Twenty minutes later I’m sitting in the crate stowed on the back seat of Caroline’s car. Caroline – that’s the name of my angel. I found that out when the two women said goodbye. Caroline. A lovely name. Quite noble. Most likely – oh, what am I saying – of course Caroline is of noble lineage. A dog like me is sure to pick up on something like that. Caroline is certainly in a good mood. She’s whistling a song, and from time to time she takes a peek in the rear-view mirror to have a look at me.

‘So, sweetie, now you’ll get to see your new home. I can’t wait to find out how you like it.’

Nor can I! I wonder if it’s as nice as Eschersbach Castle. With a big park. And lots of burrows. The car slows down, then stops. Caroline opens the door and lifts out the crate. Now the aroma of strawberries and mint is right in front of my nose, and I would love to lick Caroline from head to toe, but first I’ll have to wait to get out of the swaying crate.

It grows darker all around me, and my crate begins to sway even more: Caroline is carrying me up a flight of stairs. I try to push my nose through the bars of the crate to get a first sniff of my new residence. It appears to be a place that houses several humans – and several animals. Right away I can make out at least one cat.

Now Caroline is putting down the crate, and I hear her opening a door. She pushes the crate along with her foot, then fumbles with the cover, opens it up and lifts me out gently.

‘This is it! Here’s where you’ll be living from now on. Take a look around, little guy.’

It’s so bright in the room that at first I can’t see anything at all. I squint a bit and try to adjust to the light. The outlines of what seems to be a human living room gradually come into focus. In front of the window there is a big couch that looks like an ideal spot for a little dachshund to enjoy a comfy nap. Wonder if Caroline would allow that? It was strictly forbidden in the castle. Which meant, of course, that my sister and I liked nothing better than to hop up onto the couch in the parlour. It was hilarious to watch the old lord of the castle rush towards us like greased lightning in spite of his limp and try to chase us away by brandishing his cane as menacingly as he could.