Crufts 2024: Meet the adorable rescue dogs defying the odds to take part -including Beau the Spaniel who was saved from ‘horrendous’ conditions and had never even been outside

Seeing their furry friend reach Crufts is a moment of pride and joy for any owner. But for those who have rescue dogs, it’s even more special.

Among the rescues participating this year, takes place at Birmingham‘s NEC between March 7 and 10 is Spaniel Beau from East Yorkshire, who was rescued from ‘terrible circumstances’ by the RSPCA.

The adorable pup – along with 36 other dogs – was found malnourished, dehydrated and surrounded by faeces in Gilberdyke in 2019, but will now compete in the famous dog show.

Before he was adopted, he had ‘never been outside’ and ‘never done anything’, so this is a huge achievement for the dog.

RSPCA Inspector Tom Hutton, who adopted Beau, told the story BBC news: ‘I think this will be the ultimate moment for both of us, from where he came from to now, where he is now.

“Walking around there on national television, competing with some really tall dogs. You couldn’t make it up.’

Indie, a type of greyhound known as Sloughi, is also among the animals that beat the odds and made it to Crufts.

She was found injured, starving and abandoned two years ago after being severely abused.

“Indie was really malnourished and we could see all her ribs and she had cigarette burns on her butt,” her owner Nadiyah Storey explained.

Adding: ‘She was so scared of people and she had been bitten by other dogs so she had purple spray to cover her wounds.

‘It is likely that she was used in the game trade along with hunting dogs.

“Every time we went to pet her, she flinched because she thought she was going to be hit.”

Nadiyah, from Hexam in Northumberland, first looked after Indie before deciding to give her a forever home and adopt her.

Now she is bursting with pride as the puppy will run on the green Crufts runner today.

Indie will compete alongside other dogs in a team of eight as part of the Eclipse Flyball Club, based in Morpeth.

It comes after the team became one of 16 to win their qualifying events last year.

During the event, the dogs must jump over four obstacles, which activate a fly box to release a ball.

They must then return over the same obstacles without dropping the ball, while trying not to collide with the other team’s dog.

Nadiyah recalled, “We’re used to training dogs, but we’ve never had a dog that was so afraid of being touched, so that was so difficult.

‘We took her to a Flyball club to get her socialized and she slowly progressed and then her journey to Crufts began.

‘She’s still reserved around strangers, but once she gets to know them, she’s great. Indie wasn’t very good at Flyball at first, but we stuck with it and she got better and better and here we go to Crufts.

‘Some people at Crufts breed their dogs and sell them for thousands of pounds, so it will be great to have little free Indie there.’

She said they are “so proud of her” and that they “never thought something like this would happen.”

Meanwhile, Buddy, another rescue dog, went from not being able to be in the same room as his owner to running around the agility arena together.

He will also try his luck on the green carpet and compete in the Agility Novice Cup today at 8.15 am.

Buddy’s owner Seb Thomas, from Bridgwater, Somerset, took him in in 2018 after finding him on a Facebook rescue site.

“I went up to him, he was running away from us, growling at our other dogs, so I thought that looked like a challenge, let’s give it a try,” he said ITV News.

The proud owner recalled: ‘He had a lot of problems, skinny little thing, terrible coat, a bit biting, and now he is happy and hardly leaves our side.

‘He will do anything we want and is almost the perfect companion. It has been many years of hard work, but very worth it.’

Seb works full-time at a car dealership and uses the agility training in his spare time.

He revealed that it is a ‘huge achievement to have qualified’ and that all they can wish for is to ‘have fun on the day’.

Adding: ‘A little rescue dog that gets 15 to 20 minutes a week of agility training, in addition to his exercises, to get up there and compete against some of the guys who probably do it a lot more than us. I think it will be fantastic, so that’s huge.

“My only ambition was to one day make a grand final with him and we did it, so I’m over the moon about that.

“We’ve done everything we wanted and if we do anything else, I’m made up.”

Every year the international dog show Crufts sees thousands of puppies of all shapes and sizes come from all over the world to one place to take part in a variety of competitions and shows.

Owners and pets will compete in categories such as agility and obedience from Thursday, with the world-class Best In Show title awarded on Sunday.

Crufts has been around since 1891 and is currently organized by The Kennel Club – it is considered the most prestigious dog competition in the world.

Channel 4 and More 4 will be broadcasting the action over four days, if you want to see Indie, Buddy and Beau on the infamous green carpet.