Weds 23rd Nov: It’s a sell-out!

"Come on Pluto, time to get ready for Peak to Fong!"

I was told today by those who know that there are no Disney T-shirts left anywhere and that Peak to Fong is an official sell-out!  If anyone bought tickets early on and now can’t make it to the event and doesn’t mind returning the T-shirt so we can re-sell, please let me know.

Don’t forget we still have raffle tickets you can buy (the winning tickets will be drawn the following Sunday at Whiskers’n'Paws), and sponsors to be signed up for the walk, and you can also help raise money by sharing the event on Facebook or Weibo.  It costs nothing and is very quick and easy to do, and for every re-tweet or share, Disney will donate $1 up to the total amount of $100,000! Ask your friends and work colleagues to share and we’ll reach our target. Simply go to https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=309194292444106 and click on the share button

In-and-out Eloise

While our Events team were still working like crazy (and the last minute details are always the most difficult),  our Ap Lei Chau Homing Centre Co-Manager, Venus, was left to handle the potential adopters who came at the same time (late in the afternoon) and wanting the same dog.  I don’t know why it’s like this but it always seems to work this way.  I understand it with a dog like Binky, the new one year-old poodle who arrived just yesterday, as he’s a sweet boy, but there are other less obvious choices that suddenly become “the one”.  Some have been with us for weeks waiting for a home, then on one day there will be several offers.  It’s like buses; they all come at once.

Another new arrival was also chosen today,  Eloise the cocker spaniel.  Her back teeth were so rotten that the jaw crumbled when they were removed, but luckily being at the very back it won’t make a difference.  This often happens with the smaller dogs who are fed soft food and get bad dental problems even at a young age, and if not dealt with promptly the root – and jaw bone – become infected.  That’s why you see a lot of older dogs with their tongues lolling, as the jaw breaks very easily in breeds like pekes.

The unseasonal rain has had tragic results, with several cases of leptospirosis reported in the Mid-levels and Peak areas.  Although this disease, usually referred to as lepto, is one of those covered in the regular five-in-one vaccinations, there are so many strains that additional vaccinations are highly recommended if you live in places that seem to be high-risk.  The virus is spread via rat’s urine and in found in still water such as small pools and puddles that collect after rain.  Please be careful about letting your dogs drink or swim in these pools, as they can become infected very easily and lepto is often fatal.  One of the victims that died today was an adorable and very much loved young shih tzu girl who was “sister” to one of my ex-Lamma puppies (Satchel who became Sean).  Her family are understandably devastated, as I would be if this happened to one of my dogs.  The vaccination is not a foolproof guarantee against the disease, but please do get it done.  The following info was taken from Wikipedia:

“Leptospirosis (also known as Weil’s syndrome, canicola fever, canefield fever, nanukayami fever, 7-day fever, Rat Catcher’s Yellows, Fort Bragg fever, black jaundice and Pretibial fever) is caused by infection with bacteria of the genus Leptospira, and affects humans as well as other mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles.

The disease was first described by Adolf Weil in 1886 when he reported an “acute infectious disease with enlargement of spleen, jaundice and nephritis“. Leptospira was first observed in 1907 from a post mortem renal tissue slice. In 1908, Inada and Ito first identified it as the causative organism and in 1916 noted its presence in rats.

Though recognised among the world’s most common diseases transmitted to people from animals, leptospirosis is nonetheless a relatively rare bacterial infection in humans. The infection is commonly transmitted to humans by allowing water that has been contaminated by animal urine to come in contact with unhealed breaks in the skin, the eyes, or with the mucous membranes. Outside of tropical areas, leptospirosis cases have a relatively distinct seasonality with most of them occurring in spring and autumn.^“

I got  a call today from someone who I suspect was wanting to surrender his dog, a poodle, but started by asking if we could suggest anyone who could help.  I asked what the problem was and it seemed the dog was biting, and the behaviour had become worse after the poodle had been sent away for “training” to one of the Yuen Long facilities.  If ever anyone thinks that this is a good idea I have just one word: don’t.  All of the New Territories “trainers” that I know of use the old punishment-based methods which have long been shown to increase a fear-based biting reaction. Anyway, I told the caller that we had two excellent HKDR trainers, but first asked what caused the dog to bite, as no dog bites just for nothing.  It seemed the dog bit when its feet were being cleaned, so there was a very simple and instant “cure” for the biting – don’t touch the feet.  Many dogs are sensitive about having their feet touched, and biting is the only way they have of letting you know that they really don’t like it.  There are also a lot of dogs that don’t like being cuddled and again, if your dog doesn’t like something then don’t do it.   Honestly, the answer to so many behaviour issues is blindingly obvious.  It is extremely rare for any dog to bite without a reason, or to do anything else “bad”,  and punishment will only make matters worse.  Look for the reason and avoid that trigger, and you will have solved the problem.  it’s not rocket science, it’s just common sense.