Blue was found at the back of The Paint Pot hardware store in Templeogue, owned and run by Norman Priestman, who is retiring today after almost 50 years in business.
Before Norman and his daughter Gina close the shop’s doors for the final time, she gave one final update about Blue, the dog the community looked after so well.
“I open the shop at 6am every morning. When I arrived one day, wrapped in a wet blanket was a little puppy,” Gina said.
“He had a broken back leg, so I put him in my jacket to warm him up and then I took him to the DSPCA.
’We’re more than a hardware store but I’m giving it up when I’m still fit,’ says owner of Dublin shop
“They didn’t know what age he was, and said until he gets a bit bigger, there’s not much you can do. I decided that I’d bring him home and, needless to say, he hasn’t left home since.
“I wasn’t going to leave him behind because he didn’t have his whole health. I was afraid that he wouldn’t have a chance. I wanted to nurse him the best I could with the help of the vets.
“His prognosis was not good at the start, but now to see him running, it’s great.
“We got him back to full health with good nourishment, he never needed an operation on his leg. As long as he wasn’t in pain, I was quite happy to keep him, I didn’t mind if he had a funny leg.
“Because of his leg, we used to call him the Wonky Donkey, he couldn’t walk properly.”
Blue was just a puppy when he was found dumped outside the shop 18 months ago
Everyone has spoiled him over the last year and a half. But since the shop is closing on October 31, Blue will be living with Gina in Rathnew, Co Wicklow.
“He’s called Blue because of his eyes. My daughter and partner picked it, and I was outnumbered, I wanted to call him Rodney,” Gina said.
“Customers were arriving with kennels, coats, blankets, and food. Children came down with their pocket money, they’d buy him bones.
“There was a lovely community aspect to it. For the first few weeks I used to bring him into the shop in a crate because he needed the attention. I got very little work done then.
“Kids would come in after school and play with him. But then he got too big to bring in but started enjoying life at home with my own children. He’s been loved ever since, he’s our family, we wouldn’t be without him.
“He’s spoiled rotten, my children would say he’s fed better than them.
“He wakes up every morning and has a tin of sardines for breakfast, which keeps his coat lovely and shiny. My son and daughter are great at walking him.
“He loves a snuggle in the evening, he’s great craic when he’s out on a walk and he’s great with kids.
“I think being raised by a community has him that way. He’s one of the children, he’s hilarious. You wouldn’t know there was anything wrong with him in the beginning,” she added.
