Project ÆGIR – Hubert
Crew Member – Morale Officer – Professional Good Boy
My story doesn’t begin in Switzerland.
It begins far away, in eastern Slovakia, close to the Ukrainian border — in a place where life for a dog is mostly about surviving the day. I was born i thing in mai 2020 and I don’t know who my parents were. Maybe a German Shepherd, maybe a Labrador. What I do know is that I didn’t get the soft beginning many dogs get.
I came from a settlement where no one keeps track of puppies, where food is luck, and love is something you learn by watching others receive it. By the time rescuers found me, I was thin, my ears were torn, fleas lived on me more than I lived in my own skin, and patches of my fur had simply given up.
But even then, under all that mess, something inside me whispered: “Hold on. Something good is coming.”
That “something good” came in the shape of a rescue organisation that took me in, healed me, fed me and gave me my first feeling of safety — even if it was in an outdoor shelter with frozen water bowls and winter winds slipping through the wooden hut.
I didn’t know it yet, but my life was about to change in a way only fate can explain.
⭐ How I found my humans — literally
Meanwhile in Switzerland, two humans — Renata and Pepíno — were considering getting a dog.
Renata wanted a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, a tiny royal princess on four legs. Pepíno… well… he didn’t exactly jump with excitement. If he had a choice, he would have picked a cat: no walking, no barking, zero drama. “A dog? That means walking… every day… . A cat would be easier.”
So while Renata imagined her future Cavalier, Pepíno imagined a low-maintenance cat napping somewhere in the sun. Neither of them was actively searching for a dog at that moment. And that’s exactly when it happened..
Pepíno wasn’t looking for a pet at all — not browsing ads, not studying breeds, nothing. He was simply scrolling on Facebook… …and out of nowhere, my photo appeared on his screen.
A complete coincidence. Or maybe not. Pepíno still says it felt like I chose them, not the other way around. And funny enough? Today he loves walking with me more than anyone else. So much for the “I’d rather have a cat” phase. 😄
He fell in love instantly. Renata needed just a moment longer, but soon she felt it too.
They reserved me the next day, paid the adoption fee and waited for the date when our lives would finally collide.
⭐ 1,528 kilometres to my new beginning
On 26 January 2021, rescuers drove me from Veľké Kapušany to Prague. Pepíno drove from Switzerland across Germany, waited for me in the cold Prag, and when I stepped out of the transport van… I knew. This was my human.
He let me move freely in the back of the car (with a safety leash, of course — he’s very Swiss about rules). I showed him my intelligence immediately by unhooking the carabiner myself. Not ideal for long drives, but impressive nonetheless.
We stopped for our very first walk at the ONO gas station in Nýřany. New smells, new person, new life.
Then we drove another 803 kilometres to Switzerland. In one day, I travelled 1,528 km, straight into the arms of my new family.
⭐ My first night at home
It was 2 a.m. when I stepped into a real home for the first time. I had never seen a kitchen, a sofa, a TV, or even stairs. My senses were exploding — new textures, new smells, new everything.
Pepíno had driven nearly 24 hours, Renata was finishing a night shift. We explored the apartment together, and yes… I smelled absolutely terrible. Pepíno says I smelled like a skunk that lost a fight with another skunk.
He decided I needed a shower. I decided I needed to escape the shower. It was chaos. Shampoo flying, paws slipping, Pepíno trying to hold onto me like a firefighter wrestling a crocodile. If the gods were watching, they definitely laughed.
I later fell asleep next to him on the sofa, safe for the first time in my life.
At 5:30 a.m., Renata came home. I greeted her with cautious excitement, and she greeted me with the words:
“Oh my god, he smells like a skunk!”
Love at first sniff? …Not exactly. But love, definitely.
⭐ Sick, healing… and the vet named “Butcher”
I arrived very sick: coughing, fever, mucus, vomiting — classic shelter winter package.
My humans took me to a my vet at 9 a.m. His name? Metzger. Which means butcher in German. Not the ideal start when you’re a dog already fighting for your life.
But he turned out to be kind. I got antibiotics, pills for a week, had my ears cleaned (a LOT of dirt), and slowly my strength returned. My weight improved from 14.4 kg to 15.2 kg. And then more.
But the road wasn’t smooth. Parasites, stomach problems, emergency visits, horrible-tasting drops (Renata had to chase me around the apartment like a cartoon), and one dramatic “zombie dog cramp” episode that scared my humans half to death.
Still — I healed. And with each day, I trusted a little more.
⭐ Learning the world — and myself
I’m gentle. Loyal. Sensitive. But I’m also:
stubborn
overexcited around strangers
loud when I’m unsure
and very, very curious
Because of my rough beginning, socialisation was hard. Dogs scared me, humans overwhelmed me, and I barked to protect myself. So my humans enrolled me in a dog school.
The first session was mostly an evaluation. I showed them:
I’m attached to my humans
I can be a little tornado on a leash
I sometimes ignore commands when something smells interesting
and I bark from fear, not aggression
My task now? Learn the world without fear.
Their task? Guide me patiently.
⭐ My role in Project ÆGIR
I’m not a passenger. I’m part of the crew — 1 dog, 2 humans.
My responsibilities include:
maintaining morale
guarding snacks
alarm system for suspicious seagulls
emotional stabiliser
professional explorer of every corner of the ship
Most importantly, I am the living reminder of what Project ÆGIR stands for:
resilience, second chances, courage, and finding home even after the hardest beginnings.
From a forgotten place in eastern Slovakia to sailing the world as part of a two-human crew… Life didn’t give me much at the start.
But now? I have everything.