Sat 16th Sept: Xavier home at last!

Xavier grew into a very lovely dog

There was some great news today about two lovely adoptions, the first being German shepherd Xavier, an ex-breeder dog who was still only a (very skinny) older puppy when he first arrived.  We'd been asked if we could take him as the breeder was going to have him put to sleep because he had constant diarrhoea, which in this breed often means a pancreatic disorder.  However very basic tests showed he had a very common intestinal parasite which was easily treated with antibiotics, and that should have been that except his sensitivity to most foods continued.  We tried every diet and every type of food but nothing really worked too well until finally Xavier was taken for fostering by a vet.   The main problem turned out to be an allergy to the Homing Centre, whether psychological or physical, and he started to improve in his temporary home.  When he moved to a new home for a trial he quickly won the hearts of the whole family, and his forever home was confirmed today.

A skinny young Xavier

The other adoption-to-be was that of Clementine, the little sharpei mother who ended up at AFCD with her family of five newborn babies.  After posting her story and photos on Facebook I was contacted by someone in England who had previously adopted from HKDR and whose sharpei had recently died, so now we just have to arrange all of the paperwork and Clementine will be on her way to her new life in a new country.

Another transformation: a before and after Clementine

Over at Ap Lei Chai it was the new corgi cross Basil who was given a chance of a forever home, and I'm happy for him as he was finding life quite hard at the Homing Centre.  Some dogs, like blind Blinky, totally love having so many friends to play with, and most settle quite quickly.  Others really struggle, and they are usually the ones who have never been socialised as puppies and find the constant party atmosphere overwhelming.

I hope Basil is happy in his new home

Socialisation and play is is one of the most important training responsibilities for any puppy adopter so that the pup grows up happy to interact with other dogs.  Trying to walk a dog that is dog-aggressive or very fearful is always a challenge, so start them as young as possible.  Even when not fully vaccinated and unable to actually go for walks, you can carry a puppy out so it gets used to normal sounds and daily life outside the home.

We had two perfect examples of what happens when a puppy isn't socialised in Susie and Carter, the two young adults we managed to get back from the awful adopter who never took the dogs out from the day she took them home as puppies.  They were terrified of everyone and everything, so I'm happy to report that both of them are now doing really well, Carter at the Homing Centre and Susie in foster.  They are quite small dogs, particularly Susie, and I think they are ready for adoption to the right homes and families.

A terrified Susie and Carter when we get them back