Thurs 21st Sept: Is Cap 139B biting?

2 of the 4 AFCD poodles, all 6 years old

It's possible that the breeders who are surrendering groups of dogs to AFCD are doing so because if they want an Animal Trader License (ATL) they have to comply with the regulations which limit the number of dogs to the space available.  Most of the breeders, legal and illegal, are in the Yuen Long area of the New Territories, which is why these dogs end up at Sheung Shui AFCD, and although not confirmed yet I suspect the four poodles arriving on Friday are ex-breeder stock.

There's another breeder who has apparently applied for an ATL and has to clear one hundred dogs to get it, yes, one hundred.  If that doesn't tell you anything about the conditions in which these dogs are kept then nothing will.  I have agreed to take in as many throwaways as necessary and have been told that six will come on Saturday: two poodles, a Yorkie, a shih tzu and two shiba inu.  I have no details about age or anything else other than the poodles are male and female.

We will choose the best home for Dottie

We also have a young pug available, not a breeder dog but a pet who needs a better home.  One of the things that we ask on our adoption questionnaire is if it is the child or children who want a dog, have the parents considered that the child will grow up and quite possibly leave home or lose interest?  That is exactly what's happened with pug Dottie, only three years old but without his human friend who has left home.  At least the parents acknowledge that Dottie (a boy) deserves a better life than his current lonely one, so I have to give them credit for that.  If you are interested in adopting Dottie or any of the breeder dogs mentioned, please complete the Adoption Questionnaire on our website www.hongkongdogrescue.com (under Adopt).

I had an important appointment in Central today, a meeting with a lawyer to sign the new two year Agreement for our Tai Po Homing Centre, which of course I was very happy about and eager to do.  I hadn't planned a trip to the vet but as it happened one of our office dogs, Brandy, wasn't feeling well and we were all worried, so I took her to Acorn on my way to the lawyer's office.

Brandy didn't want to move from her bed

I was told Brandy had refused to go out for her morning walk so I was careful not to walk her on the pavement when we got out of the van on Second Street, anticipating that she may have to pee or poo.  What I wasn't expecting was the torrent of blood that came rushing out when she squatted down in the gutter, and all I could do was watch helplessly while bystanders showed the horror in their faces.  The bottle of water I poured on the bright red/brown liquid hardly made a difference there was so much, so after I had taken Brandy inside I grabbed the bucket of water with disinfectant left out for mopping the floor and flushed the blood away.

Thankfully I had seen this Haemorrhagic Gastroenteritis before in my Lamma dogs so understood it didn't mean Brandy's insides had liquified and were falling out, but the amount of blood was still quite shocking and obviously required hospitalisation and fluids.  I'm hoping and assuming Brandy will bounce back and will soon return to take her place in the office, where she is top dog.

Haemorrhagic gastroenteritis or HGE is a very serious condition affecting dogs. HGE is characterized by a rapid onset of haemorrhagic (bloody) diarrhea in an otherwise normal, healthy dog. Haemorrhagic gastroenteritis can affect dogs of any breed, gender or age although younger (2-4 year old) toy and miniature breeds appear to be predisposed; stress and hyperactivity in these breeds may play a role in this syndrome.  The actual etiology of this syndrome is unproven and unknown.

What are the clinical signs of HGE in dogs? 
Dogs affected with HGE will often have:

• A sudden onset of profuse, bloody diarrhea with a foul odor
• Vomiting
• A loss of appetite
• Depression
• Acute abdominal pain
• Dehydration

HGE in dogs can occur very rapidly. HGE is not contagious and can occur without a change in the dog's diet, environment, or routine. A fever with HGE is uncommon.