A woman who has rescued 15 dogs from a hard life on the streets has revealed that she will never stop taking them in.
Bernie Watkins, 49, lives with her two equally animal-loving children, son Caden, 13, and daughter, Frankie, 10, who follow in her footsteps by refusing to turn away a pup in need.
Since relocating from the UK to Granada, Spain, the family has come across a myriad of outcast animals including multiple dogs, cats and one little bird.
Now, they’ve created a “real life” Noah’s Ark – with “twice as many animals as humans” in their hectic household.
“We’ve saved 15 dogs but there’s always room for one more,” Bernie told http://NeedToKnow.co.uk .
“The strays we take in have got the best of all worlds — they come in, lie on sofa and then go out, but you can’t stop that.
“That’s the unfortunate side, but the great part is the mountain walk I take them on every day.
“I go up into the mountains and I take them for mountain strolls and that’s where the big dogs run around – it’s beautiful.
“We’ve picked up dogs from the side of the road and re-homed them, where we once saw a dog running in the middle of the road at Christmas.
“We were scared he was going to get ran over, but I advertised on social media to see if he had a home and it turns out his name was ‘Lucky’ – who had been missing for seven months.
“He was reunited with his owners on Christmas Eve and it was a miracle.”
Despite coming across so many stray animals, the mum chooses not to pack her cupboards with supplies.
Instead, she insists the family’s system works most smoothly when all hands are on deck as soon as a new animal appears.
She explained: “They’re just there, they just sort of turn up – it’s like with the kittens, we weren’t going to have cats because of the dogs, but then they just turned up.
“My son found these three-week-old kittens and they were going to fall off a ledge and then he just brought them back and that was it, they’ve been with us since.”
The job of animal saviour isn’t easy, and Bernie explained that while some animals are easier to care for than others, some hail from abusive and neglectful backgrounds, making their responsibilities a little harder.
One such animal is their first rescue and household pet, Harry, who remains wary of strangers.
Bernie said: “Harry, our big dog that we’ve got now, is a bit of a problem dog because he’s big and so they treated him poorly on the street.
“As he started walking past our house, he was so skinny, so we started putting food out.
“It was two weeks before he’d come near us. He’d eat, and he’d sleep outside the door, but that was it.
“Then he started walking with us, and other dogs, but he is very nervous with people, so we’ve got to be careful.
“I have to muzzle him to go out because of what happened to him prior, where people were shooing him away with sticks and trying to kick him.
“The people in the village didn’t want him around because they were scared of him – so now he doesn’t trust many humans, especially outside of the house.
“He’s got special needs.
“Our little one dog, Ruby, was on a rope. They [her former owners] just kept her on a rope and now she’ll still poo in the house every now and again and things like that – but it’s fine.
“The dogs are so grateful to have been saved.”
It’s not only the animals who show their appreciation for a better life, Bernie has also noticed a positive change within her own mind since setting out on her mission.
She said: “They just make you realise they share their home with you, and [we’re] grateful to have them because every day you know they’re so, so happy.
“I rescued them but they’ve rescued me in a way – they are like my little saviours.
“They show so much love and affection and they put their trust in me, which gives me peace.
“It gives me calmness and so much joy.
“They give me a sense of purpose and I feel totally honoured that they would put their trust in me after what has happened to them.
“I would not be without them, and I don’t want anything to happen to these guys.”
Despite ‘expecting’ to keep the animals they help, Bernie explained that the strays often leave the family behind after being rejuvenated – though some loyal dogs have made their house a permanent home.
She added: “But it seems to me that when one [animal] goes, another one sort of chops in.
“They’re just beautiful little souls.
“They’ve been treated appallingly, but they are kind, loving, and forgiving.”
