Erica visited this address

and it wasn't just the lack of a muzzle they were worried about.

They were also concerned that she was under-weight

and had advised the owner to take her to a vet straightaway.

-So what's the vet said, she's got tapeworm?

-Yeah.

-And she only took her yesterday?

-Yeah.

It's a few weeks ago now since we last visited.

Have you got a muzzle?

Oh, excellent. We'll just have a quick look.

-Right, is that what they've given her?

-Yeah, that's fine.

We've been before and we didn't have one so I'm glad she's got one now.

And you're beautiful, aren't you?

Aren't you beautiful? Oh, yes.

And again, let's see if we can see the tattoo.

All dogs that are pit-bulls, exempt dogs, will have a tattoo.

Missy's owner is now complying with the rules

but Will and Erica are still concerned about her weight,

especially as the vet has confirmed she has tapeworm.

She's a lovely girl.

So we called about four or five week ago now, and erm...

Just on the off-chance, I spoke to your partner about Missy's weight.

Been a long time, really, for her to be that thin.

-Fix her, we'll see you again.

-Missy... Come on then. Bye.

I wasn't impressed with the fact that it's four or five weeks

since we last visited and I told him

then that Missy needed to see a vet so it's, like,

nearly five weeks down the line and she's only seen the vet this week.

That treatment that she's been given

could have been given a few weeks ago

and we now could have seen a difference, but...

You don't know their personal circumstances, do you?

In fairness, if it had been my dog, she'd have been there the next day.

But not everybody's the same, are they?

Will and Erica will keep a close eye on Missy

until they're happy she's being well cared for.

Their next call is to try and track down the owner of a pit-bull

who can't be found at the address the dog is registered to.

We've actually been to a property

where the dog was supposed to be residing

and the property was tinned up

so we've since found out that the dog could be at this address here

so we're just going to investigate.

-We've been asked to come round by the police with regards to

-BEEP

-dog.

-She's got an exempt pit-bull, hasn't she?

-Right.

That had reason to believe that she was erm...

Had links to this property.

It turns out that the dog's owner doesn't live here either.

We have about 15 dogs on the exempt list in Salford at the moment.

We need to make sure that we know when they've moved to tell us

and to keep a regular check on these dogs because, you know,

they are exempt and we need to make sure

that the residents of Salford are safe

and do know that there's exempt dogs in the area.

She's got a new property.

-Right.

-But I think, at the end of the day,

knowing that her dog's like it is,

she should have rung you and told you.

Yes, part of her exemption for the dog, has to.

Dog attacks is headline news at the moment

so obviously we want to make sure she's following the rules

so that there's no problems in the future.

The tenants of the property hand over the details they have for the owner of the dog.

Because the owner has moved out of Salford,

the case will be handled by the police in that area.

Alongside the pit-bulls that are exempt,

Will and Erica also have to report any dogs not on the register

that they believe may be banned breeds.

We're in Lower Kersal and we're going to a scrap-yard where,

I believe, there is a pit-bull on site.

This isn't Will's first visit to the scrap-yard.

Earlier this week,

he found a husky dog roaming in the area which had run loose from there.

He took the husky back to the pound,

but the owner has yet to pay the fine and collect the his dog.

The owner of the scrap-yard isn't in, but someone opens the gate

to let them take a look at the dog Will suspects is a pit-bull.

Can we come in?

Very, very careful.

Where's the dog? Is he tied up?

Right, this is the dog we saw, yeah.

When I came here on Monday he was running around.

-I think it's a potential of type.

-It's potentially of type, OK.

-He's locked up here.

-Hello.

-Has he got food and water in there?

Well, he's no water there at the moment, there's no food.

Hello, mate. Are you a handsome boy, yes, he is...

-He needs more water.

-Yes.

OK, thank for your help, thanks for your assistance.

Thank you very much indeed, thank you.

Thank you, see ya.

We've seen the dog now.

Doesn't look like it's very well kept in the conditions,

there's no water for it.

We believe it could be of type, we've taken a photograph

and we're going to submit that photograph

to our contact at the police for assessment.

We're authorised to issue fixed penalties.

That's where our powers end.

We have no control over cruelty cases, we can't seize dogs.

All we can do is advise.

And sometimes the fact that erm...

If we keep going back, if we suspect a dog's being not treated correctly,

if we keep going back, sometimes it's more of a deterrent

than actually for anyone with court cases, fines and stuff like that.

It's just keeping on top of them sometimes.

Back at the pound, the owner of the scrap-yard has arrived

to pick up the husky that Will had seized from the premises

earlier in the week.

-So the guy who owns the dogs...

-Yeah.

-He's on holiday?

Yeah, he's coming back after tomorrow, I think.

-Does he live in Salford?

-Yeah.

-So that's the dog's chip number.

-OK.

It's chipped with Pet Log and that's their telephone number

so if you tell him to ring them, give him that number,

-tell him he needs to change the dog's details.

-Lovely. Thank you.

And also we need to look out for any holes in the fence

how the dog got out in the first place.

Because obviously it's got out, we don't know how.

Right. Now let's get the dog.

OK, make sure when you get the dog home give him plenty of water.

He's just had two big bowls, but make sure he has some more.

It's warm over in the kennels as well.

But he's been well looked after.

Where are you? You're not going to go anywhere.

The dog has escaped twice already.

Both times, this man has come to collect him,

although he claims the dog is not his.

So make sure you get that chip changed, it's very important.

-Also a tag.

-Yeah.

Because what would happen, a member of the public would have found him,

they would have looked at the tag and would have phoned the owner straightaway

-and it would have saved you 25 quid.

-OK.

-OK?

-I'll sort it out, yeah.

Find out later what happens

when the husky is allowed to escape yet again.

If he's hurt he could be lying in the bushes or something, you just...

It's going to be by chance that someone finds him.

Horses are very, very important.

They're a big part of my life.

But there's always one that holds the key to my heart which is Monty.

Montendre, also known as Monty, is a 27-year-old ex-racehorse.

Monty's a really special horse.

He was very highly raced in his career,

104 races altogether was a lot over 11 years.

He had 12 wins, two of the wins

when he was a two-year-old with Frankie Dettori on board.

Monty now lives a life of leisure at a horse charity in Wiltshire.

Monty has been with the charity about 12 years now.

Since he's come out of racing, I think

he was fairly quiet but his confidence has sort of grown now.

He's a lovely horse, very intelligent.

He's looked after horses, I think he looks after people as well

and he tends to choose the people he likes so he's a very special horse.

Good boy.

-Good boy.

-Six years ago, Monty made friends with Amy from Marlborough.

When I was 13 I got put into care because of troubles at home.

Amy prefers to keep the details private

about what happened before she went into care.

Obviously I was quite a way away from my friends and family

so I was away from everybody that I knew.

And put into a new place and that was very, very scary as well.

Amy was so distressed

that she found it incredibly difficult to speak to anyone.

I've always been very, very, very shy.

And not wanting to talk to people or...

I couldn't go to a shop to buy sweets,

I couldn't leave my mum's side.

At school, I was struggling with, like, English, maths...

The basics really and then when you work into teams,

I didn't like that either.

Amy was offered conventional counselling and therapies

to try and help express her feelings

and start talking again but nothing seemed to help.

My school decided to...

They came up with this idea that I didn't actually realise

that it was going to change my life.

The idea was for Amy to take part

in a special training programme with horses.

When Amy first arrived here, she was troubled and withdrawn

and was finding it difficult to communicate with people.

Erm... And generally felt unhappy.

All the programmes that we do here are specifically targeted

for emotional literacy

so that is why we felt that perhaps Amy was a person

that could possibly benefit from coming to us

and maybe she could come out of her shell a little bit

and see and love and trust an animal.

I didn't think I needed help at the time.

I thought it was a silly idea...

..that they came up with.

But they...when they started talking about, it's animals,

it's horses, and...

Like, you learn how to look after them and groom them,

I started coming round because horses are my favourite animals

and it's something that I really, really wanted to do from a young age.

So that's how they got me around to wanting to come here.

But Amy's strong feelings for the horses came up against her inner fears

and when she arrived at the centre,

Amy wouldn't get out of the car and didn't speak to anyone.

It was very scary, it was out of my comfort zone.

They'd taken me out of school to come to a place that I didn't know anyone.

Er...very scary.

Eventually, Amy overcame her anxiety and agreed to go and see the horses.

Hello, Mont.

Monty.

I was walking around with the teacher,

just meeting every horse

and I walked into this barn.

Every horse sort of looked at you because they're like, "Oh, new person."

So Monty did exactly the same.

He just looked at me.

But we both, we just looked at each other

and from then on there was just a spark between us.

I don't know what. It just kind of happened.

(Good boy.)

I would say it was love at first sight

because he didn't do anything different to any other horse,

he just looked at me and there was an...

There was just something there.

That made be love him and obviously he...hopefully feels the same way.

SHE LAUGHS

Don't you?

The special training programme was set up

to help vulnerable children and young adults.

We offer a service for the local community in as much that

if children and young people are not flourishing in a normal classroom environment

and they have special educational needs,

we can provide something here,

by their relationship with an animal

that will build up their self-esteem, build up their confidence

and also having to work together so it builds up teamwork

and we all have to be working in a team as life goes on, don't we?

So it's all that type of thing.

So it's social skills and of course then it's the fact that

these horses do give something back to these children and young people.

Monty helped me through the toughest times. He listens to me.

He was the first thing that I spoke to

when I started coming out of my shell at Greatwood, erm...

I don't know, there's just something about him that

made me feel like I can actually do something with my life.

Looking after him, I kind of did everything for him.

Which was really good, it built our bond up even more.

Er... I used to sing to him and he would fall asleep in my arms.

He's just big, cuddly fluff-ball.

He's, like, he's not just a horse.

He's my best friend.

I think Monty's had a significant effect on Amy's life,

in as much that from Monty, she has gained confidence.

She's blossomed and flourished

and she's found a direction in her life that perhaps

she wouldn't have been able to find before

and she's an extremely gifted young girl

and has obviously got great talent in looking after the horse

which perhaps, if she hadn't met Monty

and hadn't wanted to help Monty and to groom Monty

and look after Monty, perhaps she'd never have discovered that talent.

In July 2012, Amy started working full-time as a groom at the centre.

I just, I can't leave this place.

It's helped me out that much that I had to keep coming back.

And obviously see this guy.

Good boy.

Good boy.

Back in Salford,

dog control officers Will Harris and Erica Eaton have been concerned

about the welfare of two dogs that live at a scrap-yard.

One is a husky they've found multiple times

roaming the streets on his own.

The other, they think, may be a pit-bull.

I think it's a potential of type.

Because dangerous dogs fall under the remit of the police,

-Will and Erica immediately informed them.

-He needs more water.

They have now assessed the suspected pit-bull

and confirmed that it was not a banned breed.

However, during their visit,

the husky made it's fourth escape attempt.

We've just took a call for roaming dog in the M6 area.

We believe it to be a male husky.

Given the description, we think it might be one we've had before.

He's a bit of a serial roamer so we're going to head up there

and see if it's him. We've had him...three times last week?

-Yes.

-Three times last week.

It's a Friday and Will and Erica need to find the dog before the end of the day,

otherwise it could be left out roaming all weekend.

Ace!

Ace!

SHE WHISTLES

It is the dog we thought it was, the husky.

Two times I've picked him up from here

so we thought he might be round here.

We're just looking round for him,

but normally if you shout him, he comes running, so...

We'll have a look around, see if he's about.

Ace!

SHE WHISTLES

The husky?

Has he gone that way? Cheers.

Ace!

SHE WHISTLES

He lives in the local scrap-yard which...

..in my own personal opinion, it's not the best place for him.

Husky?

Like a reddish colour, reddy-brown.

This way?

All right, thank you.

Ace! SHE WHISTLES

Yeah, a husky.

-He went up there, but...

-All right, thank you.

Everybody's seen him apart from us.

There's a bit of confusion over the dog's actual name.

They've called us he's called Ace, they've told us he's called Buddy.

Erm...there was another name, I can't remember now.

Buddy!

Buddy!

I'd hate for something to happen to him

because the roads are so busy round here.

I don't know if he's actually got any road sense.

Each time the husky has been found by the dog control officers

and taken to the kennels,

he's been collected by someone on behalf of the owner.

Well, there's a bit of confusion with regards to ownership

because every time we've had him,

he's picked him up and paid the money, the fee for claiming him.

But then says he doesn't belong to him

so when I've questioned as to where the actual owner is,

first off he tells me the owner was on holiday,

then he tells me the owner was in Bedfordshire, because that's where they live, apparently.

And then he tells me the owner's in hospital with blood pressure.

And now apparently the owner's in Bedfordshire again

so you don't know what to believe, do you?

A roaming dog in a public place is classed as a stray.

So it automatically comes under the control of the council.

But the afternoon is drawing in and it's not looking good.

Buddy!

I really hope that someone's taken that dog in.

I'm concerned he's hurt.

He could be anywhere now.

If he's hurt, he could be lying in the bushes or something.

It's going to be by chance that someone finds him,

unless someone has taken him in.

I want to go back to the yard.

-OK.

-I want to go back to the yard.

But on their way back to the scrap-yard,

they get the call they've been waiting for.

A family have a husky fitting his description in their front garden.

Hello. Come on, Buddy. Oh, is he tied up?

Sorry, I didn't realise he was tied up.

Hiya, mate. Hiya, have you missed me, Buddy? Oh, there we go.

-BOY:

-So, has it got an owner?

-Yeah, yeah.

-MOTHER:

-Does his owner not know he's missing?

-Yeah, yeah.

It might sound dead petty of me,

but...I want to make sure it gets reunited with its owners.

Erm, he...

In our personal view, he doesn't deserve to be back

-with his owners, he deserves a better home.

-OK.

I'm glad you're safe.

With only a few minutes until the end of their shift,

Erica and Will have finally tracked him down.

Dead chuffed, yeah, dead pleased.

I really thought the worst will have happened.

Erm... I'd have been out looking for him tonight, definitely.

Come on, mate.

The dog, known as Ace, Buddy or Blue,

is once again going to be taken to the place he knows well,

the council kennels.

Good boy. Let's get him back, get him sorted.

-CHILD:

-Where are you going with it?

We're going to take him to our kennels and look after them both.

-All right.

-Give him a nice bed, give him some food and some water.

Put the radio on, some nice music We'll put One Direction on for him.

Do you think he likes One Direction?

Er, I'm not entirely happy for...

..Blue to go back to his owner, or to the yard because

I know he's going to be out again and I know, if he's out again...

He could end up under the wheels of some dirty big HGV

driving down that road and that would break my heart.

It really would.

Later, we'll find out what the future holds for the husky.

Stay.

You'd always say, dogs are a man's best friend

but it doesn't even comprehend what Geo done for us.

Good boy.

Geo is a two-year-old German shepherd cross of Carly Riley

and her family from Clacton-on-Sea.

They got him when he was just a young pup

and it was a dream come true for eldest son, Charlie.

I wanted one for ages.

Charlie, yeah, he really, really wanted a dog,

but we thought if we got a puppy, he could grow up with him.

But we've always wanted one.

Well, we wanted a German shepherd

because we knew they were good with children and with families.

And we just planned to go and have a look at him

and see what he was like.

And the breeder just brought him out and it was love at first sight

so we just ended up coming home with him that day.

When I got home from school,

there was just this weird little puffball on the floor.

I was like, "What's that?"

And then it got up and started moving and then it jumped on me.

I got really excited, I wanted one for ages.

Young pup, Geo, quickly settled in with his new family.

He was brilliant with them from the beginning.

He just plays with them non-stop from the minute they wake up.

They run him round the house.

They do laps of the house running after each other, all of them.

I play ball with him with his ball and we throw it

and he, like, skids across the floor and head-butts the wall.

He's obsessed with all of the children, especially Charlie.

I mean, he's so protective.

He feels like my dog but Mum says he's a family dog.

When Geo was just over seven months old,

he proved to be more than just a family pet.

Just a normal day, I'd picked the children up from school,

we'd come back, get Geo and take him for a walk before dinner.

He's always been so good at roads, we just used to sit there,

we'd say sit and he'd just sit at a road so at the end of our road,

where there's a field, but you have to cross the main road to get to.

So it was just waiting there.

And then, suddenly, just this truck.

We heard it and I yelled to the boys to step back a bit from the kerb

and suddenly it just mounted the kerb.

Carly was holding the hands of her two younger boys.

I pulled my two youngest back and just hollered at Charlie

because he was a little bit away, to move.

12-year-old Charlie was standing on the pavement

and the truck was heading straight for him.

My first thought was obviously Charlie

because I knew the other two were safe

because I'd got them out the way

and literally, I just thought Charlie would be hit.

I just thought my son would be dead, it was horrific.

Not even worth thinking about, it's horrible.

With eldest son Charlie too far out of her reach,

Carly could only stand and watch.

But their young dog, Geo, took action.

Geo had got up on his hind legs

and with his front paws he'd pushed Charlie on his chest

backwards away from the road.

He'd actually pushed him with such force,

Charlie had scratch marks on his chest

where Geo had just literally shoved him out of the way of the truck.

It felt like someone was head-butting me,

but it was actually my dog pushing me

and I bashed my back on the floor and I had a bruise on there.

But Geo's quick reactions to save Charlie put himself in danger.

Charlie was out of the way and the truck was still on the path

and it just came and got Geo.

The truck went back onto the path and then ran over Geo again

while he was laying in the road.

And the truck just drove off, didn't even slow down.

Nothing, not even to check that it was Charlie he'd hit or the dog,

he just drove off.

I was really upset. I felt like he was going to die.

And I was never going to see him again.

It was like a pick-up truck with the open back

so it was quite a big, hefty truck to get hit by.

After the impact, Geo was actually lying in the middle of the road.

Without even a thought, I just ran in the middle of the road and sat with him,

like cars still coming, they're just driving by you,

until one of them stopped and literally cordoned off the road.

He was still awake and that in the road

but I thought he was going to die

because he wasn't moving or anything.

That's why I told them to face the other way

because I didn't want my children to see their pet die in front of them.

It felt really upsetting because, like, we just got him

when he was a pup and, like, we'd had him for a year

and he just fitted in like a part of the family.

It was awful, I was in absolute floods of tears,

the children were screaming their heads off. It was absolutely awful.

Just to think, I thought I was comforting him to die.

I was really frightened, I thought I was going to lose my best friend.

Luckily a couple of neighbours up the road

had actually heard the impact from in their house and heard Geo's yelp

and they'd come running out and helped me with him

and they put him in the back of a van and they took me up to the vet's with him.

I had a lot of thoughts driving from my work to the vet's,

you know, making sure the kids were all right, not actually

knowing exactly what had happened, I was like, sort of, panicky and...

Then when I got there and I saw my three boys,

they were all right, and my wife.

And then my attention straightaway turned to Geo

and saw the condition he was in. He looked really, really bad.

He couldn't move, he was just laying there.

You could tell he was in a lot of pain because he was whimpering.

DOG WHINING

-He wasn't well at all.

-They did some X-rays

and really looked after him but they said he needed a specialist

because they thought he'd broken his back.

The family took the decision to drive Geo 70 miles away

to see a specialist vet in Newmarket.

The vet actually did tell us that it was touch and go.

He did advise us that he couldn't guarantee that Geo would come through it fine

and it wasn't until we was actually leaving the vet's

that night because we'd had to leave him there

and on our way home they actually rang and said, look,

were we committed to it because it was going to cost a fortune

and there wasn't any guarantee...

Geo had fractured his spine, his leg and had damaged his internal organs.

Didn't think he'd survive at all.

Even at the vet's that we went to, the second vet's, they said

that if he was old, an older dog, he wouldn't have survived it.

The family had pet insurance,

but that was only going to cover a fraction of the bills.

There was no way we was going to let him down, it was...

It was a given that we would do anything we could for him

so there wasn't a question in my mind that I wouldn't have helped him.

Geo went through two and a half weeks of care at the vet's

and then had weekly hydrotherapy sessions.

He was over the worst, but there was no knowing

if he would ever make a full recovery from his injuries.

We can't actually walk Geo down the road any more,

we have to take him in the car to the field we used to take him to

because he just absolutely freaks out at the road.

Any road now, Geo is just...

He absolutely goes mad, tries to get away and cowers and barks.

He just doesn't like them at all.

What he's been through, you can't really blame him, bless him.

The family's determination to save Geo came at a cost.

To start with, the original vet bill was 17,000.

After he had a lot of publicity,

they've agreed to put it down to 8,500.

We had 3,000 insurance and the rest we're paying in instalments,

still, to this day.

Yeah, he's worth every penny.

He's our family, that's it. Geo's just...he's amazing.

Geo's since been given two awards for bravery.

Oh, we're very proud of Geo, yeah. He's just brilliant.

Everyone's always commenting on him, they recognise him everywhere.

To actually put himself in harm's way to actually save his owner,

I would never have thought,

not in a million years that he would have done that.

He has a bond with all of them the same but since the accident,

he is very protective of Charlie.

He is with all the children and me

but he's got a special little soft spot for Charlie, I think, yes.

Geo is the best dog I've ever had and he's the best in the world.

I'm very thankful for what he did to me, he saved my life.

I think he's our hero. The kids call him, Geo the Hero.

He's everything, I can't believe what he done, it was so selfless.

Back in Salford, dog control officers Will Harris and Erica Eaton

have had a husky in the kennels for two days now.

He lived at a scrap-yard but had been found roaming on his own

not once, but four times over the last two weeks.

-Buddy!

-And was in danger of getting seriously injured.

I'd hate for something to happen to him

because the roads are so busy round here.

I don't know if he's actually got any road sense.

Because they're responsible for the welfare of all animals in their borough,

Will and Erica now have real concerns about handing over the dog again.

And Erica has started to get attached.

He's my best friend now, aren't you, Blue? Eh?

We've bonded, haven't we, mate?

Yes. He smiles at me when I come over in the morning.

When I shout, "Where's me boy?"

Don't you, eh?

As you can see, he's really aggressive.

SHE GIGGLES

Aren't you? Oh. Oh, Blue.

He's absolutely gorgeous.

Such a shame.

We have actually had him now for two days.

His owner hasn't been in touch so we've contacted him.

We've spoken to him and he's agreed to sign the husky over to us.

Erica has made best efforts to ensure the owner is who he says he is.

If he turns up to sign the dog over,

he will no longer have any legal right to him.

The council will have sole responsibility.

How can you not love that face?

Some of them just get to you more than others and I think it's the fact

that he was living in a scrap-yard and he had no kind of life.

He was just left in the yard. I mean, don't get me wrong,

his owners probably loved him in their own way.

But they couldn't give him the attention that he needs.

Yes. All right, I'll hold your paw.

Come here.

As suspected, the owner doesn't make an appearance.

He's sent a family member to sign the dog over for him.

Hiya, erm, sorry about that. Which one of you's signing for him? Right.

All this is, is just to say,

that's the reason why he's being given a rescue space is

because he keeps escaping, he lives in the yard,

it's not great living conditions for the dog.

This just says that yourself relinquish any rights to the dog

and hand over responsibility to Salford City Council which is us.

-That's great, that's it, all sorted. All right then.

-Thank you very much.

-No problem.

-Thank you.

-Have a good day.

-You too.

-Thank you, see you.

-Thank you.

-Thanks. See ya.

-See ya, bye.

Even though the dog now belongs to the council, they can't keep him.

By law, they're only required to house a dog for seven days

and they don't have the facilities to do more.

Where's my kiss? Thank you.

I know what you want, don't you? Come on.

Blue... Oi! Come here.

Not want it now?

Not many dogs you could do that with.

Normal practise would be to take the dog to a rescue centre

and hope that it gets re-homed.

But in this case, Erica has personally arranged for him

to go straight to a temporary foster home.

-Erica.

-Hi, Erica.

-This is my partner-in-crime, Will.

-Hi, Will.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Pleased to meet you.

-Do you want to come over and see him?

-Yes, please.

-I'd like to see him once he's had a bath.

-How long has he been with you?

Er, on and off now for two weeks.

This time he's been with us since Tuesday.

Erm... So we've got to know him a little bit and what he likes and stuff, yeah.

He's lovely.

Erica has found a charity what specifically rescues huskies,

placing them in foster homes before finding them permanent ones.

Where's me boy?

-Hello, sweetie.

-My boy.

-Hello.

-Oh, you're gorgeous.

-Isn't he lovely?

Hello, darling. Oh, you're beautiful.

Really beautiful.

Are you going, boy? Are you going? Yeah, I know, all right...

Oh, giving you kisses.

-You all right? We'll keep you updated, I promise.

-Erica.

SHE LAUGHS

Come on, we're going now. Can I have a kiss? Kiss?

Good boy. Good lad.

Yeah, it is really hard not to get involved with the dogs

and nine times out of ten, I do. I cry quite often.

Not because there's something wrong with the dog

or it's not a happy ending.

If an owner comes to claim the dog, and they get upset,

I get upset with them.

It's just part and parcel of the job and, to be honest,

I wouldn't change it.

It shows that we care.

Hey? Blue?

I need that, mate.

You all right?

SHE LAUGHS

I know I can speak on Erica's behalf.

I know she's going to bawl her eyes out

but Erica, I know, is absolutely delighted.

Just nod your head.

Yeah. We're so pleased. Erm...

We've made a dog very, very happy even though he can't tell us,

we've made him happy.

And that's the beauty of this job.

Come on, there's one more waiting for us round the corner.

Let's go.

Here we are, Blue. Here we are.

-A new mum and dad.

-The husky's new home is with a couple in Sheffield.

Let's go meet them. Good boy.

-Hello.

-This is Blue.

-Hello.

-Is he all right to come in?

-Yeah, he's all right to come in,

really just into the room.

Here, Blue, this way. Come on, Blue.

Where are you, eh?

-Come here. He's very, very mucky.

-Is he?

-Blue?

He's been living in a scrap-yard so he's pretty dirty

and he needs a good brush.

Living in a house instead of a scrap-yard

will take some getting used to.

Hey?

We don't even know if he's been in a house before, do we?

Might never have been in a house, if he been kept at a scrap-yard.

Come on.

Well, Rob's one of our fosters

and all dogs that we have no history on

that have come from dog wardens or pounds have to be assessed,

obviously for safety reasons we wouldn't out them in a family home

with children in case they bite or they show any signs of aggression.

So Rob and his wife, Carly,

will spend the next four weeks putting him in different situations,

gradually introducing him to children,

getting used to being on a lead and then when they're satisfied that

he's safe to be re-homed, we then look for a "forever" home for him.

But I'm sure, he's so beautiful, people will be fighting over him.

He'll have no problems getting homed. He's gorgeous.

Come on. Good boy.

The dog will be sharing his foster home with another husky,

a female, so it's important to find out if they're going to get on.

Lots of wagging tails, that's a good sign.

Hello.

-SNARLING

-Hey, hey...

Play nicely.

-Come on.

-The two dogs are curious of each other.

But it doesn't take long for them to settle down.

They'll get on together like a house on fire, I think.

Erica and Will have been back to visit Missy,

the underweight exempt pit-bull.

Although she's not yet at her ideal weight,

they're happy that she's much healthier

and will continue to keep an eye on her.

The dog kept at the scrap-yard has also been revisited

and they're now happy that it's being looked after properly.

And Blue the husky has now been renamed Bear.

He's formed a close bond with Rio, the female husky at his foster home

and his carers are now hoping to adopt him permanently.