Hi all
The lovely Lily went to her new home last night after spending a week with us. She was spayed, vaccinated, micro-chipped, flea treated and wormed as all the dogs are. The poor thing was full of worms. She was terribly nervous when we took her from the Pound but once she passed the worms she came on in leaps and bounds. Obviously she wouldnt have been feeling too healthy and happy with them in her ! Anyway Lily has landed on her feet in a lovely home. She settled well overnight and slept until she was woken and then enjoyed some long walks during the day. She is a lovely natured bitch 6 months old bitch and I am sure she will give pleasure to Peter and his family. Many thanks to them for giving her a permanent, loving home !
The young dog that was handed in to the Vets by his owners to be put to sleep as they no longer wanted him is called Ice. He was grossly underweight when I got him. He is terribly affectionate with women but barked at men on initial introductions. He has warmed to men since and has also put some weight on. Why is it that these people that are handing up there dogs appear not to feed them prior to abandoning them?
The dog that was in the Rescue Shelter is now called Phoenix. Again this poor dog was terribly underweight and is appox 18 months old. He is so gentle it is incredible ! Despite being half starved he gently takes food from your hands. He was weak when I got him and unfortunately to add to his woes he also had a stomach upset. Dobes dont really thrive in Kennels as proven by him and Duke. Phoenix needs socialisation as he is unsure of men but was terribly loving to me. There is no badness in him at all, he totally ignores other dogs.
Tia is becoming more confident and there are some lovely photos on my site of her curled up on the couch in Seamus and Maura's, it is great to see her relaxing enough in her new surroundings ! She is also enjoying running with Phoenix and Cooper. She really has made a huge improvement considering the day I collected her she froze to the spot in the Pound and I had to carry her out of there. On day 2 she was walking on the lead and soon after she was accepting treats from the hand.
Cooper is recovering well after a post spay operation, she developed a blood clot and thankfully Maura caught it in time and she underwent emergency surgery. She spent the w/e in the Vets but has made a full recovery. She is completely house trained now and she is such a biddable bitch.
Vic appears to be putting down roots in Dione's, he has been there since 08/12/07. He is completely food orientated and loves being indoors. Incredibly he went from being a farm dog who slept on the back of the guys pick up truck to being a dog that reluctantly goes out to the toilet and races back into the house. I suppose you dont miss what you've never had and now that he has got some comfort he is lapping it up ! Vic will run with bitches but he cannot be placed with another male. He is a strong dog but once his mind is focussed he is obedient.
Finally poor Ozzy was neutered on Wednesday and was looking very sorry for himself that evening. He is such a handsome dog and is really after improving since he put some weight on. He is very affectionate and while he did get stressed initially in a cage he has now settled down. The dogs that come in underweight and in a bad state seem to get under my skin more, I suppose it is the fact that they are so vulnerable but people neglect them so badly. I am sure many people get Dobes purely for the "hard image" and they are such a misunderstood breed. For me the only difference between them and Kerry's is all that awful, back breaking coat care I have with the Kerrys. I am not for turning though but Ozzy and Lily came almost as close as Rocco to breaking my heart.
It was suggested to me that I organise some flyers for the Discover Dogs Stand at Crufts. So I will be working on that over the w/e and hopefully it will generate some interest in the Rescue Dogs here and in the UK. Thanks to Billy, Maura and Jean for the sponsorship money that they have raised to date. St Patricks Day is looming large :-)
Some updates on the dogs that have already been homed. Duke is gone to his new home. Poor Duke spent three weeks in kennels in Manchester and it seems he came out with pressure sores, underweight and with a cold. Poor thing wouldnt be used to being in a kennel anyway and I am sure the stress of being moved again didnt help him, but Steve and his family have had him to the Vet and are looking after him really well. He is settling in great and is enjoying their Weimy bitch Purdy.
Shadow had a swim, it was unintentional. He chased a swan and of course the swan went straight for the lake. Shadow took off mid flight after him and landed in the lake and there was a moment of panic until he realised he could swim. Its all a learning process for them.
The news from Cass is that Diego is doing great, he sometimes does his circles but he is a lovable, gorgeous dog. Ruby is doing well with Dave and Debbie, she is now racing around and has lost some more weight and replaced it with muscle. Check out the photo of Quinn with sun glasses on, doesnt she look cool ! She is well settled with Lydia and Andrew and they have kindly offered to foster in the future if needed ! Thank god she is settled because like all the others she really is such a sweetheart ! Taz is now called Diesel, Jennifer and Trevors previous Dobe was called Diesel and they were stumbling over her name so frequently and as she wasnt answering to Taz they agreed to change her name. In fairness she spent most if not all of her time in a shed so I doubt she had enough interaction with people to understand her name was Taz ! She has settled in with Clancy their Boxer and they have kindly offered any assistance they can give in the future.
Spike loves Leah, well she is a pretty bitch and he loves racing around the garden with her. He is such a nice easy going dog so it is great he got a lovely home. Zarina and Mike are very happy with him. and finally I will finish with the dog it all started with, Ruddi. George and Rachel adore him and he is growing into such a handsome young dog.
As always thanks to Dione and Maura for fostering the dogs ! Suitable, permanent loving homes are needed. All homes are visited prior to re-homing and the dogs must live in the house as part of the family. All but Tia are ready to go to their homes now, as they are all healthy weights, neutered/spayed, chipped, vaccinated etc. If you know of an experienced Dobe person who could offer a home to one of these lovely dogs please do not hesitate to contact me.
Best wishes
Fionnuala Fionnuala Malone
Glenfitor Kerry Blues
Tel: +353 868750614
Fax: +353 8658750614
www.glenfitor.com
and the previous week.....
A reminder to those who are doing the sponsored weight loss that it finishes on St Patricks Day. Thanks to Niall, Billy, Maura, Tommy, Sam and Steve for taking part. I hope you reached your target weight and most importantly earned lots of money for Dobe Rescue Ireland because it is well and truly needed !
I know I am always saying about homes urgently needed but suitable homes are required. I have gotten two enquries recently ( thanks to those that put them onto me) and both of these would not hear of the dog living in the house as part of the family. One went as far as to say that he couldnt do that because he didnt trust the breed with children. He couldnt understand that I wouldnt place a dog in a home with children if the dog wasnt suited to the home nor could he understand how shocked I was that he keeps a breed that he doesnt trust. Such a shame an ignorant man like this already lives with a Dobe !
Sunday I am collecting a bitch from a Pound, her owners abandoned her because they were moving house and didnt want a dog in their new home. She is only 6 months old, the Warden says she is a real sweetie and is a bit underweight. There appears to be an epidemic of young dogs being abandoned. I also got a call from another Warden to say she is watching a Dobe at present
Thanks to all those who have adopted dogs, fostered and fund raised. All monies raised are spent on the dogs care ! My admin/phone costs and petrol expenses are not covered as it is my choice to do this, so please give generously to these gorgeous dogs. |
