A RESCUE dog who waited 18 months for a loving family finally found his forever home in Sedgley during lockdown.

Bruno was Dogs Trust’s most overlooked pooches as he had been patiently waiting for home since March 2019, before he was scooped up by a Sedgley family last month.

The heartwarming adoption comes as Dogs Trust has seen unprecedented demand for its rescue hounds over the lockdown period as demand for dogs has soared.

Gayna Groucutt, her husband Simon and adult children Francesca and Frazer adopted Bruno after visiting him eight times to build a bond.

Bruno’s new owner, Gayna Groucutt, said: “When we enquired about Bruno and heard how long he’d been waiting for a home, it made it all the more special to be given the chance to adopt him. It’s still early days but Bruno has settled in so well and the care and attention he received at Dogs Trust Kenilworth really shows.

"You get so much out of adopting dogs like Bruno and whilst everyone says he has landed on his paws with us, we feel like the lucky ones to be able to give him a forever home.”

The charity had 43,365 calls enquiring to rehome a dog from March 23 to the end of July, a 42% increase on the same period last year. In just one day, the charity had over 1,000 emails from people enquiring about three Dachshund puppies.

Emma-Jane Thomas, rehoming centre manager at Dogs Trust Kenilworth, said: “Lockdown has been a challenging time for us all, but we are so happy to see Bruno finally finding his forever home during this time.

"We believe that a dog is for life, not just for lockdown so our team has done a fantastic job in matching dogs to the right families during this pandemic and we have no doubt Bruno will bring lots of joy into his new family’s lives now and for years to come.

“We are grateful to players of People’s Postcode Lottery, whose support has allowed our specialist teams of Canine Carers to continue to give these dogs the best care, and find them their perfect forever homes.

“But the work doesn’t stop here – we still have lots of dogs who are looking for their new homes so, if you feel now really is the right time for you to be getting a dog, take a look at our website to find out more, and change the tale for more of our rescue hounds.”

Dogs Trust rehoming centres are not open for public browsing but new processes have been put in place to adopt a dog, including a virtual matching service and socially distanced appointments to help keep people safe.