Tues 17th Aug: Typhoon surprise

 I'm anticipating the arrival of puppies on Wednesday following the heavy rain, as many are born outside and in places where they can easily be washed out of their nests.  We already know at least some are coming although not how many, and we'll just have to see who's been lucky enough to have survived and been picked up by volunteers.   The T9 signal was a bit of a surprise and I'm sure many of you were lying awake during the night, as I was, listening to the wind and rain and hoping everyone would be OK.

One of the readers of my blog asked about my Lamma dog Rag, and I'm happy to report that he's well on the way to a full recovery and is lying by my side (of course) as I'm typing.  I strongly suspect that his continuing refusal to eat from a bowl, meaning I have to spoonfeed him, isn't for any reason other than he likes it that way. 

It wasn't a day for adoptions today, so I want to talk about three dogs that are still waiting for homes, all shiba inus.  As I've said so many times before this is probably Hong Kong's most popular breed, but they share certain characteristics that mean they're really not suitable for inexperienced dog owners.  Shibas range in size from small to medium, but they're brave and think of themselves as giants.  If there's a fight in the dog park there's usually a shiba involved, and they're also quite vocal in a high-pitched way.  However, treated properly with those people who understand the breed they can be great companions, loyal and strong, and here are our three:

Damson came to us as an older puppy who had obviously been bought by someone who knew nothing. She was an angry little doglet who didn't cope well with life at the Homing Centre so she came to Lamma for rehabilitation.  Her behaviour changed very quickly once she had the space and freedom to do her own thing, and she became very affectionate and got on well with the other dogs. I thought she had a forever home where she's currently living, but unfortunately her fosters can't commit so Damson needs a new place to live.  While in her foster home Damson also got to know the resident cat as well as the parrots, and is fine with them all too.  The photo shows Damson with our driver Ming. 

Gumbo was also an angry doglet when he came to us, and he had serious food-guarding behaviour.  Our trainer Cactus worked with him to overcome that issue and he's been living very happily as an HKDR office dog since then.  He plays well with the other dogs at the Homing Centre and loves the humans he knows, although still slightly suspcious of strangers wanting to pat his head (never a good idea with dogs you don't know, by the way).  Gumbo is a medium-sized shiba, something which tends to put potential adopters off when they're expecting a very small dog. 

Our most recent addition is King, and he is the easiest of the three shibas.  He's also the oldest at four years, but still a young dog by any standards.  He hasn't been any trouble since coming to Lamma, and his failed and very short trial adoption wasn't his fault at all. 

If you are interested in adopting any of these three shiba inus, bearing in mind that we wouldn't let them go to homes with children or small apartments in busy locations, please complete the adoption questionnaire at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/