We meet Homer. a portuguese podengo in London

Maria started to bark when he was at least 100 yards(90metres) away on the sidewalk.  It was what we call her hello bark.  I could make out a medium-sized dog approaching on the sidewalk.  I was unable to distinguish what it was. But Maria knew that it was a male podengo.

Homer was born in an unwanted litter in Portugal.  With two siblings he was deposited, at one week old, on the door step of a vet.  After that he had a bad life with a succession of owners before being brought to Britain.

He suffers from abandonment anxiety and is shy and timid, even with another Podengo. The owner wanted to take him across the road to the other sidewalk. But we persuaded her to allow him to stay a while.  It is not every day that we meet another Podengo. He stood aloof, in typical Podengo fashion.  Maria, by her standards, was positive: that is to say that she did not  produce her usual greeting  - a keep-away bark.

I cannot pretend that she was smitten with this handsome male of her own species, but we hope for progress on the next encounter.

A week later we met Max, a Podengo Pequeno, in a west London park. We were looking at this  small long-haired dog and saying that it looked just like a Podengo, when a lady came up and confirmed that he was.  A breeder in Oxfordshire is selling puppies bred from a stock of 40 imported from Portugal and they are catching on.  Max`s owner has a friend, who has also just bought one.

We met Homer again in the street. He was on the opposite side walk. Maria yelped in her most eloquent tones and tugged at the leash to cross the road and greet him.  But the owner, a male dog-walker, whom we have not met before was oblivious and walked on, eyes averted.

I also met another Podengo Medio, this time in the middle of a major highway with fast moving traffic.  The dog was one of four under the control of an Asian dog-walker.  When I bent down to greet it, it barked at me.  As I know Podengo`s habits quite well now this did not faze me. But it worried the dog walker so I had to pass by.

This must be yet another rescue dog from Spain or Portugal that has already been badly treated by men in the land of its birth. It can take a long time to erase these traumas.

We have now met Homer several more times.  He walks with his owner, a young lady who works for the BBC.  Maria was initially hostile again, barking a rather rude hello at Homer.  Homer, a handsome, tall male podengo medio with a light, pale almost gray color, just stood looking aloof and ignored her, as podengos often do.

But after several more meetings in the unusual surroundings of a Victorian cemetery, Maria has taken to him.  She now tugs the leash to approach him, sometimes whimpering.  when she gets close enough, she now licks his face. Homer remains looking somewhat aloof, whilst Brando, who is Maria`s husband and brother - a Labrador-Podengo cross, takes no notice of the flirtation.

More Podengos are being rescued to  London. We have also met Alpha and Beta, two female Medios rescued from north Portugal. The names, taken from the first two letters of the Greek alphabet, were chosen by the rescue center.

Both females are  smaller and slighter than Maria weighing perhaps under 25 pounds. They are sisters and have an unusual brindle color. They are very timid and backed away, when Maria approached. But we hope to meet them again.