Matthieu; Black Gold

At HOPE Dog Rescue, we are no stranger to senior dogs and dogs with special needs. Among those, we have Matthieu, a sweet senior dog who has been through a tragic experience. Matthieu is our oldest rescue dog, and is 15 years old!

Matthieu’s hind legs were paralysed due to a terrible and unfortunate incident several years ago, when he used to live as a stray on a work site in Jurong Island.

Now, in order to walk, he requires a wheel chair, kindly donated to us by our donors and friends; we really, truly appreciate it!

Our lovable old man, even though he is 15 years old and paralyzed, his health is in tip-top condition, really enthusiastic – especially when people shower him with love and affection! He is so handsome and charming, we guarantee that you will find him simply irresistible!! 

He is still waiting for his FUR-ever home, even after all this while. Given his gentle and sweet personality, rest assured that caring for him is relatively easy! All you need to make sure is to express his bladder 2 - 3 times a day, to maintain his health and take him for short walks, or even just chill with him at a park.

Even these young ladies find him irresistible!!

Would you be willing to give this sweet old gentleman a chance and give him his FUR-ever home? Email us at hopedogrescue@singnet.com.sg or simply fill up this form!

We hope to hear positive responses from you soon!

You Are What You Eat

Food is important for all living things. It nourishes you and keeps you going every day. You've probably heard of the adage "you are what you eat". If you want to be healthy, you have to eat healthy. And this concept applies to our pets as well.

HOPE advocates home-cooked food for all our rescue dogs. It's the healthiest and safest option for our furry companions. After all, if you're the one doing the food preparation, you'd know exactly what's in your pet's next meal. The same cannot be said for commercial kibble or canned pet food.

Did you know that, unlike human food, the pet food industry has little to no regulation by the government? This means two things:

1. The labels on the packaging may not be accurate and may not include a full list of ingredients used.
2. Ingredients that are listed may not be safe.

The bottom line is, it's difficult to be sure that commercial pet food is actually safe. Are you willing to take that chance and gamble on the health of your pet?

In a bid to make their products more "nutritious" and thus more “attractive” to consumers, some companies add vitamins and minerals into their kibble or canned food. But this often makes things worse instead of better. Our pets' bodies are not designed to break down these synthetic vitamins, and so they build up as toxins in the liver and kidneys. Over time, it may even lead to organ failure.

These packaged food are produced with profit-making in mind; thus an extended shelf life would be ideal to generate more earnings. Can you imagine the amount of chemical preservatives that will go into these commercial pet food in order to extend their shelf life? If we ate instant noodles or processed food day and night, it would only be a matter of time before our organs start failing due the accumulations of toxins and chemicals – the same applies to our furry friends! Assurance of premium quality does not make a kibble any less of a kibble.

Then you might think "Well, I've been feeding my dog the same brand of food for 5 years, and he's still in the pink of health!" While our dogs may look healthy now, it's when they get older that we'll begin to see the negative health effects brought on by the synthetic ingredients they've been fed their whole lives. This might also mean increasingly expensive vet bills to deal with their health problems.

The only way to be absolutely sure that your pet's food is safe and healthy is to cook it yourself. It's easier and less time-consuming than you might think!

Written by: Wee Yen

Thyroid In Dogs

There are many health conditions that can affect dogs, but thyroid problems are especially prevalent in senior dogs as they have lower hormone levels due to old age.

What are the symptoms of thyroid disorders in dogs?

Matthieu, our oldest rescue dog. His fur loss and dry flaky skin was part of his thyroid symptoms. 

-       Lethargy, general weakness and inactivity

-       Mental dullness

-       Unexplained weight gain

-       Excessive shedding or poor fur growth

-       Dry coat

-       Excessive scaling

-       Recurring skin infections

-       Intolerance to cold

-       Tilting of head to one side (uncommon)

-       Seizures (uncommon)

-       Infertility (uncommon)

Drawing blood for a thyroid test

Doing a skin scrape to check for fungus

Sometimes the symptoms may not be obvious – take for example Matthieu – his fur has been shedding for almost two months and despite two visits to the vet, he has not improved even after finishing his rounds of medications and creams. To get to the bottom of his symptoms we had him tested for bacterial and fungal infection as well as ringworms – but it turns out the he has a very low thyroid hormone level – with one of the symptoms being loss of fur.

Plucking some fur to test for ringworms

To diagnose thyroid conditions, the blood test T4 will be administered and usually yields results within half an hour. If tested positive for a thyroid disorder, the dog will require thyroid medications or supplements all their lives, like poor Matthieu here. He was calm and collected throughout his test and we couldn’t be prouder of this brave chap!  

Our favourite old man, feeling extremely proud of himself after the vet consult 

Ain't he cute? He's 15 years old and still going strong!!

We hope you can help contribute and sponsor his monthly thyroid medications. If you would like to help dear Matthieu, kindly email hopedogrescue@singnet.com.sg and we will be in touch soon!

Written by: Wee Yen