Sawadee krup! I’m Buddy, and I’m one of the older gents living here on The Farm.

It sometimes feels like I’ve been here forever because I’m so much a part of the Jai Dog family, but I had a very different life before I came to live at the shelter.

When I was a stray, I used to spend a lot of time hanging around the local temple. It’s a popular spot for street dogs: the monks are always very kind and there’s usually some food and shade. But because of this, competition and rivalry is fierce. For all too many dogs trying to survive life in a temple pack, it’s sink or swim.

Sadly for me, I wasn’t cut out for “pack life” and I was attacked by a gang of dogs. There were quite a few of them, and I’m not much of a fighter, so they left me battered and bruised. I ended up escaping with my life, but I was heavily wounded and was losing a lot of blood.

Luckily, someone found me and sensibly called the Jai Dog Rescue team. They knew exactly what to do, and whisked me off to the vet who treated my wounds and bandaged me up really well.

This is me before the Jai Dog Rescue team took me away, hiding in a bathroom to escape my attackers and fighting for my life.

Because of how severe my wounds were, I went back to The Farm, where I was given round the clock care. It was touch-and-go as to whether I’d pull through but, thanks to the kind man changing my dressings and keeping my fluids up, I fought off infection and made a full recovery.

I quickly made friends with the nice people who saved me: and they must have felt the same way as they called me Buddy! With time, I also got to know the dogs here on The Farm too, and have learned to play and a run with the others without feeling so fearful for my safety.

But the thing I love doing the most is snoozing in the sun after a good roll in the sand pit. There’s no better feeling than resting my bones safe in the knowledge that I have a calm and caring place to call home.

Whilst nothing will ever be as bad as those early injuries that brought me to The Farm, I’m an older boy with ongoing health issues. I have a hypoactive thyroid which can cause my skin to become very itchy and uncomfortable, but I know I can rely on the Jai Dog Rescue team to give me whatever I need to feel better again.

After many years on The Farm, I think the other dogs look up to me…you could say I’m the boss around here! I wouldn’t want to leave the team to look after all these young whipper-snappers on their own, they rely on me to help keep everyone in line after all. So I’m proud to call myself an integral part of the Jai Dog family, and I wouldn’t want that to change.

Your sponsorship helps fund medication for me and the other dogs in need on The Farm, to make sure we can live a healthy and happy life here. I’m receiving hormone therapy treatment which has made me much more comfortable, meaning I can get back to snoozing in peace – thank you very much for helping me live my best life!

You’ll also be helping other temple dogs like me who are ousted from the pack. This is an incredibly distressing experience: not only does it lead to fighting and often life-threatening injuries, but once you’ve been rejected, it’s almost impossible to be accepted back into life at the temple. That’s why I’m so grateful for my Jai Dog family, where everyone is loved and welcome.