tdierikx

Those photos are eye opening... but at least the dogs don't appear to have their spirits broken. They look like they are going to really enjoy the love and attention from their carers while they wait for their forever homes. Awesome job to all involved in rescuing these munchkins - I take my hat off to you all! T.

OMG!!!! Zeebo is totally adorable! Can you please give her a cuddle from me? T.

Thanks... Cassie took the before photos (I was interacting with Minnie), and I took the after ones - but credit to the organisation is plenty... *grin* T.

Now you see why I hid them in a Spoiler... May I ask that if you use them, that you give credit to NSW Animal Rescue (www.nswar.org.au) for them? Unfortunately Minnie wasn't microchipped when she was picked up by the ranger, so tracking down the owner and prosecuting wasn't going to happen... *sigh* T.

OK - these are Minnie's before and after pics NOTE - before pics ARE disturbing! Minnie the Mastiff X came to us from a Sydney pound under duty of care - 8 weeks pregnant (gave birth to 11 pups a week after these photos were taken), and hideously underweight. NSWAR has specialised staff/carers who can look after and rehabilitate dogs in various states of neglect. Minnie wasn't expected to survive, but I think her mental state once in care was a big part of being able to pull her through - she never gave up, and neither did we. Minnie weighed in at 29kgs with a full belly of nearly full term pups when she arrived. I have enclosed the pics in a Spoiler container so that those who don't want to look don't have to, OK? Click on the Show button if you want to see them. Minnie left us 9 months later weighing in at a much healthier 60kgs... here are her after shots... That last photo was taken about 5 seconds before she launched herself onto me as I was sitting on a plastic garden chair - sadly the chair didn't survive the lovin'... lol! I think it shows off her personality, even though it's not the greatest photo - one big happy boofer full of love for life... T.

I'm in love with Mya... what a gorgeous girl! Even in her before pics you can see what a happy go lucky girl she is. I'll have to hunt up some photos of Minnie - although the warning that the before photos may upset needs to be applied. T.

POCTAA clearly covers the bolded parts above... and, yes, they can prosecute. Show them the dogs in question that have untreated injuries and you may get a different response. T.

I just took a stat dec and a letter from my vet detailing how long I had been a customer with regards to that particular dog... T.

Lola will love to meet your brother's family - she is a very social little lady... *grin* T.

Lola and Matilda are located in South West Sydney - about 20 mins south of Penrith. I haven't got any pics of Lola at the moment, but if the weather is decent on Saturday I can get a few. She looks a lot like a Labrador pup. If you send an email to the address on the contact page I posted and say Tracey advised to send a photo, I'm sure Cassie can send you one sooner than the weekend. We also have an older pup named Pumpkin - looks like an ACD/Corgi - red cattle markings and blue eyes. She's about 9 months old. T.

Photos of dogs wearing bows, pearls, or bling works well too... and the pose that really gets lots of interest is the head tilt shot... Has anyone noticed that Petrescue's upload thingy advises not to add any props to the photo? I have a nasty habit of ignoring that most times if I have a cool photo of one of our dogs looking stunning with a toy or wearing bling/bows, etc... Sometimes a photo showing some interaction with other animals will get interest too - especially if all the animals look like they are having a ball. Slideshows of lots of photos showing off the dog doing all sorts of things, with and without friends and props, work a charm too. Just watch the backgrounds in photos and videos - a grotty background doesn't do the dog any favours. T.

NSW Animal Rescue has a couple of pups that may suit... Lola is a Lab X - black with white on one front paw and on her chest - desexed, vacced, chipped, etc. She is around 12-14 weeks old. Matilda is a Kelpie - black and tan - desexed vacced, chipped, etc. She is around 12 weeks old. You can see pics of Matilda here... http://www.dolforums.com.au/topic/239115-latest-cutie-pie-matilda/ Both pups would love to have their very own family who will play with and adore them. Both are adorable now, and will grow up to be handsome/stunning dogs (IMHO) Contact details can be found here... http://www.nswar.org.au/index/contact_us.htm T.

Black and brindle seem to be the hardest colours to find homes for. Sable doesn't always do well either. I don't know why... I used to not fancy brindle myself until I met many brindle dogs and realised what a wide variety of brindle colouring there is - now have an appreciation for a nice brindle... *grin* I don't have an issue with black - in fact would rather a black dog than a light coloured dog - light coloured hair is more noticeable on my clothes... errr! All that said - I have 3 dogs... one black, one blonde, and one white with large brindle patches... T.

Judging by the snowdrifts of dog hair here, I must be super immune to RSV then... *grin* T.

I had a Rotti bitch once who came into season every 3 months like clockwork... and a crossbreed bitch that did the same... T.

Different purebred breeds attract different buying prices - so why shouldn't rescue be able to charge different prices for different breeds or breed mixes... especially those that are highly sought after by Joe Public? As long as the dogs are of sound mind and body, where's the harm? Charging different prices doesn't make one rescue any more or less ethical in their rehoming practices - other factors come into play there... T.

There seems to be a perception out there that rescue dogs should be cheap purely because they are rescues. The implication is that there is something "wrong" with them... which in most cases couldn't be further from the truth. Just because a dog may have found itself homeless for whatever reason, doesn't automatically mean that it's "broken" or in any way "inferior" to any other dog out there. Of the many hundreds of rescue dogs I've had the privilege to get to know over the years, I'd say a good 80-90% have been perfectly sound of mind and body - something we all aim for in a pet, yes? What I don't understand are the people who complain about the price of a rescue dog and the process involved in adopting one, then go out and pay a hell of a lot more for a dog from a pet shop - with no guarantees whatsoever... some people just want that cute dog/pup NOW! I can tell you right now though - the investment rescuers, foster carers, and volunteers put into their charges is way MORE than financial - we also invest our hearts and souls... and you can't put any price on that. T.

Isn't it actually illegal to sell or "rehome" a kitten or puppy before 8 weeks of age? Any member of the public that will happily take home a kitten of 5 weeks of age probably isn't likely to follow through with desexing it - even if it's a free service offered for a deferred timeframe as part of the adoption fee. All money in the pocket for the "rescue" if that happens... *sigh* Considering that it's currently school holidays in NSW, there are lots of people out there looking for a puppy or kitten to entertain the kids... allowing for this sort of thing to happen if a rescue isn't being picky. T.

Keep the warmth on the area and follow the full course of whatever the vet has given you. I've been known to use wheat bags on my dogs when they get achey - they mold to the area better than a water bottle. T.

Bilbo has selected his own forever home... yay for Bilbo!! All of these adorable munchkins have now been rehomed.... YAY!!! T.

A trip to the vet for a good check over will definitely ease your mind... if she's still a bit off this morning, I'd take her to the vet just to make sure there's nothing nasty brewing. Better to check and know it's nothing, than to wait and end up with something to be concerned about. T.

If weather and time permits, I'll try to get some pics of Bilbo and Daisy on Saturday, OK? T.

You won't ever regret buying the foster manual... it really does cover pretty much every little thing... T.

OK peeps - that means that Bilbo and Daisy are still looking for their own perfect homes... T.

If any of you fine people know of anyone looking for a lovely quiet and well mannered little Kelpie girl - feel free to give me a yell, OK? I'd love her to go to a home where she is understood - being a Kelpie, her exercise and mental stimulation needs are probably going to be reasonably high methinks - she is quite people oriented and happy to veg out with her humans too... T.