Mon 25th Feb: Highs and lows

Frostie is a two-times survivor

Animal rescue work takes over your life and brings a lot of mixed emotions, from the happiness of seeing a once-unwanted and possibly sick dog or puppy regaining its health and finding a loving home, to the sadness of that not happening.  Just recently we lost a few puppies to parvovirus, and there is always the never-ending threat of tick fever, especially in the babies that were born to stray mothers, and heartworm infection in the adult dogs.   We thought we would also lose puppy Frostie, who after surviving as a very young baby when most of her litter perished, suddenly became very ill with pneumonia-type symptoms.  It was really touch-and-go and I was warned the chances of survival were slim, but Frostie fought hard and made it through and is now ready to come back to the Homing Centre.  It feels like a personal victory when something like this happens, and now I just want Frostie to find the perfect home.

Even the healthy puppies may never be chosen for whatever reason, often just bad timing, and they will grow into adults at our Tai Po Homing Centre, eventually becoming old dogs and ultimately dying.   We moved from Pokfulam to Tai Po in May 2010, almost nine full years ago, so any of the dogs that came to us while we were in the old kennel site have either already departed for the great Kennel in the Sky, or will be heading there sometime soon.  A few lucky ones found homes as seniors and those cases are the highlights of the job and the times that really make you feel good, but there are still so many that I remember well as sweet puppies who would have made wonderful family dogs but were never lucky. 

James was 13 years old

For those who have spent their entire lives with HKDR we can at least know that we did our best to make them feel that they had a home, and indeed some prefer the free kind of Homing Centre life to the pressure of being a family member and all of the expectations that come with the role.   James was one of those dogs, and I remember when he came to us and that he was called James because it was the name of the man who found him.   (Dog) James was let go today after developing a condition which caused his jaw to lock solid meaning he was unable to eat.   Having to make these decisions is the inevitable part of being a No Kill organisation, and it's never easy.

Of course for every dog that leaves in whichever way there are always replacements coming in, and it's a cycle that will never end.  This Saturday we will be back at Concordia Pet Care in Happy Valley with the puppies that are hoping to be the lucky ones, and again on Sunday at Whiskers N Paws.