Mon 23rd Oct: The Big Disney Reveal

All crates are scattered around the garden 

The chaos continues on Lamma as the workmen have been busy doing some important repairs, and the only good thing I can say about the upheaval is that the dogs have been remarkably tolerant of having strangers in their home.  Some took advantage of the constant opening of the front gate and skipped outside for a play, but they were all very happy to stay within a few feet of the house and paid no attention whatsoever to the comings and goings.

I had to go out today leaving Kathy in charge on Lamma, and I will have to go out again on Tuesday, but at least my early fears that the dogs might be protective of their space have been allayed and I'm not worried.  Still, I can't wait for the mess and mayhem to be over and all dogs house returned to their rightful places instead of being spread all over the garden.

I need a name for this new poodle boy

Our driver picked up a new poodle from the Pokfulam AFCD kennels, and although I had been led to understand it was a standard, it is just a regular toy size.  I think we are now so used to seeing tiny poodles that a real toy looks very large in comparison.  At least we were spared the problem of wondering where we were going to keep a standard poodle as they are big dogs, but the new boy was fine to stay at our Ap Lei Chau Homing Centre.

Another new boy was adopted today, and it wasn't a surprise that sweet Curtis was quickly chosen.  He looks like a small version of a labrador and he's such a happy and friendly dog.

Lucky Curtis was quickly chosen

A quick update on some of our surgery cases:  Blizzard, the bichon puppy who came to us with a broken leg, is recovering from the surgery to repair the break, and Dr Tony said the leg should heal well as Blizzard is still very young. 

Blizzard the day he arrived

Blinky the adorable blind shih tzu who had both of his wonky knees operated on at the same time has also made a good recovery and is ready for adoption.  His foster has kept us updated with lots of photos and videos, and I can honestly say that Blinky is one of the happiest dogs imaginable, even without eyesight and when he couldn't stand because of the surgery.  This is a very special little dog who deserves the best home and life, and whoever adopts him will be very lucky.

Blinky's knees have been repaired and he's ready to go

Pom Rita became another failed foster as her status was upgraded to permanent, and her smile says it all.

We love failed fosters, and so does Rita!

Both of our in-foster bulldogs have also been adopted, and on the same day.  Boris has gone to a new home while Graham is another failed foster and is staying where he is.

Graham is staying with his now ex-fosters

Boris is adopted

This year's Disney T-shirt features Mickey Mouse and Goofy

I mentioned before about this year's Disney Peak to Fong T-shirts and how you could get your hands on them, and today all was revealed:

🎉 Peak to Fong 2017狗狗同樂籌款日參加者若籌款滿HK$800，即可於11月19日活動當日蘭桂坊街頭派對上免費換領【迪士尼X救狗之家[Adoption is For Life]限量版紀念T-shirt】一件，籌款滿$1500可換領兩件! 請各位參加者踴躍收集善款，為被遺棄狗狗籌款!

🎉 A SPECIAL PRIZE for Peak to Fong 2017 Sponsored Walkers: Redeem a specially designed “Disney X HKDR [Adoption is For Life] Limited Edition T-shirt” at our Peak to Fong LKF party on 19 November by raising HK$800-$1,499, or redeem two of the above T-shirts by raising $1500 or above!

*換領詳情請留意購買PETBLE X HKDR活動T-shirt時所附送的步行籌款贊助表格。

*For details, please refer to the Peak to Fong 2017 Sponsorship Form attached with the purchased PETBLE X HKDR event T-shirts.

#HKDR #PeaktoFong #PeaktoFong2017 #狗狗同樂籌款日 #步行籌款

Sun 22nd Oct: An unexpected result

It was a happy surprise to see Paris and Jet leave for their foster home

I don't usually take doglet Jet to Whiskers N Paws because he's always been very timid, but I noticed that when the contractors were on Lamma, it was Jet's best friend Paris who was scared of them while Jet just stayed around as if the men were friends.  Having seen this unexpected behaviour I decided to take Jet along to the puppy afternoon to see how he'd cope, and ironically he and Paris were the only two dogs who didn't come back to Lamma with me at the end of the session.  It wasn't an adoption just a foster home, but still both dogs will benefit hugely from the experience of living in a home and everything else that goes with not being free-running beach bums. I'm very grateful to the foster family, who discussed all the options before eventually choosing this pair of friends.

Heyli with her dog Dandy

There was one adoption recorded at Whiskers N Paws for the afternoon and that was a visitor from Tai Po Dandy, with Heyli, a long-term volunteer who turned full time staff member before leaving for Canada.  For the past few months Heyli has been invaluable in helping out at Tai Po, especially with the renovation work, during a long break back in Hong Kong.  I wish we didn't have to say goodbye again but at least Heyli will be taking the perfect souvenir back to Canada when she leaves this week.

Another very happy adoption took place at Tai Po as beagle cross Rocky was finally taken home.  This gorgeous boy waited far too long, like so many others at our huge Homing Centre, but late is better than never.

A happy day for Rocky

Lara

Nancy

Jerry

We had quite a few older puppies and doglets at Whiskers N Paws today including Jerry, in foster but still waiting for a home, as well as returnees Lara, Nancy and Rafi (who was so sweet and covered me in kisses when we met).  There's also little Olive of course, always so happy to come to Whiskers N Paws and race round with the other dogs, but when will she be offered a home?  She's shy with strangers but really so sweet once she knows you.   Who will give this girl a chance?

Rafi

Thanks to this week's volunteer photographer Dani Bartlett for some great shots and can see all of the photos of the afternoon on our Hong Kong Dog Rescue (HKDR) Facebook page here: Album Puppy Adoption Day 22 October 2017

Olive 

Sat 21st Oct: The end is in sight

Lifting bags of cement

Volunteers have been busy again at our Tai Po Homing Centre helping with the shifting of heavy rubber tiles, fencing and so on as part of the major renovation project.  I'm hoping that the end is in sight for the work as all of the new fencing is now in place although I'm still working on one aspect, the building of play/resting/shelter platforms in the enclosures.  This particular idea has been in the pipeline for a long time but the logistics, including design and cost as well as the workforce required have delayed and delayed, so finally I made this my own personal challenge.  I hope that work will begin on the first structure very soon, and if it works out as planned we will go ahead with building more.  Due to the difference in shape and size of each enclosure the platforms have to be made to measure on site, and that has been one of the many obstacles in the past.

A drone's eye view of part of the renovated site (thanks to Ted Holtmark van Dijkerhof)

A huge thank you for all the help offered

Overall it's been a very difficult period at Tai Po as everything that was done had to take into account the hundreds of dogs that are living there and the lack of space at the best of times, as well as the daily routine of feeding, cleaning and walking which couldn't just be put to one side.  I have to thank all of the staff who have been working so hard and under very stressful conditions, as well as the volunteers of course.  I really hope that at the end when everything is finished and in place it will have been well worth the blood, sweat and tears.

The Homing Centre has stayed open for adoptions throughout the renovation period of course, and we welcome visitors every single day of the year at both Tai Po and Ap Lei Chau regardless of Public Holidays or even T10 typhoons.  The dogs come first and will always be the main priority.

Jack is 2 weeks older than this now

This year has been a bad one for Sunday typhoons which have meant no puppy afternoons at Whiskers N Paws though, but we'll be back this week for sure.  Puppies Jack and Bina have had two weeks to grow since our last puppy Sunday, so I hope this will be their last.

Kimmy and sister Kiera are being treated for tick fever

We get so many enquiries for small sized and breed puppies and yes, they are available from time to time.  It's really a matter of luck and timing if you want to adopt one of these little youngsters, and you need to keep checking.  There were two lucky adopters this week, one of dachshund Dipsy and the other Bichon Loopy, now Betty.

Loopy is now Betty

We do still have a nine month-old bichon available, although Blizzard has just had surgery for a broken leg and is in a foster home. 

Blizzard has just had surgery to fix his broken leg

Fri 20th Oct: Finally the weather we've been waiting for

Now both Kiera and Kimmy are at our Ap Lei Chau Homing Centre

It's a very strange time right now, as there are more puppies coming back than going out and not much movement anywhere else.  Returnees are fluffy baby Keira and four month-old Ashton, with foster pup Dilys also returning to Lamma to join ex-singleton Harvey.   I can't recall ever having so many puppies coming back, even if Dilys will be fostered again after the weekend if not adopted on Sunday.  I'd also offered to look after Evie for a week when her new family were away, the pre-arranged holiday having been the only barrier to adoption, so she will be joining the others on Saturday.

Harvey was the only Lamma puppy until the others came back

Ashton is temporarily (I hope) enjoying a beach holiday on Lamma

On top of this, I am having to stay at home to manage the dogs while the workmen are here carrying out some repairs to the house, and Kathy has also had to come along to translate my questions.  The work that I was expecting to have been finished by now has barely even started, and it's turning out to be an incredibly frustrating exercise.  The dogs are wondering why there are strangers in the house, and the only positive aspect of the situation is finding out that at least the dogs aren't acting aggressively and Griffin was even stretching out his paw in friendship to one of the workmen, as well as showing him his (sadly meagre) collection of toys.

Griffin needs more toys

Maybe I'm just a besotted dog parent, but I'm very proud of Griffin's tidy habit of putting each toy back on the bedside table when he is bored with it before taking another one.  Does anyone else have a dog that does this?

I haven't been able to leave home much at all this past week, so I asked AFCD Pokfulam to let me know about any new dogs or puppies that arrived.  It's been a quiet period for them too, which is very good news even if I can't speak for the other three AFCD Centres, but there was one new arrival today, a standard poodle boy.  We see many poodles of course but very rarely standard size, so for anyone wanting a larger dog with a curly poodle coat you might be interested.  This boy is cream coloured and eight years old but in good condition I'm told, and I can send a photo if requested.  Please complete the adoption questionnaire on our website www.hongkongdogrescue.com (under Adopt) as a first step.

The weather is finally what we would expect for this time of year and the puppies are going to have fun at Whiskers N Paws on Sunday.  You can also pick up your Peak to Fong ticket/T-shirt if you are planning to visit as the event itself if now less than a month away.   I think this is going to be our biggest Peak to Fong so far, and we have lots of live entertainment for the afternoon as well as more stalls than ever.

Thurs 19th Oct: The end of a frustrating week

Shy Tickle is doing really well in her foster home

With news of yet another victim of "boarding school" training being thrown out because of resulting behaviour issues, I was so happy to read this from a foster parent of one of our timid doglets.  Tickle is improving steadily, something I honestly never thought would happen, and it's a combination of Cactus's training advice and the foster listening and following through. 

"I really love the way of your training, which is not pushy and it proves it is working (on Tickle). For my previous dog, I have attended a training with her, but the way they trained is to use those "choke chain", which keeps on choking and choking and when we back home, my dog vomited :(  After that, I didn't attend the training course organized by them any more".

It's really sad to know how many times our adopted puppies have been subjected to harsh training, then a year later when the unfortunate and inevitable results surface, the dog is thrown out.  This latest case was also one of our ex-puppies, about whom we heard nothing despite emails from Cactus, and it was the same with all of the others like Rafi, with a total lack of communication until the bombshell of return.

ex-HKDR Izzy and her newborn baby sister, best friends from the start

With every case we wonder how we could do better, be more careful, question more deeply, especially if there is a good chance that a human baby will be coming onto the scene at some point.  A baby arriving is one of the most common reason for dogs to be thrown out, as the parents have no time any more or are afraid for the baby's health and safety (why?).   Often the dog is ejected even before the baby is born, but with so many wonderful cases of a newborn and the established dog being the best of friends from the start that's really very sad and unnecessary.

Coping with these cases of abandonment is very difficult for all of us and in different ways, beginning with the disappointment and anger and then the logistical aspect of what to do.  How can we simply accept all dogs back without question when we have nowhere to put them, or when the dog's behaviour has been affected by its treatment?

Laura is doing so well in her foster home

I've been having a frustrating week on top of the usual dramas, though I think my experience dealing with local contractors is fairly typical.  So far they have turned up only once, and that was to drop off a couple of bags of cement, although I have been getting up very early each day to make sure I'm ready and the dogs have been walked.  All work was supposed to have been completed this week but it hasn't even started yet, and my patience is wearing thin. 

One thing is for sure and that is that I'll have to leave home for the Sunday Whiskers N Paws afternoon, even if we aren't overloaded with puppies right now.  I'm hoping it will means that those like Harvey and Laura will find homes, especially as Laura has been doing so well in her current foster home and learning all the tricks of how to be a good family member.  Our foster homes are incredibly important to us for reasons like this, so even if you can't commit to adoption please think about giving a hand to puppies that can benefit from a home life.

We also need foster homes for younger pups with tick fever, just to get them through their treatment (the "liquid gold" that works well even though it's inconvenient).  Unfortunately its been a very bad period for tick fever in pups coming from the New Territories and it's been a big headache for us.  All vet and food costs are covered if you are fostering for HKDR, so please let Cindy know if you can help by emailing foster@hongkongdogrescue.com, thank you.

Laura's brother Harvey needs a home too

Weds 18th Oct: Tick fever is rampant

Rafi

We are in urgent need of a home for poor Rafi, a very sweet boy who had the misfortune to end up in not just one, but two bad homes one after the other, with a happy break in between when he was fostered by one of our lovely adopters of two dogs.  Rafi's gone back to that foster home on a very temporary basis because a baby is due very soon and there are the other dogs as well as cats that need looking after.  At home Rafi is the most affectionate boy imaginable and he loves giving sloppy kisses when not playing with the other dogs, but his poor (of lack of) leash training while a puppy means he needs a bit of help on that front.  If possible we would suggest joining our Positive Partners training course or working with one of our recommended trainers who can show how to teach a dog to walk nicely and without pulling, but other than that Rafi is a gorgeous boy who deserves the proper home and life he missed out on as a baby and young puppy, so if you would like to meet him please let Cindy know by emailing foster@hongkongdogrescue.com.  Of course we know that Rafi is absolutely fine with cats so that's a bonus.

Young Rafi in March this year

We'll be back on Friday, same place

HKDR volunteers were helping out today a charity sale at Lee Tung Avenue, (Wanchai MTR exit A3 Spring Garden Lane)  and will be back this Friday from 12 noon until 9pm.  Do come by after work to choose some of our lovely HKDR merchandise! 100% of the proceeds will be going to HKDR.

[慈善義賣] 救狗之家義工們在灣仔利東街的慈善義賣會一直進行到今晚九時，全數收益將會捐助我們拯救被遺棄狗狗的工作，來支持一下吧!

Special thanks to Lee Tung Avenue for providing the venue.
特別鳴謝利東街提供場地予我們進行慈善義賣。

There have been a lot of tick fever cases in dogs and puppies coming to us from the New Territories recently, and it's frustrating to say the least.  It takes just one bite from an infected tick to result in babesia or erlichia infection, and while the treatment is effective (if expensive), dogs that have had tick fever may be barred from entering countries such as Australia and New Zealand for life.  All dogs and puppies that come to us are routinely wormed and sprayed with Frontline, but if they have already been bitten then it's obviously too late.

Tick fever is by no means only something that affects rescue dogs as many owned pets also come down with it.  Please make sure that  your dogs have appropriate protection, especially if you live or walk your dogs in the New Territories, and check carefully for the tick "spiders" before they have a chance to attach themselves.  

Tues 17th Oct: We need your help at Tai Po please

Volunteers helping at Tai Po

Renovations continue at the main Tai Po Homing Centre, and as always we rely largely on our volunteer force to help with the non-technical work such as moving and lifting.  This is a great way to get fit without having to join a gym and we still need volunteers if anyone is available, and reasonably strong.   Please email eva@hongkongdogrescue.com if you can lend a hand.

We also need more dog walkers during the week as we have so many dogs who love going out, so if you have the time to help out even occasionally, please refer to our website www.hongkongdogrescue.com for volunteering information.

Blizzard is still a baby

I was back to my normal work routine for the day, meaning AFCD for rabies vaccinations and licenses and Acorn for health checks and so on.  The dogs that came to us on Monday were all youngsters, including a wildly woolly bichon frise puppy boy that I called Blizzard because he looks like a snow storm.  His ex-owner was going to have him put to sleep because of a broken leg before someone stepped in to rescue him, and I'm so glad he was saved.  He's just gorgeous and so sweet, and we will need a home or even a foster after his surgery on Wednesday.  He shouldn't really be with other dogs while he's healing because he will want to play, and we need to make sure there's no jumping around or on top of him.

The dachshund Dipsy that also came on Monday will be heading off to her new home first thing, and she's another throwaway that came from AFCD.  It's hard to believe what people buy and then discard as if they were nothing, when they are all beautiful lives that are worth saving.

One beautiful life that was given a new opportunity is Coral, the blind pug girl.  She was in a wonderful foster home where she settled so well, and when it came time to move to a new home she was very upset.  So much so that we asked her fosters if she could move back in with them, and they not only agreed but made it a permanent arrangement.  I know that if Coral could speak she would be telling us all how happy she is, and we're all happy too.

This is actually Coral's happy face :-)

Both Rocky and the 2018 calendars are available

This time of year starts the beginning of the various fair and events leading up to Christmas (sorry, I can't avoid mentioning it) and the 2018 Calendars are now available as well as some workout towels to mop up the sweat as you walk the dogs or help with the heavy moving.  You can buy all merchandise at either Homing Centre or at any of the upcoming events that we will be attending.

HKDR's new exercise towel