He travelled all the way to Nose from his former home and was put in the same enclosure as one of his family members, Pinochio, but was so scared that he couldn’t even eat. We tried a plethora of foods to get him to eat and eventually worked out that he liked fish. He continued to enjoy fish throughout his life.

When Rooster fell ill, many people were concerned and brought him things to eat. He especially seemed to like cod – he was a bit of a gourmet! He suffered from Babesiosis, a malaise common in warmer climates. His state of health went through dramatic changes. For his first year at ARK, Rooster had to visit the vet every second day. No matter how unpleasant the blood tests and treatment was, Rooster was never angry. When his health improved, Rooster looked after younger dogs. He was always gentle with both humans and other dogs.

As he grew used to his surroundings, he began to chew things, once destroying a house staff had made from cardboard in just a few minutes, but he never once showed aggression to humans. When he came to Sasayama, he formed an almost incredible bond with Pine. Despite the age difference, the two dogs were a wonderful pair, each as keen as each other to be together. When other dogs would bark at Pine, Rooster would bark back to pro- tect the younger dog. Pine was truly the centre of his world. Rooster served as the sales manager of Sasayama ARK, welcoming new people cheerily. Many came back to see him, some as volunteers and sponsors.

This friendly boy, while loved by everyone, was never adopted, perhaps because of his illness, and ended up taking his final breath at ARK. Perhaps it was lucky he could be with his friend Pine until the end. Rather than mourn his loss, I would like to celebrate his life and the way he lived it.