Blue Wednesday...

Salvador's aunt and I might, or might not have saved a puppy off the streets today...

Okay so quite clearly we did rescue a puppy this morning, but don't get too attached, the story doesn't end too well...let me start from the beginning. 

Salvador's aunt was driving along when she spotted a man with a puppy in arms, clearly hawking it to whoever stopped at the intersection. She decided to contact Animal Welfare who was understaffed and therefor could not send out an inspector. She came to pick me up and we managed to get the dog from it's sad owner (who was telling us he couldn't afford to take care of the dog anymore etc. I personally think this was just a scam for various reasons that I will not go into). She arranged for us to take it into Animal Welfare to have it checked out. I didn't want to introduce it to Salvador if it was carrying weird viruses! 

We arrived at Animal Welfare and filled out the necessary forms, only to be sent away because we don't fall under the right salary bracket, so we decided to make an appointment at our regular vet instead. 

We named the puppy Blue, as he had the most amazing blue eyes and upon closer inspection at home it was quite clear that this guy was severely malnourished and skinny - WARNING SIGN #1 although strangely he wasn't too keen on the food I gave him - WARNING SIGN  #2. 

Eventually it was time to go to the vet. We got there and the first thing they did was test Blue for Distemper and unfortunately it turned out that Blue did indeed carry this rather shocking virus. At first I thought, oh well, I'm sure we can get that sorted out with a shot, but it was not until they started sending cleaners through the whole practice with sprays and chemicals that I got worried... My boyfriend Googled the disease, but it was the look on the vet nurse's face and the call for the euthanizing liquid that really made it ring home...there was NOTHING we could do for Blue...

I didn't know anything about this disease before today, apart from reading the name on Salvador's vaccination certificate, but I've never come into such close contact with it, so I thought I would enlighten all of you on the subject of this very scary disease.

It is a virus similar to Measles and it affects the gastrointestinal, respiratory system and  central nervous system of dogs, rats and ferrets to mention a few. 

Symptoms include vomiting, coughing, thick mucus from the nose and eyes, anorexia, lethargy and the list goes on.

Puppies in general and especially puppies that come from moms that have not been vaccinated against it plus adult dogs that have not been vaccinated are at risk and it spreads rapidly through close contact with a contaminated dog, through sharing of bowls etc. 

THERE IS CURRENTLY NO KNOWN CURE FOR THE DISEASE  thus prevention is key. According to the vet at Cape Animal Medical Centre , some dogs can 'recover' from the disease, but medicating a dog with Distemper is expensive, as they have weak immune systems for life and are therefor susceptible to all kinds of other viruses too. One also runs the risk of your dog spreading the virus to other dogs as they never totally get the virus out of their systems. Were we to keep Blue, he would have started getting seizures 2-3 weeks in and often the symptoms start showing in old age. 

So there you go...what an eventful day. I'm sad it didn't turn out better, but it did make me rush Salvador to the vet to get all his shots up to date and I hope that this story taught us all a lesson or 10!

• Never buy a puppy from someone on the street or from any shop or person that is not a reputable dog owner/breeder or animal welfare. If for whatever reason you do so, get it checked IMMEDIATELY  and do not let it come into your house or get close to your other pets until you've done so!!!!!
• Get your puppy vaccinated as soon as possible - call your vet and arrange it when you get your puppy or make sure whoever you get it from has done so and demand to see vet certificates.
• Keep your dogs' vaccinations up to date. Dogs over 2 years should go to the vet once a year to have a check-up. If you can't afford to do this for whatever reason, go to an Animal Welfare organization that will help you for much less or in some cases for free. 
• You don't have to be rich to own a pet! Not getting your dog vaccinated is stupid and ignorant. I'm not going to go on a rant about how you shouldn't get a pet if you can't provide it with posh healthcare. People are going to have pets. This is why there are places like Animal Welfare.

Rather be safe than sorry!

                  

Rest in Peace Blue - We are glad that your last few hours were happy-sitting-in-a-warm-lap-bathing-in-the-sun hours!

Licks & Kisses ( although with all the viruses going around....)

xxx

On being charitable

Hi everyone,

you might remember a while ago I did a post on a great organization called TEARS animal rescue. I also mentioned that I would be making them some fleece dog sweaters which I did over the weekend! I just came back from dropping off 18 of them at their charity book shop in Bergvliet - amazing, big bookstore by the way - and decided to share the good news.

A very kind, dog obsessed friend sent me 10m of fleece all the way from Johannesburg, which we received with much interest and excitement on Saturday morning.

It was tricky explaining to him that is wasn't his...

I got a great sewing pattern online - which I will sharing later on this week - and got sewing. Once I got the basic idea down I was on a roll and soon made up 18 sweaters. It's amazing how many sweaters you can get out of a 3m piece of fleece and at around R35 per meter, it's a really great way to help a lot of cold dogs with a very small donation! 

Below are some pics of Salvador modeling the finished product.

Salvador and I will both sleep very soundly tonight, knowing that some fur children will be kept warm for the rest of this winter!

If you would like to make any donations to TEARS, have a look at the wishlist on their website. 

Licks & Kisses!

xxx

Mdzananda Animal Clinic

‘Welcome to the world of the Mdzananda Animal Clinic - the only permanent, veterinary council registered animal clinic in Khayelitsha, a township area just outside Cape Town, South Africa, estimated to be home to more than a million people.’

This is the short description on the Facebook page of Mdzananda Animal Clinic that has been running out of six recycled shipping crates since 1996.

They consult, hospitalize and in general, see around 1000 animals a month and if that sounds tough, just imagine how much more tough it is during the freezing winter months!

Unfortunately many of the animals come out of surgery and then don’t make it through the recovery period due to the extreme cold.

Due to hefty electricity bills they are forced to switch off heaters and instead rely on less effective ways like bubble wrap on the windows and keeping doors closed to keep the heat in.

This NGO is in just as much need of basic goods such as polar fleece blankets, pet food and goods for their charity shop as they are of more expensive things like surgical equipment, spay kits and an ultra sound machine.

There are endless ways in which we can all make a contribution to this amazing organization. Visit, Like and hit the Share button on their Facebook page or visit their website for more information. Below is a great kennel building event happening the 18th of July.

Licks & Kisses!

xxxx

TEARS of joy !

Gone are the days of using the phrase ‘winter is coming’…winter is officially upon us and not only upon us, but also upon our beloved fur children. Unfortunately there are many fur children going without the warmth of a blanket, let alone the warmth of a loving home.

This got me thinking about how I can turn Salvador into a more charitable dog – I only had to think about this for a minute before realizing Salvador is not really the charitable type. The only thing he likes sharing is play time and only in certain parks with certain dogs, SO I decided I will have to take on the charitable role in this relationship.

To make a long story short, I volunteered to make up some dog jumpers for an amazing organization called TEARS. You can follow the link to their page and find out all about it, but what I like most about this non-profit organization is their mission statement.

‘ TEARS is a pro-life, non-profit organisation whose core aims are to rescue, rehabilitate, re-unite and re-home lost, abandoned, abused, and neglected animals and to educate our communities, in particular the children. ’

How amazing is this?! Although this means that they rely heavily on adoption and donations. Unfortunately, as much as we want to, adopting another dog is not ideal for us right now so making jumpers for the little guys over at TEARS is my way of contributing. Being a dressmaker, I have quite a bit of off cut fabric, but I’m sure this won’t be nearly enough to make enough jumpers for all the dogs there. A very kind friend has donated about 10 meters of fleece that I will be receiving this week and if there’s anyone out there who has, or knows someone who has some off cut warm fabrics like fleece lying around, you can contact me via Facebook so we can arrange collection.

If you aren't that into making things, there are so many ways you can help this organization. If you go to their WAYS TO HELP sections, there’s a whole list of ways you can get involved like for instance, getting a MySchool/MyPlanet/MyVillage card from Woolworths and making the benefactor TEARS – this way every time you shop at Woolworths (which you all do at some stage anyway) or one of the other stores on their list, a percentage of your spend goes towards TEARS – I think this is literally the quickest, easiest way of making a difference – I’m getting my card tomorrow!

Another easy way to help is to make a direct donation via their website.

Can’t own a dog of your own (due to the hard time you’ll have finding a rental in Cape Town! Sorry, I’m obviously still cut up about that... ) ? – Problem solved! Become a sponsor for one of the many adorable dogs at TEARS! Best thing about it is, you can go and walk the dogs as part of their volunteering program so you’ll reap all the rewards of owning a dog without your landlord breathing down your neck.

The list of things you can do and donate goes on so go and have  a look. You can also follow TEARS on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and don’t forget to hit the SHARE button! Awareness is key 

here!

Licks and Kisses!

xxx

---

Soon there might be reason to extend the title of this blog....

I've been thinking about getting another dog for a while now...and for the past few days I've REALLY been thinking about it!

Salvador is almost two now and being the 'only child', he loves to soak up all the attention, yet I can't help but think how happy it will make him to have a friend around all the time, needless to say that we could provide an otherwise homeless creature with a very loving home. 

That brings me to the next point - to adopt or not to adopt? I'm pretty set on adopting a dog from the Cape of Good Hope SPCA in Grassy Park, and not just any dog, an adult dog. Animal shelters everywhere are overflowing with adult pets, but I, just like many of you, used to be of the notion that it's better to get a puppy. I'm not sure if this is because we feel like we will have a stronger bond with it or that they are easier to train. To be honest, I think the biggest reason I would usually have chosen a puppy is because of the idea of how amazingly cute they are! And just like that all, resistance crumble and all rational thoughts fly out the window! Done! 

Yet I went on the adoption website last night and there, staring back at me, were numerous gorgeous, and some rather quirky, dogs in desperate need of homes... For many of them this is their last chance of happiness, and I instantly had a change of heart! If we are getting another dog, it will have to be one of those old timers (and by old timers I mean any dog between the stages of having lost the charm of 'puppy-hood' to geriatric). 

Many of us forget that getting an older dog is so much easier than getting a puppy! They often come house trained and they've had time to 'develop' their own personalities so you basically know what you're getting in terms of calmness, temperament etc. And most of the time the folks at the shelter will be able to help you choose the right dog for you, since they spend time with the dogs on a daily basis. I seriously think it's the way to go! 

If you're still keen on getting a pedigreed pooch you might even find one at a shelter or you can join many groups on Facebook dedicated to specific breeds. Spaniel Rescue South Africa  is just one of the many groups with breed specific re-homing programs. There are similar sites for many well known breeds. 

So...I might just have some exciting news for you tomorrow. I think the plan is that we are going to visit the shelter in the morning and spend some time with the dogs. I guess the right dog will pick us - I think that's how it works. 

(Lets hope there isn't more than one otherwise the title of this blog might just become a VERY long one!)

Licks & Kisses!

Lend a hand

If I knew about this when I started looking for a dog I would have definitely adopted one of these little guys or girls!

Spaniel Rescue South Africa is an amazing non-profit organization that locates and re-homes Spaniels in the Cape Town and Gauteng area and by the looks of it they have a very high success rate! Being a non-profit organization they rely on donations from the public to provide health care and food for the dogs in their care and you can even sign up to become a foster parent while the dogs await a permanent home.

If you want to get a dog you should seriously consider adoption - I don't need to stress how many unwanted, yet amazing dogs there are out there and every little donation helps - we all know how expensive vet bills can get!

Go and see their page here Spaniel Rescue