Fri 31st March: Last day at Ap Lei Chau

The last day of the month meant the move from Ap Lei Chau, and it brought back memories of when we first moved there and opened our small Homing Centre at 21 Main Street.  It was an exciting time in an area that I was completely unfamiliar with, one of the last old-style Hong Kong neighbourhoods.  We subsequently moved into a bigger space round the corner, but Main Street stayed on as the Red Dog Centre, until today when that part of our history ended.  You can watch a video of the final moments of HKDR in Ap Lei Chau at hkdr_eagle, and I have to say it made me very sad.  The dogs are now staying at HKDR@Elgin, 22 Elgin Street, Soho, until the day when I hope we will find another perfect home for them all. 

As you must know by now if you read my blog, the previous residents of Elgin Street moved to 13-19 North Street, Kennedy Town, and I encourage the volunteers who were helping out at the Soho space to follow the dogs and puppies to continue with the cleaning, playing and walking.  Your help is both very much needed and appreciated, just as the regular Kennedy Town and Tai Po volunteers are. 

One of the volunteers made these collages of the current ex-Elgin residents, but as things change day to day or even minute by minute, there are already new names and faces to add.  Sadly poodle-ish Nettie was returned from her foster home so she will join her old friends she knew from Elgin Street, and we took in two new smaller-sized puppies today, both five months and really very cute. 

New puppy boy Samuel

New puppy girl Samantha

Asher is still a small size

I sometimes mention dogs and their stories and then don't give any follow-up, usually because the dogs in question just get swallowed up into the general HKDR population and may not stay at the forefront of my mind.  So while it's still a fairly recent event I'll update on the older puppy Asher, who was recently surrendered by his adopter due to his behaviour and apparent severe anxiety. I asked the Kennedy Town team how Asher was doing and how he was getting on with the other puppies, and he's doing really well considering what we were led to expect.  Although we hate to see adoptions fail in this way, if it's not working out then we would rather take the puppy back than to see things get even worse.  For Asher at least, he'll be fine.

Thurs 30th March: Another sad move

Gobi's smile says it all

I'm going to start with the adoptions for the day before moving on to the less happy news, and the first dog to leave was Gobi from our Tai Po Homing Centre.   This has been a while in the making due to holidays and other things, so while not a surprise it's still wonderful to see one of our adult mixed breeds being chosen.  Thank you to the adopter, and to everyone who sees that these dogs are just as lovely and deserving as any other.

Otto quickly found a home

I knew poodle Otto wouldn't stay with us for more than a day or so, and he was also adopted today. I really hope our other poodle Nacho will be just as lucky soon, because this boy seems to have really bad luck and for no reason at all. 

I have to admit to feeling really sad about the forced move from our remaining Ap Lei Chau Centre on Friday, the last day of March.  The whole of Main Street has either already been taken over by developers, or will be very soon, and that means the "Red" dogs having to leave the only home they have known for years, to move to Elgin Street in Soho.  While we're grateful to even have this option, this space is also only temporary until the whole building is pulled down to be replaced by more high-end high-rises, but for now it's a safe haven for the dogs that would otherwise have nowhere to go.  

Can someone please take Ned home?

Soho is a great area for bars and restaurants, but it's not an environment that's made for dogs and dog walking, unlike Ap Lei Chau which was not only a block away from the dog park, but which has also opened up the whole waterfront promenade to dogs.  It's this aspect of the move that saddens me most of all, and not even so much for the older "Red" poodles, but more for dogs like Ned, the large boy with the eating (or rather swallowing) problem that I wrote about the other day.   Dogs like Ned need to be able to run freely, not only walk on the streets on a leash, so I have to ask again if anyone can offer a home to this sweet boy? His swallowing problem is not an illness as such, or even a handicap to him living a perfectly full and normal life, it just means him sitting nicely in his Bailey Chair when he has his meals.  And who can't be impressed by the way Ned gets into the chair and pulls the door closed behind him when he knows it's time for dinner? 

The biggest reason why we can't move to a new centre to replace the one in Ap Lei Chau is quite simply lack of funds.  The past few years have been devastating for HKDR in terms of income, with no big fundraising events possible, and both large private and corporate donors disappearing.  There have been many dogs surrendered which have added to the financial strain, not to mention the high cost of expert veterinary care for those who come to us needing complicated surgeries.  Even this week we have mini border collie Mindy having surgery on her leg, and poodle Marcus needing hip surgery.  Tiny ex-breeder teacup poodle Dusty will also need surgery for her shoulders, and that's not even taking into account the routine vet visits for everything from desexing to blood tests and vaccinations.  Our vet bills are massive every month, and that's not something we can avoid if we want our dogs and puppies to be properly looked after and cared for.  There's no easy way to say we're struggling, and if you're able to help with donations of any amount we'd be extremely grateful.  You can find details of how to donate by visiting our website at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/donate/ 

Weds 29th March: One lucky in-and-out puppy

The F litter in January 

 I think it's that time for the "F" puppies, the litter of beautiful boys who came to us as very scared youngsters and grew into very handsome and sweet-natured six month-olds.  It's true that two have already been adopted, although Frankie is still waiting for his flight to Singapore, but now there's real interest in the others and the next few days should see most of them chosen.  

Sometimes it takes a while for a dog or puppy to be noticed, but for Olga it took just a day.  She was one of the group that arrived only yesterday, and now she's in her forever home.  I'd expected one of the smaller two puppies to be adopted quickly, so I was very happy to know that it was Olga. 

It was the first full day for the new arrivals, as well as the dogs and puppies that had moved from our Elgin Street Centre to North Street, Kennedy Town.  It wasn't only the four-legged who made the move either, as the volunteers who had been coming to Soho every day to help have followed the dogs and puppies they have grown to love.  For these volunteers there will be a special sign-up schedule, much like the previous one that was used for Elgin Street, and hopefully even after all of the current dogs and puppies have been adopted the volunteers can continue as part of regular Kennedy Town team.  I'm not going to share the sign-up link here because this is only for those who have already been volunteering at Elgin Street, but everyone who's already part of the chat group will be given the information.  

Mindy and Milo quickly found homes

Although a lot of potential adopters are taking advantage of the combined Ching Ming and Easter holidays to get out of Hong Kong for a break, happily that doesn't apply to everyone and there are adoptions taking place, with a few hopefully due over the coming weekend.  I can at least confirm that one dog will be leaving Tai Po very soon, and the two mini border collies have both been chosen (no surprise there, as they're gorgeous!)

Tues 28th March: Smooth move, and new arrivals

The puppies from Elgin are now at North Street

 It wasn't only the Elgin Street dogs and puppies that made the move to our Kennedy Town North Street  Centre today, because several of the dedicated volunteers who have been such a great support over the past months came along with them.  When I got there in the afternoon with a group of new arrivals, all puppies already looked very settled, and the adult dogs had already been out for their first neighbourhood walk. Thank you to everyone for helping make the move such a smooth operation.

The real Otto

Now for the newcomers, and once again they were really not what I was expecting, at least as far as the puppies were concerned. 

The Otto I had been expecting

You may have seen the photos shared yesterday and last week, but what became obvious when I arrived at ALCVC where the dogs and puppies had been dropped off, was that those photos had been taken some time ago.  As I have written many times before, puppies grow fast, so rather than tiny little things the puppies that greeted me were already much larger than that, and the poodle puppy is actually not still a puppy at all!  Still, of course the puppies are lovely, and at least two of them are small in size as promised (Opal and Odette).  There's one puppy missing from the photos because Ocean was picked up for fostering, but again she was already several sizes larger than we had expected so I hope that's not going to be a problem. 

The actual puppies

The four new puppies joined the Elgin puppy gang, and after the obligatory initial inspection they got down to the serious business of playing.  That's the wonderful thing about puppies, they happily accept all newcomers as best friends regardless of looks, size or anything else. 

Four of the new adults are what I call the Big/Little dogs, meaning larger bodies with short legs, and they seem to me to be sisters because of their similar age and body shape.  Esme is a bit different and reminded me very much of Dilly the puggle from Elgin Street, and Eden is also definitely not related. All of them are young adults, a little bit scared today, but that's to be expected given the huge upheaval in their lives.  They'd already started to settle down by the time I left North Street. 

Along with the Elgin Street group, others who had temporarily had to move out of North Street while renovations were happening, also moved back in from nearby Brilliant Court, and a full list of where each puppy is staying will be coming shortly.  In any case, the walk between the two Kennedy Town Centres is only five minutes, so it's best to start at our official Homing Centre at Shop 4 Brilliant Court, Sai Hong Lane, 28 Praya Kennedy Town unless you know that the puppy you're interested in is staying at North Street.  All adults, including the new six and those that moved from Elgin Street, plus Otto the poodle, are all at North Street now.

Either way, if not already completed please make sure you fill in the adoption questionnaire as first step, at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/

Mon 27th March: Moving day coming up

Very sweet girl Katie at Elgin Street

 In case you missed the news, today is the last day that the current crop of dogs and puppies (shown in the video below) will be staying at our HKDR@Elgin location, because on Tuesday morning they will all be moving to the Kennedy Town Centre at 13-19 North Street.  This space was temporarily vacated to have some renovation work carried out, and now that it's completed we can move back in.  Later this week, and once the lower floor of Elgin Street has been made ready, the small "Red" dogs that are losing their home in Ap Lei Chau will be moving in. 

Sweet Ned 

In fact not all of the Ap Lei Chau dogs are really "Red", meaning they have certain behaviour issues, because we also have some other dogs that are there for different reasons.  One of these is Ned, now three years old and a regular larger-sized mongrel.  Ned came to us as a very young puppy, and we quickly found out that he had a condition which meant his food didn't go down naturally, and he had to eat sitting upright.  As a small puppy it was easy enough to have someone holding him while he was eating, but as he grew we had to have a special Bailey Chair made.  Over time this has also been modified to take into account Ned's growth, but as a mature adult now Ned knows how to get into his Bailey Chair by himself, and you can see in this video how easy it is for both Ned and the feeder: https://www.facebook.com/100064274126004/videos/pcb.601072572045208/741817524098783.  It's because of his condition that Ned has never been adopted, but now we really need a home for him.  He's a lovely dog, and the only thing that his condition means is that he must always be sitting up when he eats, and that means strictly no treats or extra snacks outside mealtimes.  Can you give Ned that home he's waited so long for? (we'll send his Bailey Chair with him of course). 

Olive

Odette

The timing isn't the best because our van and driver Ming will be busy moving the dogs and puppies from Elgin Street to North Street, but I just heard that the new small puppies will be arriving on Tuesday too, as well as three small-medium adults.  I've arranged for them to be dropped off at ALCVC so they can be checked over and vaccinated, and if anyone is interested in meeting, adopting or fostering any of these little "O" pups, please start by completing the adoption questionnaire at www.hongkongdogrescue.com, or emailing Cindy at foster@hongkongdogrescue.com.  These puppies will grow to be small, or small-medium, as adults.  

Opal

Sun 26th March: Frustration is the word for today

 I can cheat a little bit and use the adoption photo for puppy Annie as the adoption photo for foster-sister Ayla, as she will also be staying in the only home she can remember since being picked up from our Elgin Street Centre some weeks ago.  Now the two "sisters" will always have each other to play with and to grow old with, and that's wonderful for them, and for the two human sisters who will each have their own dog. 

Rodger So was the volunteer photographer for today's rather wet Puppy Party at Whiskers N Paws  Puppy Adoption Day 26th March 2023, and although the "M" litter of Max, Mason and Maya were on the brink of being chosen so many times, they are currently still available. I have no idea why these smaller-sized dachshund cross youngsters are still with us, but I feel their time is coming very soon. 

Thank you Samara!

At least we were lucky enough to receive a TwoPresents Giant Cheque donation today, and thank so much to Samara for sharing her sixth birthday with the puppies.  I think this is a wonderful way to introduce the concept of charity and giving to young children. 

We also had several visitors to our Elgin Street Centre to meet the dogs and puppies staying there, and this was the last time that we will be able to welcome potential adopters to this particular location.  On Tuesday the remaining dogs and puppies will be moving to 13-19 North Street, Kennedy Town, where they can start the next phase of their lives.  Now that they are fully vaccinated this means getting out for adventures at the Kennedy Town Waterfront and dog park, although some of the puppies are probably still too small for long walks. 

Kai is small-sized and very sweet

The adult dogs that will also be making the move are bichon Lola, Teddy the Wheaten terrier, three-legged Kai and his best friend Katie, plus our longest-stay resident Hetty.   Hetty is a very sweet-but-timid girl who has never got further than the front door before, but today was a huge breakthrough as she actually walked outside with Teddy for support.  Well done Hetty, and thank you to all of the volunteers who have been part of Hetty's life and learning since her arrival. 

All of these adult dogs are small or medium sized, and although Hetty, Kai and Katie seem never to have been walked before coming to us so are still in the process of being trained, Lola and Teddy are more than ready to go to homes, and I would be very happy if that could happen.  You can see both Teddy and Lola in these short video clips shared here, and if you can offer them a home please start by completing the adoption questionnaire at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/

Sat 25th March: Stormy Sunday ahead (but we're still open!)

"F" puppy Fitz is staying at WNP now

 With rain and thunderstorms forecast for Sunday, I want to start by mentioning that although the regular Puppy Party at Whiskers N Paws will still be taking place, the number of puppies attending will be lower than usual and will be restricted to mostly foster puppies.  

Those staying at Kennedy Town and Elgin Street can still be seen at their respective Centres from 10am until 5pm.  I say 5pm rather than 6pm, because you will need to allow time to properly meet and interact with the puppies if you're serious about adopting.  The same applies to Whiskers N Paws too if you're heading over there with the real intention of adopting, because we need to pack up and leave at four o'clock so the foster parents and their charges can get back home, bearing in mind they come from all over Hong Kong and the New Territories. 

I'm disappointed that the puppies at 22 Elgin Street can't enjoy playtime on the terrace, because now that they're fully vaccinated they really need to start getting out and socialising.  If you're a volunteer at our Elgin Street Centre please bear that in mind when you're there, and perhaps start to get the puppies outside even if you're just carrying them.  This is one aspect of them being due to move soon to Kennedy Town that I'm very much looking forward to, as they can begin their leash-walking lessons and trips to the waterfront and dog park.  We still have a week to go so please sign up for upcoming shifts if you're already a volunteer: 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1PGDgc3Hh0oQt7Cg5TmOSOZQVGHIw8xJHOMvTgzeH-3U/htmlview#gid=714428566

Oreo is a very sweet little boy

Lucky Ursula 

As mentioned, chihuahua Oreo left Elgin Street today to begin his new life, while puppy Ursula was the lucky girl at Kennedy Town.  

One of the volunteers shared this video of little bichon Lola out for a walk (sorry about the loud motorbike noise), and I want to let everyone see how lovely she is, and how much she needs a new home.  She was so distraught at being given up by her family (due to human babies arriving) that she took a while to settle, and now she has bonded with our office staff member Margaret.  That's good and bad because Margaret can't adopt Lola, so we're looking for a home where Lola can become someone's faithful companion and best friend.  She would be ideal for a home with a single woman, or a couple with no children.  Please watch this short video and let us know if you would like to take Lola home. She's not into long hikes or big adventures, she really just wants someone to love her.

For all adoption enquiries please start by completing the questionnaire at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/

Fri 24th March: Scruffy's big day

Scruffy left Elgin Street today

 Can it really be the weekend again? Apparently so, and for us that means some dogs leaving to start their new lives, including two from our Elgin Street Centre, Scruffy and chihuahua Oreo (although Oreo will actually be leaving on Saturday morning).   There are other adoptions also due to take place from Kennedy Town, Tai Po and foster care, so I'm looking forward to being able to share names and photos. 

The weekend also means the Puppy Party at Whiskers N Paws, of course. although I've been watching the weather forecast and wondering if the usual terrace games are going to be possible if it rains.  If that happens at least the foster puppies will be able to gather at WNP while we'll probably keep the Kennedy Town and Elgin Street youngsters at the Centres.  Let's see. 

You can see three of the foster puppies on Instagram @why_i_foster (Pepper, Paulie and Luke) , plus the two mini border collies Milo and Mindy who were taken in by the same foster.  Both of these mini-collies have homes to go to so I don't need to worry about them. 

Brothers Pepper and Paulie

Fuzzy-faced Archer

Gorgeous fuzzy-faced foster puppies Axel and Archer also have their own Instagram page now @archer_axel_hkdr , and you can meet any of these puppies at their temporary homes by emailing Cindy at foster@hongkongdogrescue.com. 

We're still trying to get by with reduced accommodation for the puppies at Kennedy Town, as the North Street Centre needed some repair work doing and that meant moving everyone out.  Once all the renovation is completed (by next week hopefully), the dogs and puppies that are currently staying at Elgin Street will relocate to 13-19 North Street, as well as some of those who temporarily moved over to the official Kennedy Town Homing Centre in Brilliant Court.  HKDR@Elgin (downstairs) will then become the new Red Dog Centre, plus the non-"Red" poodles and others, as well as the office and store being at street level. If it sounds complicated to you, you can imagine how challenging it's been for us as well, and it's not what we wanted.  

Thurs 23rd March: How can a dog be so small?

Dusty weighs just 1.7kg

 I seem to be writing a lot about poodles these days, and that's because a lot of poodles are coming to us and in need of homes.  I hadn't seen the two ex-breeder poodles I wrote about yesterday because they were dropped off at ALCVC directly, and then stayed the night there before moving to our soon-to-be-closed Red Dog Centre in Ap Lei Chau.  The white male, Dougal, was picked up by his foster parent by the afternoon, and tiny - really very tiny - Dusty will also be taken for fostering by the weekend.  When I saw the photo of Dusty I wondered how on earth Dr Tony is going to be able to operate on her shoulders, if that's what's going to be needed. 

Dougal is also small at 3kg

Charlotte and Nacho would make a great couple

Normal-sized poodle Charlotte was also surrendered today, and we need a home for her too.  This is a very sad case which has nothing to do with Charlotte's behaviour, it's just family circumstances that meant the dog had to be given up.  Charlotte is also staying at the Red Dog Centre for now.

Nacho is the same age as Charlotte

The other poodle which I have grown to really love is Nacho, and he's lucky in that he's able to hang out in the office at our Elgin Street Centre so he has company all day.  I was there myself in the afternoon so was able to spend time with Nacho, Lola and chihuahua Oreo, who is extremely happy now that his cone is off following his desexing.  He's a toy fanatic, and between Oreo and Nacho there was a competition to see who could collect the most toys.   I don't know why Nacho hasn't found a home yet, because he's such a great little dog.  As for Oreo, he has an adoption interview on Friday, so I hope that goes well.  I can't imagine any reason why it wouldn't. 

We do have some adoptions coming up that I'll be able to write about, and even better one is a Tai Po dog, but I'm waiting until I can share the photos.

Teddy's coat is normally scruffy

One of the reasons I was able to spend time with the Elgin Street dogs was because I was waiting for Dr Denise of ALCVC to visit so she could give vaccinations to all of the dogs and puppies that were due to have them.  As it turned out I had to leave just as Dr Denise was arriving because she had been delayed, but at least I was able to walk Teddy (with Scruffy), and Nacho, which is something the volunteers usually do.  Scruffy is leaving on Friday, so now it must surely be Teddy's turn.  He's a great little dog too, with a silky coat that is suitable to allergy sufferers.  He is a terrier which means he has to act as though he's a big dog, but it's all harmless fun and I really like him a lot.  You can probably tell that if it was up to me I'd take them all home!

Weds 22nd March: Here we go again

 I'm going to jump straight in with photos of small sized puppies we've been asked to take, and if anyone is interested in adopting please start by completing the questionnaire at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/

I should mention that the captions aren't mine, so when the first one says that the puppy doesn't like cats much, I'm assuming it means he likes to chase and play with them.  

When I say small sized puppies, I mean those that will grow to be small or small-medium adults, and I need to make that distinction because we are also always being asked to take in larger puppies too, either from AFCD or from individuals.   I have to be honest and say that the puppy situation is at crisis point, for everyone from what I can gather, and that with the Kennedy Town Homing Centre full to bursting with puppies, and more in our Elgin Street Centre and foster homes, we simply don't have anywhere to put newcomers for the time being.  

It honestly breaks my heart that we aren't in a position to say yes to all of the puppies that need help, but as the smaller ones stand a much greater chance of being offered homes I hope that those shown will be similarly lucky.  

There are also mixed breed medium sized adults that are also in need of homes, and I'll start with showing just one of them because I think she is most likely to appeal to potential adopters.  She has a very wise face I think, and I'm sure her character matches that look. 

As always, there is one section of the population that stand out as being completely without morals, compassion or anything else that is good.  These are the breeders, scum of the earth, who make money out of misery and suffering.  For everyone who is contemplating buying a puppy, or has already done so, please take note of the following....

I was asked if we would accept two breeder poodles, a young female (now Dusty), one to two years old but actual age unknown because these dogs aren't licensed,  meaning the breeder is operating illegally.  The other poodle, Dougal,  was a bit older, a white male aged around seven years, but again with no microchip or license.  I should have known that this breeder wouldn't willingly give up dogs that could be turning a profit, and sure enough when they were dropped off at ALCVC and checked over by the vet, the male had a fractured pelvis and the female bi-lateral (both sides) shoulder luxation.   Both dogs will have to see Dr Tony at Acorn for further assessment and hopefully surgery, and once again we need foster homes for them.  Please email Cindy at foster@hongkongdogrescue.com if you can help.

Tues 21st March: Once again foster homes needed

 I should have expected it really, based on so many similar situations in the past, but the three dogs that came to our Elgin Street base today weren't exactly as described.  I had been told that one of the two young siblings, who are gorgeous and look like mini border collies,  was limping, and that the poodle had recently been desexed.  

I didn't know whether the poodle was male or female, and he turned out to be a boy who did indeed have a recent desexing wound.  However, what hadn't been mentioned was that he also had a dressing on his hip, so he was sent to Acorn Vet Hospital for an X-ray to see what was going on.  The poor dog had had a failed femoral head excision and was in a lot of pain.  This surgery is done when there's a hip dislocation or hip dysplasia, meaning the "ball" at the top of the femur doesn't sit properly in the hip socket and the joint can't rotate smoothly.  The "ball" is removed, meaning the leg isn't actually attached to the hip any longer, but as the wound heals and scar tissue forms, it creates a functioning "joint".  After a while it's impossible to even see that a dog has had this surgery, as long as it's properly done, which obviously wasn't the case with the poodle.  

Not all vets are competent surgeons, and if your own dog needs any sort complicated operation, please make sure that the vet is experienced and knows what he or she is doing.  We've seen the results of poor surgery so many times, and most recently in another botched case with puppy Cola.  

I called the poodle Monty when Acorn asked for a name, but I was then reminded that we already have a poodle called Monty so I will have to come up with another "M" name.  Whatever that is, we need a foster home, and urgently, for not-Monty so he can have yet another surgery to try to repair the damage done.  He's now on pain relief for the hip, so at least he can be relatively comfortable in the meantime. 

Milo and Mindy

As far as the two mini border collies are concerned, they're older puppies, small-sized and very sweet. However the "limp" I was told about is rather more serious than that, and Mindy can't use the leg at all. She probably has Grade 4 (the highest) patella luxation, meaning her kneecap has completely popped out of alignment.  She will also have surgery with Dr Tony, and again we urgently need a foster home.

Please contact Cindy at foster@hongkongkongdogrescue.com if you can take care of either the poodle or Mindy following surgery and during recovery.

Mindy's brother Milo is very beautiful and also super-sweet, and I'm pretty sure he'll find a home very quickly.

For all adoption enquiries please start by completing the questionnaire at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/

Mon 20th March: All about poodles, and another move coming up

Funny/sweet poodle Nacho

 One of the golden rules about dogs (animal) rescue work is that you have to be flexible when making any plans, and to expect the unexpected.  For example, we were waiting for the arrival of three new small dogs at our HKDR@Elgin Centre today, one of which was a young poodle, but I shouldn't have been too surprised that they didn't actually turn up and will apparently now be brought on Tuesday.  As it happened it worked better for me because I had to be at the dentist today, but I was hoping to be able to share some photos at least. 

There are also three more poodles (apparently) coming later in the week, but again they were first scheduled to arrive on Tuesday.  I'd even posted on Facebook that we were expecting them, so there are already potential adopters waiting.  Some of these are first-time dog owners, and while that doesn't mean that they won't be dedicated to any dog they adopt, I want to talk once again about poodles in particular.

Senior poodle Bee is a sweet boy

One of the reasons that many people want a poodle is that they have a wool coat, rather than hair, so this is helpful when it comes to allergies to regular dog coats.  However, as cute and smart as a groomed poodle looks, without daily brushing and regular haircuts, the curls become thick and matted.  Many times over the past twenty years we've taken in poodles whose coats were completely solid and could be shaved off as one complete piece.   Taking care of a poodle's grooming needs is time-consuming, and expensive if you can't learn how to do it yourself. 

Another sweet-but-old poodle boy

10 year-old poodle girl Charlotte

Poodles are also small sized, unless they're standard poodles who are large,  and undeniably very cute. However don't think that their small size means they don't need proper exercise or training, because the breed is energetic and very smart.  It's very easy for a bored or under-stimulated poodle to develop behaviour issues, and these start when a baby puppy is bought by someone who doesn't have the time or knowledge to provide the companionship, exercise and training that every puppy needs. 

Our "Red" poodles enjoying a trip to WNP

The reason that we know about poodles is because they are one of the breeds that is most commonly surrendered, many for behaviour problems such as biting, but also because they're long-lived and with changing situations their families can no longer keep them.  We have a few poodles that fall into the latter category, meaning they're sweet but older, and another one is coming this week (Charlotte).  

You will probably know about our collection of "Red" poodles, and I'm not referring to the colour of their coat, which is also called red.  These poodles, plus some other dogs, have been staying at our Red Dog Centre in Ap Lei Chau, where many of them have been for years.  A couple of "Red" poodles have been lucky enough to have been adopted, but for the most part they will probably stay with HKDR until the end of their natural days.  Sadly nothing stays the same for ever, and just as we lost our lovely Ap Lei Chau Homing Centre about a year ago, we are now having to make way once again for the developers who are knocking down every old building in Ap Lei Chau to make room for fancy new high-rise apartment blocks. 

With the Kennedy Town Homing Centres full of puppies, the "Red Dogs", along with the sweet-but-old poodles, will be moving to Elgin Street at the end of March, where they will at least have a sanctuary for as long as we can stay there.  We know that the time on Elgin Street is limited too, as the whole street and Soho area will be following in the redevelopment footsteps of Ap Lei Chau and will soon disappear.   This move is going to be difficult in many ways, not so much in the physical sense of having to pack up and take everything (although that in itself is going to be a mammoth task), but more because we're trying to fit dogs into places that aren't really ideal.  

The dogs and puppies that are currently staying at Elgin Street will be moving too, this time to Kennedy Town where they will have more exposure than they do at the Soho base, and hopefully that will mean better adoption opportunities. 

Lola 

This has been, and is, yet another challenge that we have been facing, along with the financial hardships that are the result of the past few years of restrictions, and so many people leaving Hong Kong.  What we need now are homes for the sweet poodles, those like Nacho, Bee and Timber.  We also have other seniors in need of homes, dogs like ten year-old bichon Lola, and sweet boy shiba Tomo.  You can see all of the dogs mentioned in this post, plus many more who are "adoption-challenged" (meaning not easy to home) at 

hkdr_eagle .  

These photos include the many smaller dogs staying on Lamma, all of whom found the Homing Centres to be too stressful but who are enjoying the peace and quiet of their island home.  They are all available for adoption, but of course they will need a patient adopter willing to give them the space and time to decompress and settle.  

The most recent addition to the Lamma gang is Josh, who came to us as a shy puppy and who really never adapted to living in a busy environment like Kennedy Town.  It took a while, but now Josh is bouncing around like a typical young dog, and having the time of his life.  It's really wonderful to see. 

For all adoption enquiries please start by completing the questionnaire at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/