Dear Zak,

We met someone you’d have liked this afternoon – he loves his Ridgebacks!

Yuri is a Russian geologist who specialises in lithium and his contract has expired so he has to go back home. He has two lovely Ridgeback males that he has fallen in love with and would really like to take them home but didn’t know if it’s possible. We have got in touch with a company that specialises in moving pets around the world and they say that it certainly is but it won’t be cheap. There is also a challenge of finding an airline that will fly from Dubai to Russia because of the war with Ukraine.

The dogs are locally bred (he got them from someone else – not the breeder), brothers and inseparable. Before we came up with the plan to move them back to Russia Yuri said he wanted them adopted as a pair. Yuri comes from the south of Russia near the Caucasus mountains. He said they hunt wolves in the area. When I suggested he crossed one of his dogs with a wolf he replied “None of the locals would like me if I did that”.

When we asked Yuri when he was leaving he replied “I should have already left but I am looking for a solution for my dogs first”. We liked him. A lot.

Love you.