Weds 28th April: A dog's life is too short

 I'm definitely not feeling my best this morning, having had a disturbed night dealing with not one but three seniors in various stages of decline.  I knew this time would come, when so many of my Lamma dogs are turning fourteen or more and losing sight or mobility or both, while some are still sprightly and active at the same age.  Having only just recently said goodbye to Gigi, the oldest of them all at seventeen, I thought I would have some quiet nights for a while but that turned out not to be the case.  I'm dreading the next couple of years in that sense as I know I'm going to be dealing with  a lot more of the same, and the worst thing of all is having to make the decision to let go.  With Gigi I kept hoping she'd fall asleep one night and not wake up, and I made the dreaded appointment once and cancelled, but in the end I had to do the right thing by her.  It's never easy whatever the situation.

A dog's life is never long enough and the time passes too quickly.  We can see this very clearly in the baby pups that come to us with their eyes and ears still closed and totally reliant on their foster parents (in place of a real mother) for everything, but in a matter of weeks there's already a huge change.  Even at three weeks the puppies can eat by themselves, and at eight weeks are ready to leave home. It's like watching time being speeded up, and something I tell all puppy adopters who are struggling with a new puppy and the biting, chewing and toilet training; all of this will be over before you know it.

The puppies at our Ap Lei Chau Homing Centre are growing like weeds and you can see some lovely photos and videos here https://www.facebook.com/HappyWoofHK, as well as photos of older Tai Po dogs. 

It also took a few days to get the photos of Sunday's Whiskers N Paws Puppy Afternoon uploaded, but you can see them all here  Puppy Adoption Day 25 April 2021.  Thanks to Rodger So for a wonderful set, and next week we'll have the album up in good time.   If you want to ask about any of the puppies shown please send a photo along with the adoption questionnaire if not already completed: www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/