Little Fighter (Graphic photos)

I would have posted yesterday but I was far too busy with the new foster and all the vet work that comes along with him. I've calmed enough now to post without going in a mad fit. Sometimes you have to put your professional head on to allow you to cope with such situations, yesterday was one of them because I could have gone bonkers with the state this dog is in. I'm still angry and annoyed but I have to just think about Harry and get him better. 

So Harry is a tiny poodle crossbreed, at a guess, hes over 10 years old and is in terrible condition. He's so skinny and only weighs just over 4kg, his hair was matted and cut prior to coming into rescue, his nails are so long and his dew claws were hidden in all the matted hair. His teeth are rotten and he has a tumour on his side, just underneath his leg. I've had 30 foster dogs now but he is by far the worst. Even the vet was horrified with his conditions. Blood tests were done straight away to make sure he was strong enough for an op and hes being given antibiotics. In a week he will be going to the vets to get a full dental, neuter and his tumour removed. I'm disgusted and I think only pictures can speak how bad a condition he is in. 

A bit about him anyway... hes a friendly little chappy, absolutely loves being held and cuddled and has to be with you at all times. Hes just mastered the fine art of climbing the stairs but is still to master going down them. He is eating much better now and is getting fed once an hour, little and often to try and fatten him up before the op next week. He isn't housetrained and does pee pretty much anywhere but thats the least of my worries right now. He slept all the way through the night and when hes better I'm sure he'll be an even better dog.

Thats all I have to say about Harry for now, I'll keep you updated and will post later with some nice professional photos of Sir Binx 

Lucy, Tinks, Sally, Binx and Harry xx

Mischievous Boy

So the more Binx gets used to the family life the more mischievous he gets. Now when hes left if food is within grabbing distance he will have it! The other night he managed to jump up and grab my dog walking coat off the rack and eat all the treats in the pocket. Yesterday he was left a few hours in the morning and managed to open a bag of food we had not had chance to put in the garage and between them all over 300g was eaten. Considering it was Burns dog food, they have 70g a day its fair to say they were overfed yesterday!!

Along with that him and Tinks are starting to dig a hole in the corner of the garden, thankfully they are digging straight into a tree but we have no idea what they are trying to dig to get but they seem annoyed with whatever it is.

Both dogs that may have been coming to us now aren't due to finding a new home or the current owner deciding to not put the dog up for rehoming. So after seeing a dog needing a rescue space in a pound today in a pretty bad way I had to offer a foster. So on wednesday we will be getting a little old terrier cross from the pound named Harry. I will keep you updated within the week hopefully but I do have a lot of work to do at the moment. 

Lucy, Tinks, Sally and Mr Binx x

Very Little to Add

Mr B (which I have taken to calling him) is still here, no viewings, no interest and hes just like one of the family now. So much so we have decided we want to add another foster dog to the family as he really is too easy (if thats possible) and I feel like I'm not doing much rescuing at the moment haha. Its amazing how one dog can totally block you up. I'm hoping another foster dog will help socialise Binx more and get him used to other dogs, even if it may take an hour or two of a long walk and careful introductions. Jack is an older jack russel, however does have a viewing this weekend so if he does get rehomed he obviously won't be coming here. There is also a possible gsd x collie. I will keep you updated on this matter though as at the moment it is just waiting and seeing what happens.

Would like to quickly talk about young Digger here. Digger is a lhasa apso in with the rescue at the moment. I went to see him the other day to get his vaccinations done and what a quiet boy he is. He is so nervous at first and wouldn't come anywhere near me, but he was quite interested in saying hello to our Sally. After the vets though he was quite happy to bound around the house and do a leap towards me which makes me realise how adorable he is! Diggers website ad is below

Experienced patient, stable home and lifestyle with financial security needed for this little man.  He must sleep on the bed with his owner and he is not yet 100% house trained due to fear. 

Digger is a 2 years old Lhasa who is a little sweetheart.  He desperately needs a very experienced, kind, patient owner with loads of time for him, who isn't going to give up on him, as he needs a stable, forever home.

Digger has fear issues, he is scared of everything, the whole world is such a scary place when you are a little dog.  Traffic, other dogs, even the wind makes him scared.  A Lhasa with his tail down is an unhappy Lhasa, just look at his face and you can see by the photos he is anxious when out and about.

Digger is not 100% house trained and must never be shouted at for having an accident because fear is one of the main reasons and he will simply get more and more wound up if told off and get worse instead of better.

Digger adores children.

He could live with a kind, friendly, confident dog.  Unknown with cats.

We are looking for someone around most of the time, children over 10 years, a lifestyle with stability and financial security and mature, sensible, intelligent people who can cope with a little dog with issues without finding it all too difficult.

Update from the foster Richard

Digger cried pitifully the first night so i had no choice but to take him to sleep in bed with me and he cuddled up happily so that is what i have done every night.  He doesn't take much room and keeps my feet warm.  Digger is so scared on a walk, this wind and rain doesn't help.  He has occasional accidents in the house so i keep taking him out regularly to encourage him to go outside.  He is such a sweet little boy and really likes children.  He is a bit thin but healthy enough.  He travels well in the car and is a good boy in the house.  He will make a lovely pet for someone who really knows how to love a dog, and give him lots of walks.  

Now I am absolutely knackered and have a busy working week ahead and no doubt it won't be long till i start panicking about the amount of college work I have to do but theres only 4 months left of that and the future begins there. I did go see Chip aka my old foster Roo the other day and he is doing fantastically as ever! 

Lucy, Tinks, Sally and Binxx

Happy New Year

A bit late posting this but just been distracted by all the little things in life. Mr Binx is getting better by day and has such amazing recall now compared to when he first came. I'm so proud of this little man, coming in as a scruffy dog who wasn't too fussed about anything he has turned into a loyal lap dog. He was untrained, wouldn't come when called and peed everywhere, now he will let me know when he wants to go out, has being taught paw and lay down and comes flying at me when I shout his name. He loves to be with me at all times and if hes left with someone else at work he will pine for me until I come back to see him. At home he is either sleeping with Tinks or asleep on my knee. Its fair to say I'm slowly falling for this little man and everyone who sees us together can tell we do have a bond. But his anxiety around other dogs wouldn't make it fair on foster dogs, although we do have plenty of room in the house for one more :P 

Now think you'll all love this video of Mr Binx, even though the quality is terrible, its winter and it was windy! And wasn't really concentrating on the camera, more what mischief the dogs were up to! You can see how much he loves running off lead and how much he shadows Tinks around! They are best friends and just goes to show this boy needs to be with another dog to give him confidence. It may take days/weeks for him to get used to a new dog but I feel it will be worth it knowing this little man is happy. Following a vet trip the other day we learnt that Binx has a bit of a dodgy knee so would be best on Glucosamine tablets just to prevent any future problems. It doesn't bother him at all and the vet is not concerned with it so neither am I :) 

 

So finally I would like to wish you all a Happy New Year. Don't make unrealistic resolutions you won't stick to, instead do something that is realistic and will make a difference. Make a resolution to at least try and foster, you never know you may become addicted! Get a rescue dog instead of a puppy. Donate a small bit of money a month to someone who needs it more than you. Tell those you love you love them every single day. A resolution doesn't have to be something huge, just something little like spending an hour daily with your dogs? Theres 24 hours in a day, one hour is not a lot of time and your dog will appreciate that one on one attention. 

My resolution? To decide what I want to do with my life, to start my future. Do something I'll enjoy and get where I want in life. I think I'll start training to become a dog behaviourist, do a course, see where that gets me. And to get some hands on experience where they need it most. My choice? I think I'll go do a week volunteering at a dog rescue in Romania. Over here we are extremely lucky with our stray dog situation, dogs are given 7 days, sometimes even longer and some will get lucky and go to a dog rescue or to forever homes, a small amount will get PTS in the kindest way possible. In Romania to euthanase a dog is pretty much to torture one. I want to help out in a shelter over there, I want to see with my own eyes how bad the situation is. As they say seeing is believing and I can't help much but at least spending one week of my time will open my eyes and help me spread the word and obviously help the dogs over there. I think I've found a rescue I want to help when I'm over there but suggestions are welcome.

Lucy, Tinks, Sally and Mr Binx xx