Tues 23rd Oct: Poodles again

My plans to take a further four Lamma dogs to AFCD for their license updates were thwarted by the low tide, meaning the sampan  couldn't get to the end of the pier and I had to walk to the far end of the bay and the nearest floating pontoon.  I did however take two small dogs to the  Ap Lei Chau Homing Centre for grooming by Iris, and they were poodle Kobe and terrier type Connor, now very much a senior who has been with us for many years.  He's one of our Small Delinquents, the dogs that nobody would want to adopt but who are fine doing their own thing and being left alone.

Kobe in March after his last grooming by Iris

I'm hopeful for Kobe however, as he's actually a very loving and affectionate boy who was unlucky to have spent the first five years of his life in a cage, which meant he was an angry little dog when surrendered to AFCD.  In fact I fought hard to save him from being put to sleep, insisting that his fear and resentment towards humans could be changed, and I'm happy to say I was right. Now that we have space at the Homing Centre Kobe can stay rather than come back to Lamma, and maybe another dog that needs some rehabilitation can have a chance.

I've written so many times about poodles and their need for mental stimulation as well as lots of exercise, but they are still being bred and bought as toys or baby substitutes, dressed up and pushed around in prams as though they were incapable of walking.  Then when they have been turned in completely neurotic basket cases they are thrown out, ending up at AFCD or who knows where.  The majority of our "Red Dogs", the small dogs with serious behaviour problems, are poodles, and it's really very sad.

A throwback photo of ex-breeder poodles that arrived with matted coats being shaved

The other thing about poodles is that they really need regular grooming, because although they are popular for not shedding, that doesn't mean their hair doesn't grow.  It certainly does, and if not brushed and trimmed constantly you can end up with a matted mess very quickly.

Charcoal and Sheeba are now officially family

There are a further two Typhoon Foster happy endings to add to the list, and this time it's Clipper and Charcoal who are the lucky dogs.  I certainly don't want to ever experience another typhoon like Mangkhut but I have to admit it's been very lucky for the twelve (so far) Tai Po dogs who were taken in for emergency fostering and never came back.

The typhoon was lucky for Clipper too