When staff arrived at Battersea Dogs & Cats Home in London, some of the dogs were already out of their kennels.
It happened on several mornings. Somewhere between the doors being secured and the next working day beginning, the dogs were getting loose.
The mystery made headlines in October 2004. Before long, a camera would reveal how it was happening—and give one shelter dog a very unexpected claim to fame.
Source: Youtube
According to a contemporary report in the Irish Independent, staff had been baffled by the repeated escapes. Several dogs being outside their kennels was a problem that needed an explanation.
A later iHeartDogs account says staff even wondered whether somebody was playing a joke on them. Reminders to secure the kennel doors had failed to stop the activity.
The solution was to record what was happening. With video surveillance in place, staff could finally see the events leading up to those puzzling mornings.
And there he was: a lurcher named Red.
He had worked out how to operate the bolt on his own kennel door. The camera caught him reaching up on his hind legs and using his nose and teeth to release it.
The Guardian reported that Red had arrived at Battersea in June 2004 after being taken, emaciated, to a police station.
Source: Youtube
Getting his own door open was only part of what Red could do.
Once outside, he also opened other dogs’ kennels. A skill that would have been impressive enough on its own had become a way to release his companions.
Battersea later recalled the incident in its Summer 2014 issue of Paws magazine. The charity described Red moving between kennels, freeing his fellow dogs, and raiding the kitchen.
That is the detail that makes his story so hard to resist. One dog finding a way through a closed door is remarkable. That same dog going on to open doors for others gives the whole episode the feel of a group adventure.
Of course, we cannot know exactly what Red was thinking. The recorded behavior is entertaining enough: he could release himself, he could release his neighbors, and the kitchen offered somewhere to go.
Source: Youtube
The iHeartDogs account described the dogs helping themselves to food in the kitchen. It was quite a payoff for an animal that had figured out how to work a latch.
That makes the discovery especially satisfying. Staff had been trying to solve a problem with closed doors, while one of the animals behind those doors had already learned how to open them.
CBS reported that the escapes had happened about a dozen times before the cameras revealed Red’s role.
Once staff knew what was happening, they secured his kennel so he could no longer get out, according to iHeartDogs. The kitchen adventures had to end, but Red’s story was about to reach a much bigger audience.
The publicity brought something more useful than a reputation for mischief: people wanted to give him a home.
The Evening Standard reported on the response, quoting Battersea communications officer Amy Watson.
“We have had more than 300 calls so far and expect more over the course of this week,” she said.
There is a lovely change in perspective there. The same behavior that had caused a headache for his caregivers was now introducing Red to people who could imagine him as part of their family.
An archived copy of Elizabeth Day’s October 2004 Telegraph feature gives a fuller picture of the attention. Day reported that 400 people had offered Red a home within a week.
Media interest had extended to Japan, Germany, and the United States. The dog at the center of the kennel mystery was suddenly attracting an international audience.
The new celebrity apparently had little interest in behaving like one. Day reported that Red even urinated on a Sky News journalist’s jacket—an awkward moment in an otherwise very successful introduction to the press.
Source: Youtube
Battersea still had to find the right match. In Day’s report, communications manager Liz Emeny explained that staff would go through the responses and interview potential adopters.
They were looking for a home in a semi-rural setting, with any children over 12, and possibly another dog. Emeny described Red as sociable and fond of canine company.
The interest also reached beyond Red. Emeny said people were calling about other dogs they had seen in the footage, too.
For a group of animals waiting for families, that was a welcome consequence of a very unusual night on camera.
In its later retelling, iHeartDogs reported that Red was adopted. His escape story had ended with a home of his own.
A decade after the original headlines, Battersea was still sharing his exploits with its supporters. It is easy to see why: Red had turned an ordinary kennel latch into the beginning of an extraordinary little adventure.
