Thurs 22nd Sept: When ignorance is not bliss

A young Meadow at Whiskers'n'Paws

I’d missed the call the previous evening telling me that Meadow, who left for Discovery Bay yesterday, had run away and was hiding up in the hills somewhere behind her new home.  The adopter had called out the Fire Brigade and just about everyone else and they had all been up there, cutting their way through the undergrowth with the best of intentions (and I have to say how amazed and impressed I am with their willingness to help), but of course Meadow stayed firmly hidden.  There was no other option but to head out there myself, and I arrived early in the afternoon.  It’s a long journey from where I live on Lamma as I’m not near any ferry, so it means getting to Aberdeen, then to Central, and from there to Discovery Bay and the local bus to my final destination, all of which can take nearly two hours depending on ferry times.

Luckily Meadow’s adopter had been standing guard virtually the whole night and had made sure that she didn’t move away from the patch of undergrowth she was hiding in, and it didn’t take long before she came out after hearing me call. I carried her back to her new home and stayed for a while, at least until she had calmed down.  I had another rescue that I had to get to, the two huskies that I’d seen tied up on the houseboat, and time was passing.

Slushy and Mushy start their new life

It was easy enough to get the huskies as the boat was tied up alongside the sea wall, and the dogs were very willing.  They turned out to be females, one microchipped and one not, and I gave them the names Slushy and Mushy before they were desexed and sent up to Tai Po.  Yes, it’s that fast!  The two dogs are obviously extremely attached,  having grown up really knowing nothing else except their small space and each other.  May told me that they settled down (at Tai Po) on a bed together, and we’ll have to see how they adjust.

Following the adoption of one foster puppy (a Whippety) and the sad death of another (Island Pup), two more babies left Lamma to go to their respective temporary homes.  It’s so much better for the really young puppies not to have to live in a large group as they do get used as toys by the older ones.  They seem to survive being dragged around by the neck, but I’d rather they didn’t have to endure the rough treatment.

With the final call for submissions for the 2012 Cube Calendar being today, there was a flurry of last-minute entries and we have just about filled all of the available slots now.  The (very) few remaining ones will be for me and my Lamma dog(let)s, so now I have to sort out which ones to choose.  Thanks to everyone who sponsored the dogs-in-waiting at Tai Po and Ap Lei Chau, especially the volunteers who got their friends and work colleagues to sponsor a dog too.  Let’s hope that by the time their day comes round next year they will have found homes and will no longer be waiting.

I've no idea how old this labrador is because the owner doesn't seem to know either

There was the usual bunch of surrender applications today, one golden retriever and a labrador, neither of which have licenses, vaccinations or have had any sort of heartworm prevention.  The current owners don’t even know how old the dogs are. It’s bad enough having to take more dogs in, but then there is the time and cost involved in getting everything done, with the risk that the dogs are already infected with heartworm.  It’s these cases that make it clear that the majority of dog owners have no idea about what’s involved in keeping a dog.  License?  Heartworm?  what’s that?