Weds 17th May: Finding space for the newcomers

 The newest group of small dogs is expected to arrive on Thursday, and I've been wondering which corner we'll be able to squeeze them into before they find foster homes or are adopted.  There'll be some breathing space on Friday as they all go off to Acorn for their health checks and vaccinations, but we really need at least temporary homes for them after that.  As always please complete the foster questionnaire (www.hongkongdogrescue.com/volunteer/fostering/) if you can take in a small guest for a while, and we will supply everything you need during the stay.  

Dizzy and Dinky (with a bit of Dylan) 

We still have some really adorable and young small dogs at our North Street, Kennedy Town Centre, like Dizzy and Dinky.  At first I thought they were brother and sister, but Dinky is a puppy and Dizzy is a year old, and both are very sweet and friendly.  (In the photo you can just see Dylan to one side, and he's another really lovely young boy). 

Mavis could so easily have become a mother

I mentioned a one year-old dog that we took from AFCD the other day, and her name is now Mavis.  I asked if there was any vaccination history and was told no, the dog had never been taken to a vet, and she was also not desexed (of course).  It turned out that she was in season, which would have meant yet another litter of unwanted puppies had she stayed in her previous, totally irresponsible home.  When people wonder why we care about who adopts our dogs and puppies, it's situations like these that make us nervous.  One home I rejected the other day already had a female dog that wasn't desexed, and the reason given was that they didn't see any need to do that.  

Apart from the many thousands of unwanted puppies that are born every year, there are other good reasons for desexing, such as mammary tumours that are common in females that haven't been spayed, pyometra (infected uterus) and even just the inconvenience of regularly coming into season.  For people who think it's cruel and unnatural to desex their dogs, males especially, the cruelty is leaving a dog with its high sex drive intact while not giving it an outlet for those needs.   Animals have an instinctive urge to procreate to ensure the survival of the species, and an entire male dog will make those desires very obvious. Why would you want that in a dog that was sharing your life and home?