Weds 16th Oct: We have 600+ dogs waiting for homes

There was a Facebook enquiry today asking if we had any dogs available for adoption, and of course I replied that yes, we have over six hundred dogs waiting for homes at any given time.  Admittedly some of these are very old, or perhaps too nervous to make suitable family members, but the majority are those that have just been unlucky in life.

Like these 7 babies, many of our dogs don't come from AFCD

There is no way of knowing exactly how many stray and abandoned dogs there are in Hong Kong but everywhere you go you will see them, and twice a year the females will give birth to yet another litter.  Many won't survive, dying from starvation, disease or being eaten by snakes or wild boar, but enough make it to adulthood to repeat the never-ending cycle of unwanted puppies being born, and every day on Facebook you'll see pleas for homes or fosters for such babies.  It's a hard and short life for these homeless dogs, their only hope being that they are caught by volunteers and desexed before being returned to where they came from, or if they're suitable for homing taken in by a rescue group.

Fuzzy came as an older puppy via a TNR group

One of our current Ap Lei Chau residents, Fuzzy,  was such a dog, one of a family group that are living in a certain area where TNR (Trap, Neuter and Return) volunteers are actively trying to control the stray dog population.  These volunteers are self-funded, doing what they can to help, and they have my full support wherever they are operating.  Fuzzy was very shy at first but she's adapted well and is happy and playful with the dogs and puppies she shares her life with.

In the past almost all of the dogs and puppies at HKDR came to us from AFCD, but these days with so many rescue groups and individual volunteers taking in strays and unwanted litters the situation has changed.  Official AFCD figures show a big reduction in the number of dogs and puppies at their Animal Management Centres, but that's not a true reflection of the problem which is as bad as it always was.  The difference is only that unwanted dogs and puppies are now ending up in private shelters (often under-funded) or animal charities.

This was a terrible case of cruelty with many animals found dead

One of those shelters was back in the news the other day when the case finally came to court after many months of waiting, which meant all of the surviving dogs having to be kept as evidence at AFCD and SPCA.   What will happen to those dogs now remains to be seen, but I suspect most wil be considered unsuitable for re-homing.

"This was a case involving the death of 28 dogs and 8 cats. The judge today sentenced the accused to 10 months in prison, and ordered the 74 dogs and 36 cats who survived to be handed over to AFCD. 

Zheng Cheng admitted 14 counts of charges, including cruelty to animals and raising dogs without a dog license. The Defense lawyer described the accused as he was old, and raised so many cats and dogs only because of love, and that many people sent the dog outside his door.

The judge described in court as the most brutal and worst case of animal abuse ever. Defense lawyers have proposed not to consider dead cats as evidence, but the judge questioned that the dead cats were inside Cheng's dog and the dog he managed.

The judge finally sentenced him to 15 months in prison and reduced by five months for a guilty plea."

Rolo has a family to love and care for him now

Now for the good news, another lucky Tai Po dog's dreams came true when he was chosen to go home.  Rolo is a lovely boy who like many others has waited far too long for this day to come, but better late than never.  Thank you to his adopters who have given Rolo a chance to enjoy life as a real family member, and as "brother" to ex-HKDR Teresa.