Her Majesty Dogmad

I was alerted to a pet shop puppy in trouble yesterday and have picked him up today. He is listed as having 3 breeds in him - Chihuahua, Maltese and Japanese Spitz. Poor little man. He was bought as a present for a child, by the parents. They'd never had a dog before, worked full time, had poor fencing, had no idea basically. Mum didn't actually like the dog as she didn't choose it ... couldn't come in the house because if it did, it went to the toilet. It had 10 minutes of cuddling each day, lucky dog. That's all they had time for. The 11 yr old daughter was supposed to have been responsible for everything and of course, it wasn't ever going to work. PAWS will find him a foster carer and eventually a new home, thank God for Denise!

Oh no Juice, I just saw this. Hugs to you, I hope that Apollo gets better soon. What an awful worry.

The vet felt that the boys were ready for their vetwork today so they have been vaccinated, heartworm tested (negative!), desexed and had teeth cleaned/out. They've had pain relief injections and are recovering there today. The vets said they are doing very well. Ella's done a great job, they've both put on enough kilos and weight gain has now plateau'd so in a couple of weeks they will be ready to go to a new home! We have discovered that Dusty is a typical naughty whippet and he can jump 6ft high fences if his human goes out and he wants to follow. This will all be taken into consideration when we rehome the boys so that their safety is not compromised in any way. Thank you to everyone who has taken so much interest in them and followed their path to wellness!

From a slightly different perspective, one of our rescued Italian Greyhounds went into a home with good fencing, on trial, down in Canberra. During a storm, he somehow followed the cat up and over the fence (Iggies are good climbers when they want to). Anyhow, he was gone for 4 days. The person that found him presumed he wasn't loved because he was thin (Iggies are thin) - note NOT bony, just thin. The person fully intended to keep him but then saw a notice put up by the new owner to say he was on meds, which he was. So the person thought he'd better return the dog. I know this puppy isn't in good condition but who's to say someone didn't just adopt the puppy and they already had mange. At least the right thing has been done, the pup is in the pound where the owners may be able to find him. It's obviously not going to be any good for your friend to keep the dog, common sense has to overrule the heart in this case, it has to be what is best for the pup in the long term.

How old is the puppy? My guess is that he can't hold himself for the long periods you are imposing on him and needs to go to the toilet or he's lonely? Whilst I use crates myself for adult dogs at night, I do not agree with keeping puppies in them for lengthy periods like all day when I'm at work ....

I've just rehomed an 11 yr old (of a long lived breed) to a couple in their early 70s, the wife looks much younger whilst the husband does have a stick. They both walk everywhere and take the dog with them which is ideal for the little girl i rescued. Their main concern was that their next pet should not outlive them - i found that so refreshing, especially since I regularly come across dogs under 2 yrs of age that urgently need a home because their 70 or 80 something owner is ill or has had to go into a nursing home and family doesn't want the dog, if there is any family ...

Gorgeous, love to see the before and after shots!

Here's some more suggestions (from what I know of pounds in NSW): Beds No hosing out whilst dog is in the kennel Pens with roofs and somewhere the dogs won't be too hot or cold Pens where the dogs can't see each other or attack through wire, space between preferably and barriers Differnet kinds of food - if a dog has bad teeth they often can't eat kibble for instance

A vet attached or next to the pound with some cages that were warm where an injured animal could receive appropriate treatment immediately. All animals coming in would be checked for any ailments etc and treated immediately. Pregnant females, dogs hit by cars or injured by other dogs etc, dogs with manky eyes - all would receive treatment and not have to endure another 7-14 days in pain or discomfort. A temperament assessment area, well away from everything else with people trained in assessment and the assessment printed out and attached to the pen. Pens for single animals only - unless they arrived as a pair. A photographer - to get the best pics possible ... A rehoming coordinator to interview people and assess what they are looking for and making a match if possible and providing a pack to take home with lots of info such as housetraining etc etc.

Poor little mite, I agree that it was good that she had some love in her last days but the vet should have done an xray to start with. It's not the same vet that you and I discussed is it? Having this result is so very hard on you, much harder than if it had been at the beginning. Thank you for trying so hard for a little one in trouble. I hope the publicity will ensure the evil people who shot her, get their just desserts.

Sorry to hear, the last days can be so sad, when you feel the end is nigh. I've gone through it with many old dogs, I can't smell anything (bad nose) but sometimes I just get a sense. It's never easy. Hugs to you.

Appalling, the penalties for owners of dogs that do this sort of thing doesn't come anywhere near enough. She shouldn't have to be pursuing them in the courts!!

Personally I don't consider this a good fit. The nervous dog would probably always benefit from having a more confident dog to follow. She may improve considerably, she may not but the second dog is likely to be a crucial influence so if the other dog is already 13, I would not make this match. The older lady knows what she wants from a dog and I don't believe this dog will be able to provide that, no matter what. There are so many dogs in need of a lovely home, I think this lady should pick a more outgoing dog but not to the point that it ruins things for the 13 yr old dog. The old dog deserves to be happy for the rest of it's natural life, not bullied or harassed.

Hoping for good news!

Hi kavik - I've cleared my mail box, sorry about that. I've just got a message back saying you can't receive messages so maybe your inbox is also full?

What an incredible story, what a dog! Hope he can stay with his new friend.

Could you try a doggie loo instead?

Thakns have pm'd you

i have a couple of deserving rescuers who could do with this and are relatively local if still available - I'm nr Hornsby as well and can pick up or organise them to collect.

Have they looked at www.aaps.org.au? They are in Melbourne and have some lovely dogs there.

Here's our latest Victorian Rescue:

Peppa sounds lovely but I wouldn't be sure about a workign dog type being left alone for a full day. You also have to think about the days where the adult/child is sick and can't walk the dog, only occasional most likely but if you have a busy type of dog, you may get some destructive behaviour without enough exercise or situations that cause boredom. Unless Peppa's previous home was exactly the same as the OP?

Thanks CBL, we rescue dogs from VIC (and all over Australia) and we have them in foster care in VIC and as well as NSW.

Sheridan, there are companies out there that donate food to animal shelters. Otherwise I'm sure they could not afford Canidae. I used Canidae last year that was getting close to it's use by date, for a discount to my rescue group. There's no way I would be able to afford to buy it otherwise. Rescuers and shelters do it tough financially. Any donated food is gratefully accepted but I can assure you, there is never enough to cover all the needs. We all pay for it ourselves generally.

No matter how long we have them, it is never long enough but it is those who have had an awful existence before we take them, that are the hardest to lose. Henry deserved so much more of his happy life. RIP Henry, hugs to you.