With the weekend here we have ex-foster puppies Lemon and Ramen due to come back to the Homing Centre at Ap Lei Chau, part of the "Edible Litter" who are now old enough to be adopted after having spent a month in their respective temporary homes.
Also "Edibles", Pasta and Kiwi are very lucky to have such an amazing foster mother, and you can watch them in this sweet video which includes smaller Emerald from the "Little Gems" litter and already adopted: https://www.facebook.com/hkdogrescue/videos/pcb.4177852008894166/739785773392991
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| Apparently this corgi has no behaviour issues |
It was an unusual day in that we didn't get any new puppies in, which is a good thing as we have enough for the time being. I did however get a surrender request for a corgi girl because of a new human baby in the home, and as is so often the case when that happens the dog has to go. This corgi is six years old and is due to be coming at the beginning of April, and as much as I hate to advertise dogs in advance because often they don't end up coming, if you're interested please complete the adoption questionnaire at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/
I know many of you are frustrated by the lack of protection for the animals in Hong Kong, and you might be interested in this upcoming talk which was shared by one of our supporters. You can find all the information at this HKU link: https://www.facebook.com/780905378661065/posts/3834673579950881/
As another sad reminder of the attitude by too many towards dogs in Hong Kong, there was news of another poisoning at the Cyberport waterfront park today with the dog dying as a result. I feel so sorry for the families who lose their dogs in this terrible way and can only urge everyone to be on high alert or to stay completely away from places where there have been multiple cases of such poisonings reported. It's just not worth the risk.
Another sad case is that of our lovely big and goofy dog Bucket. As if it wasn't already bad enough that he had had his ears hacked off as a puppy and subsequently spent his adolescent months at SPCA and AFCD (I assume while waiting for the court case), a recent X-ray showed that he has dysplasia in both hips and elbows, which Dr Tony says is a genetic and inoperable condition. This means that as Bucket gets older he will almost certainly develop arthritis in his joints and become less mobile. I do have to add though that I have two such dogs living with me, siblings Cody and Cumin, and Cody in particular is what I call my wobbly dog because he has the same problem. They're now eight years old and still not showing ny signs of pain or difficulty in walking, although they're only medium sized as opposed to Bucket being large.
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| Life hasn't been fair on Bucket |
That brings me to my last subject today which relates to Bucket too, and the fact that due to him being held back for his first year he wasn't desexed at an early age. The benefits of desexing has been a hot subject for a long time, especially for animal rescue groups where we see the result of not desexing in thousands of unwanted puppies being born every year. However, modern reseach has shown that (male) testosterone is vital for development of muscle, and that castrating male dogs too early has a detrimental effect on their growth. Although we have to spay (desex) females at six months because they come into season at that age and can start breeding, we have always recommended not desexing males until eight months.
Our trainer, Cactus, whose name I know you're all familiar with as well as her reputation, is always continuing her studies and taking courses to expand her own knowledge and expertise. In a new course she has just completed the subject of the effects of early neutering was discussed, and as a result we are now recommending that for large males desexing isn't done until the dog is a year old. Of course there may be occasional reasons for neutering earlier than that, but in general this is what is suggested.
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