Thurs 30th June: A little breeze to end the month

 Puppy Carter just managed to have his name included in the list of June adoptions when he was chosen from the many youngsters staying at our Kennedy Town Homing Centre.  Congratulations to Carter, and of course to his new family.   I may not have the names of the month's lucky dogs and puppies for today's post as Friday is a holiday, but at least I can remove Carter's name from the Available Puppy list as follows: (this list doesn't include the latest intake of ten puppies who went straight to foster homes).

HKDR Kennedy Town Homing Centre (Shop4, G/F, Brilliant Court, Sai Hong Lane, 28 Praya, Kennedy Town)

Edgar (M) and Evan (M)

Clio (F), and Cole (M)

Poppy (F), Odile (F)

Dawn (F), Darwin (M), Daphne (F) and Duke (M)

Kenny (M) 

Alan (M) and Aria (F) 

Kai (M) 

Molly(F)

Indie (F), Ike (M), Impi (M) and Inez (F)

 

Whiskers N Paws (10/F Horizon Plaza, Ap Lei Chau)

Zippy (M)

Esme (F)

Kyle (M)

 

Hong Kong Island

Charlie (M) and Cressie (F) @Chung Hom Kok

Roland (M) @Pok Fu Lam

Trent (M) @Pok Fu Lam (Instagram @adoptdontshop.hk)   

Luna (F) @ Sai Ying Pun 

Azaria (F) @Happy Valley

Drummond (M) and Drake (M) @Stanley

Odie (F) and Ozzie (F) @Stanley 

 

Kowloon and New Territories

Olive (F) and Ottilie (F) @Tsim Sha Tsui

Orla (F) and Oscar(M) @Ho Man Tin

Kyra (F) @Sai Kung

Dulcie (F) and Demi (F) @Sai Kung (Instagram Page @why_i_foster )

I'd been planning to go over to Hong Kong Island today but the weather put an end to that, and it seems the same will apply on Friday and possibly the weekend too.  We'll have to keep a close eye on what's happening with Chaba and how it develops, and hope all Typhoon warnings will have been lowered by Sunday for the Whiskers N Paws Puppy Party.   Please remember that our Homing Centres at Kennedy Town and Tai Po are open every single day regardless, and in the unlikely event of things turning bad over the weekend we may be asking for Typhoon Fosters for the Tai Po dogs.  Hopefully that won't be necessary this time round, but if anyone is interested in fostering at any time please complete the application here https://hongkongdogrescue.com/volunteer/fostering/

Weds 29th June: Another sad goodbye

There are two adoptions to write about today, the first being another "Failed Foster", this time of puppy Zane.  Thank you to his foster-now-adopter for taking care of Zane since he was a very young pup, and for loving him so much that giving him up just wasn't possible.  

Donny on the right with friends

The second adoption is a rather special one because it's a shiba inu, the breed I have written about so many times you must all know the words off by heart.  Donny had been staying on Lamma for some time and was doing really well, surprising me by the way he fitted in with the other small dogs.  His now-adopter actually came to Lamma to pick him up (after mistakenly thinking Donny was staying at the Red Dog Centre in Ap Lei Chau), and to be honest I was fully expecting him to be coming back before too long.  I'm very happy to be wrong, and to be able to say that Donny is no longer available for adoption. 

More happy news to share is that the "HKDR@Elgin" location is finally finished, the last touches being the sign above the door.  This space is what we call a "Store and More", meaning we have a shop at street level selling all kinds of dog and HKDR merchandise, and a training room downstairs.  I'm also happy to say that the first "Positive Partners" dog-human training course is already fully subscribed, so if you're interested in Friday lessons @Elgin please sign up early for the next round.  We'll also be hosting different kinds of workshops for dogs, as well as puppy socialisation sessions, all of which will be shared on our Facebook and Instagram pages. 

The training room is ready for our first classes

It's almost the end of June, a time when "Little" Eva lists the adoptions for the month, as well as the intake and the "Forever Dogs", meaning those whose life has come to a natural end while still with us. 

It's not only losing our dogs that's leaves a big hole, it's also losing our long-term and dedicated volunteers, such as "Auntie" Sue whose departure for Singapore I mentioned the other day.  This time it's May "Happy Woof" So and Stephanie Wan who have relocated to Canada, and the only consolation is that they took two senior Tai Po dogs with them, namely Luther and Dora. 

"Hi everyone! Luther and Dora have arrived safely in Canada  It was a long journey but thankfully everything went smoothly and the dogs handled it extremely well. Although they are senior dogs they are adapting well to life in Canada. They enjoy all the green space, and most of all, love sleeping on their new beds!  I am so glad I get the chance to bring them home. I am learning more about their personalities every day! Luther likes to follow me around and always waits for me outside the bathroom door  Dora is a deep sleeper and doesn't even wake up to the sound of the treat bag! 

Don't be afraid to adopt a senior dog and even move halfway around the world with them. They will surprise you with how resilient and adaptable they are, and will bring you so much joy and love.

Thank you to HKDR for taking care of Luther and Dora all these years. I hope they will enjoy their retirement! 

Finally, we are happy to represent Tong Gau in Canada  唐狗是寶!"

Everyone at HKDR will sorely miss "Happy Woof" and the time they spent with all of the dogs, large and small, plus their wonderful photos which were posted on their social media pages. 

Tues 28th June: Re-visiting once-familiar places

(Apologies again about the odd layout of today's post, but I'm still trying to work out how to fix my computer problem). 

 It was all about vet visits today including one of my Lamma dogs, Doris, who was booked to have her teeth cleaned as well as a general check-up.  All of the dogs that live with me are seniors now, so I'm always having to keep an eye open for signs of age-related ill-health, although dogs can quite easily hide the fact that they're sick.   If you know your dog well, which I hope applies to everyone who has a dog at home, you need to look out for subtle behaviour changes such as where they sleep or how they greet you, lack of appetite, or in fact anything that seems to be even slightly out of the normal.  It's really worth the time and money to have annual health checks when your dogs are in double digits, meaning over ten years of age (or even young for giant breeds).  Over the years dogs develop habits that are so ingrained that any change is worth investigating. 

Is Tobias the father of these three?

Taryn

On the way to pick Doris up from Acorn, we also had to stop at ALCVC where the two new small-sized dogs had been having their health checks.  Taryn, the female, is a very sweet and pretty girl, while Tobias looks very much the boy.  In fact comparing his face to the three small-sized puppies who came at the same time, I suspect he might be the father. 

From Ap Lei Chau the next stop was AFCD Pokfulam to have the two dogs licensed, and it was quite strange for me to be there as it used to be a place I visited at least once a week, usually more, to check on the new dogs and puppies that had come in.  Since all of the Covid restrictions began I haven't been able to do this, but if there is ever an end to the situation I will start up again. 

Mon 27th June: Two out, twelve in

One of the "K" Puppies in January

 One thing I love doing is removing puppies' names from the Foster Puppy list, especially if they've been waiting for a long time to be chosen.  The "Typhoon K Puppies" were rescued as newborns (in a typhoon), and were remarkably taken in as a whole litter by one foster home.  I can't begin to imagine having to bottle-feed an entire litter, but these puppies thrived and grew. Once old enough they were adopted one by one until just two remained, Kong and Kooper, and today they were confirmed as "Failed Foster" members, or rather their now-adopter was.  These puppies have grown up never having known anything but their human family, and I'm sure they're wonderful and loyal doglets, not to mention lucky too. 

The following are puppies either already at our Kennedy Town Homing Centre, or still in foster homes and available to meet by arrangement via Cindy at foster@hongkongdogrescue.com.  As a reminder you can also see foster puppies from Sunday's Whiskers N Paws party here: Puppy Adoption Day 26th June 2022

HKDR Kennedy Town Homing Centre (Shop4, G/F, Brilliant Court, Sai Hong Lane, 28 Praya, Kennedy Town)

 

Edgar (M) and Evan (M)

Clio (F), Carter (M) and Cole (M)

Poppy (F), Odile (F),

Dawn (F), Darwin (M), Daphne (F) and Duke (M)

Kenny (M) 

Alan (M) and Aria (F) 

Kai (M) 

Molly(F)

Indie (F), Ike (M), Impi (M) and Inez (F)

 

Whiskers N Paws (10/F Horizon Plaza, Ap Lei Chau)

Zippy (M)

Esme (F)

Kyle (M)

 

Hong Kong Island

Charlie (M) and Cressie (F) Chung Hom Kok

Roland (M) Pok Fu Lam

Trent (M) Pok Fu Lam (Instagram @adoptdontshop.hk)   

Luna (F) Sai Ying Pun 

Azaria (F) Happy Valley

Drummond (M) and Drake (M) Stanley

Odie (F) and Ozzie (F) Stanley 

 

Kowloon and New Territories

Zane (M) Tseung Kwan O

Olive (F) and Ottilie (F) Tsim Sha Tsui

Kyra (F) Sai Kung

Dulcie (F) and Demi (F) Sai Kung (Instagram @why_i_foster )

 

Inevitably, as puppies find homes and can be removed from our long list of availables, new ones arrive, and today's large intake came as something of a surprise. There were ten puppies plus two small adults, and I should mention that three of the puppies are small in size.  Some of them weren't looking too healthy so we sent them straight to Acorn to be checked, and thankfully there was no parvovirus or distemper found, just one case of tick fever (which is also not great). All puppies were sent straight to foster homes (as always huge thanks to everyone who offered at such short notice) so please don't come to meet them at Kennedy Town.

Sun 26th June: Double adoptions are the best!

 It was a remarkably busy day all round, and even if there weren't a large number of adoptions confirmed on the spot it was still a double-lucky day for two puppies at Whiskers N Paws as Orla and Oscar will stay together (yay!).  Please take a look at these lovely photos by today's volunteer photographer Rodger So Puppy Adoption Day 26th June 2022 and see if there are any that you would like to take home.  Please remember to start by completing the adoption questionnaire if you're interested in adopting any age or size of dog, and you can find it at www.hongkongdogrescue.com/adopt/adoption-questionnaire/

Ireland was also adopted from our Kennedy Town Homing Centre, which is just as well as I got a late message about a bunch of newcomers arriving on Monday.  I have no idea at this point about age or size, I just hope that there are smaller dogs or puppies in the mix.  Please check our Facebook page for up-to-date information, and let Cindy know if you can foster any puppies by emailing foster@hongkongdogrescue.com, because we'll definitely be needing to place some in temporary homes.

Sat 25th June: Thanks and goodbye to "Auntie" Sue

Nettle and Nona are staying!

 The day started with some great news about a double adoption, this time that of sisters Nettle and Nona, whose foster parents "failed" by making the two older puppies officially theirs.   I've been seeing Nettle and Nona's photos as they attended the Sunday Puppy Parties, and saw that (obviously) they were getting older week by week, so it's really amazing to know that they finally won the biggest prize of all, a home for life together. 

Little Ollie will never have to play the waiting game as he was chosen today by his new family at our Kennedy Town Homing Centre.  There are so many to choose from, and with it being so hot at the moment these youngsters will probably stay at the Centre on Sunday rather than go to Whiskers N Paws.  There are plenty of foster puppies heading over to Horizon Plaza anyway, so you won't miss out whichever place you choose to go to.  There's also the Furry Market taking place at Whiskers N Paws, so you can double up on your visit. 

I have written many times about how much we value our regular and long-term volunteers, many of whom have been helping out almost since the day HKDR was founded.  This week we had to say goodbye to one of our most dedicated volunteers, someone whose name may be familiar even if you haven't met her.  "Auntie" Sue has left Hong Kong after many years of living here to return to her native Singapore, and we will miss her dearly.  Sue was always the first person to turn up at our Tai Po Homing Centre, pretty much at the crack of dawn, and she'd be the one to report anything that had happened during the night.  She was also the go-between for the rescuers of so many newborn and baby puppies, and at least this will continue as she has promised to keep that channel open.  Sue, thank you for everything, and we and the dogs will miss you like crazy. 

Fri 24th June: A full weekend at Whiskers N Paws

(As often happens, I've managed to do something to the settings on my computer, so please forgive the rather strange layout of today's post)

I completely missed that sweet dog Camille hadn't needed to make the move to Tai Po, but was instead collected from her foster home by her now-adopter.  I'm so happy about this, as whatever had happened to Camille which resulted in her losing a toe and ending up at AFCD, it wasn't the greatest start to her life.  I'm sure this memory is already a distant one for Camille herself, even if she'll always be missing that toe.  

These puppies are staying at Kennedy Town

The two new dogs arrived from AFCD in the morning, and they are now Jared (one year old), and Barton, aged three years.  As always I hope that their stay with us will be a short one, but however long it is we'll do our best to make it as happy as  possible.

Come and support HKDR's Charity Sale at Whiskers N Paws Furry Market this weekend!

We will be selling handpicked pet products with 100% of the sale proceeds going to HKDR to help the dogs in need.

From freeze-dried dog treats to shampoos, we have a great selection of products for you to pick from, and all for a good cause. Special thanks to Rich Sources HK Limited for sponsoring the charity sale!

Join us on 25-26 June @WNP Ap Lei Chau Store (10/F, Horizon Plaza, Ap Lei Chau)!

It's a big weekend at Whiskers N Paws coming up, with a "Furry Market" taking place on both Saturday and Sunday, and of course the Puppy Party on Sunday afternoon, 2pm to 4pm.