Fri 22nd Dec: Last of the beagles

I have to admit that it's good to have my worktop back, and not to be squeezed into a corner with my keyboard trying to type while having two jumping and squealing puppies demanding attention.   As much as I loved Beatrice and Eugenie I loved sending them to their new foster home even better so I can resume some kind of normality in my life, whatever that is.

Mabel

It was also good to hear that beagle Mabel was taken home from the Ap Lei Chau Homing Centre today and that Scout will also leave on Sunday, so we will finally be beagle-free.  The four beagles that we took in from a breeder at the same time were all lovely dogs, but the breed isn't really suitable to keep at our small Homing Centre.

Laura's foster can confirm that she's a very easy puppy

Two of our foster puppies were competing for a home during an interview at the Ap Lei Chau dog park in the morning, and it was Turner who was chosen leaving Laura to move to a new foster home.  She and her brother Harvey have both been unlucky, even though they have lovely natures and are very easygoing.  I suspect it's got something to do with the fact that they are often the older ones at Whiskers N Paws so tend to bully the babies, but that's just natural and nothing to do with them being dominant or "alpha" dogs, two words I keep hearing but which aren't true.  In nature the older family members get to tell the younger ones what to do, and nobody takes it personally.  Seen individually and away from the over-excitement of the Sunday playtimes on the Whiskers N Paws terrace, both Laura and Harvey are very calm, happy and friendly almost six month-olds.

Now-adopted Betty loved Harvey, even though he appeared to be beating her up

Scout leaves on Sunday

There's been a hiatus in dogs and puppies coming out of Pokfulam AFCD due to a new and inexperienced Veterinary Officer being in charge, so for the moment I'm concentrating on the last few lucky escapees, including a litter of four who all have tick fever.  One needed a blood transfusion as the red cell count was so low, but all four have to make regular back-and-forth trips to Acorn to check that the treatment is working.   It has something to do with the fact that I had to argue to get these pups released and that I was very unhappy that the tick fever wasn't  able to be treated as early as it should have been, but I have been completely stuck for names for them.  I don't want to end up with another "Puppy Girl" situation (one of my adult Lamma dogs who was never given a name), and as these four new puppies look very similar (very fox-like) there's no inspiration for something appropriate. Help is needed please, and there are three girls and one boy.

Rollo

In case you missed reading it, we will be at Whiskers N Paws on Christmas Eve (this Sunday) for last minute seasonal greetings and adoptions.   Other than Laura and Harvey who will be hoping for some luck this time, we will have other younger candidates like Rollo, Coco and siblings Elke and Henry.

Coco