“As I had agreed to be their foster carer, little Gizmo was delivered to my home one Saturday afternoon, together with his siblings – Ellie Mae, the dog and Cheeky, the cat.

I had always considered myself a ‘big dog’ person and would not have believed that by Sunday morning the Trio had already tugged at my heartstrings, especially, ‘little dog’ Gizmo. He was tiny, weighing in at just over 2 kgs, he was a scrawny ‘bag of bones’, with a very big personality and enthusiasm for life.

We were soon to learn that unfortunately, none of the Trio had been well cared for, prior to joining VicDRG, as they all needed extensive vet work. Poor Gizmo had fared the worst, as he needed most of his teeth removed and sadly, was diagnosed with a low grade lymphoma.

As each day passed, I grew more attached to this little scallywag – he loved to play; to run; to go for a walk with the ‘big’ dogs; to snooze, whilst taking a car ride; he loved his sisters, Cheeky and Ellie Mae. Gizmo loved people generally and used to jump up for a cuddle and to be held; keeping in mind with his tiny size, his jump managed to get him up to most people’s ankles, but still he jumped enthusiastically.

The vet advised to feed Gizmo whatever amount he would eat, however, he much preferred to play and I had to stand beside him, giving him an encouraging pat to keep him focused on his meals. Thankfully, by the time he moved to his lovely, adoptive home, he had a layer of flesh over his bones and was a whopping 2.5kg; hurrah!

Gizmo was always happy, with his little tail wagging, jumping around, comically getting into mischief and sticking his nose into every nook and cranny. When I visited his adopters, I knew he would love their garden, with so many interesting places for him to sniff and investigate.

We were so pleased to have been able to keep the Jarrett Trio together and although I was sad to let them go, I was happy for the new adventure they went on. Sadly, after only 4 weeks, I was told Gizmo had been rushed to emergency and there was nothing could be done.

I went to visit with Gizmo, to say goodbye. Although he was tired and weak, his little body black from the internal bleeding that was now occurring, he was happy to see me, he wagged his little tail and tried to make a wobbly jump, whilst on the vet’s table. He licked me all over, which was his bad habit. I picked Gizmo up and held him in my arms and as the vet and I chatted, Gizmo snoozed, contentedly, snuggled up next to my heartbeat and that is where he took his last breath and went to his long sleep.

Gizmo Jarrett was a treasure, a joy to have around, he made me smile all the time with his antics. What a privilege to foster care this gorgeous ‘little’ man. I am sad he did not have longer with his lovely, new, family, but I do know he was very loved during his time with VicDRG and during his short time with his forever family.

Have fun over the rainbow bridge little man; I shall remember you with love and a smile.”