Sandra Chapman: My first Christmas with the dog who eventually escaped the illegal breeders

So special is it that had the rain been belting down we would all have ignored it. There is nothing more delightful than to see hoards of children, dressed appropriately, trying to contain their excitement knowing that Christmas is gift time, a very special time which they will remember for the rest of their lives and pass on to the next generation.

Next morning I happened to be passing the tree during my daily dog walk. My little companion stopped almost in awe. In her past life she had never seen anything like it, a tree lit up in daylight. It took a bit of tugging at her lead to encourage her forward. Clearly it was new to her.

Some months back we had found our precious dog in a rescue centre which we had visited one day after our last dog had died of cancer. The pain of losing him was still with me; surely we should find a replacement. We took 10 seconds to decide. There was one just a few feet away from us being cuddled by a member of staff.

This one we were told had had a difficult time having been used for illegal breeding. Mercifully the breeding den had been raided by police who do a much valued job exposing this evil trade.

Yes, said the Shelter staff, she needed a home as she had not been well treated in the last one. She was definitely too young to have had two sets of pups. We decided instantly that we would provide a new home for her.

We had been dog-less after our last one. A home without a dog has a certain emptiness to it. We didn’t take long to make a decision.

Shelter staff must see some pathetic, sad animals on a regular basis. Would they part with this young one who had lost all her babies to evil people? She would have mourned them pitifully. She may even have been wondering where they were on the day we first saw her which was probably why a member of staff was cuddling her.

I write my story after reading this week in the Belfast Telegraph about how `two men were sentenced over involvement in illegal puppy smuggling in Northern Ireland and Yorkshire’. Fifty eight dogs had allegedly been found in one van.

Our precious dog is a joy to us both. She’s affectionate, funny and loves play. From what I know of how her pups were taken from her I’m certain that her occasional silence and lost look suggests to me that the past comes back to her and she wonders where her babies are.

She has toys to play with and one in particular holds her attention. It’s a white fluffy pup, the only one she doesn’t chew up like she does others. She panics sometimes if she’s mislaid it and it always goes to bed with her.

We are a nation of humans who think we are superior to everything else on this earth. But we are not. Animals bring us joy and why people ill treat them is something I will never understand. This will be my pup’s first Christmas. Already she is in awe of the bright lights of a Christmas tree.

Christmas music wouldn’t be the same without Shane MacGowan’s punk contribution

Two of my favourite, famous, people died this week, Glenys Kinnock whose husband was the politician and Labour leader Neil Kinnock and Shane MacGowan, lead singer of the Pogues who gave us punk music that you could enjoy.

When Glenys Kinnock first came on the scene she was a teacher. I would say few imagined she would eventually become a politician herself, after all her husband was a cabinet minister and Labour Leader. But her husband supported her when she stood in the European elections in 1994 winning a seat.

Originally a secondary school teacher her talents stretched far beyond the classroom and some would say as a politician she was more famous than her husband. Her interest in the developing world was to many far more interesting than her husband’s Westminister politics.

She died aged 79 from complications of Alzheimer’s disease. I will always remember her as the politician who never seem to fail to put a smile on her husband’s face.

That other famous face who died this week was Irish born Shane MacGowan who I first saw on a Christmas television show singing the unforgettable Fairy Tale of New York which became a Christmas chart topper.

To this day it will be heard in many a Christmas concert around the world and New Yorkers particularly adore it.

The scruffy looking, funny toothed singer may have acted like a punk should but his background suggests differently. His schooling was high class Prep, followed by winning a scholarship to Westminister School. The toothy look was his own making.

Christmas music today would not be complete without the stunning Fairy Tale of New York which he duet-ed with Kirsty McCall making it one of our favourite Christmas songs.

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