Cemetery Dogs - Oscar's Updates

After my encounter with Beano (read more here), I realised that there's so much to be done for animals and so much more in my own capacity that I can help out. I therefore, started to volunteer for HOPE Dog Rescue and my 1st assignment was to ferry Oscar to the vet for his follow-up consultation. 

Oscar is a 6 month old stray puppy that stays in a cemetery (more about Oscar). HOPE came across him when they were carrying out their sterilization project there. Oscar is suffering from Dermodectic Mange and 2 of his siblings had already died a slow painful death from it. He is the only 1 out of the litter left now.


Meet little Oscar. He was so terrified the whole time I was there, he stayed almost motionless in the carrier.



His body is so raw and it's bleeding in some areas



My heart was heavy with despair while I edited these photos. It must be sheer torture for Oscar.

Oscar's little paw. Open sores cover parts of his body.

His skin is dry and crusted

I know HOPE had their hands full recently with Beano and Babu suffering from canine distemper. And on the night that I was sending Oscar to the vet, I learned that they were rushing a kitten, with an eye nearly popped out, to the vet too. 

I am grateful to the kind people from HOPE for not giving up on these strays. An easy option would have been to put them to sleep because treatments are expensive. But they had never withheld treatment just because these are strays. 

In addition to keeping Oscar, Beano and Babu in your prayers, I'm appealing to all to help in whatever way you can. If you have a car, perhaps you can volunteer to ferry the pets around. Or perhaps foster a dog.

 

Story and photographs by Esther Low.

 

Note from Fiona : Oscar has been warded at Mount Pleasant Animal Clinic (Bedok) since Tuesday as he was not eating, drinking and feeling rather down. He has been put on drip and will be discharged today (Friday). We thank Esther for fetching Oscar to and from the vet.

 

Oscar will be heading back to the kennel this evening. We thank kind sponsors for paying for his stay at the boarding kennel. We appeal to anyone who has some space at home to please foster Oscar, even if it's for just a few weeks. His skin needs constant cleaning and proper care. He is a young puppy and has been through so much. He has lost his two siblings, we can't afford to lose him as well.

 

Oscar has ringworms as well, so ideally the foster needs to be someone with no pets at home or to keep Oscar separated from their pets. To help, please sms / text Lily at 9880 6082.

Cemetery Dogs

I was tasked to collect a carrier and fetch it to a cemetery where a young puppy, with skin problem, was waiting to be brought to a vet.

HOPE came to know about this puppy as they have just completed a sterilization project on Beano’s factory and have moved on to a new sterilization project for the cemetery dogs.

My job was just to transport the carrier from point to point and I would go home. Job accomplished. Or so I thought.

But it was not that simple. Just as I was leaving, Mr Ng, the caretaker at the cemetery, called to say that he had caught the sick puppy. I made a U-turn  immediately and met the puppy which Lisa would later name Oscar.



This is little Oscar, all of 6 mths.



There were originally 7 dogs living in this cemetery. 4 adults and 3 puppies. Oscar had 2 other siblings but both of them died a slow death from the same problem that Oscar now faces. Had we known earlier, we might have been able to provide them with medical help. Sadly, we have just started on this sterilization project and just come to know about poor Oscar but we hope it’s not too late to save him.

He lay in the cage with fear and sadness in his eyes, as if resigned to his fate. Mr Ng had helped to put him in the carrier and given him some biscuits but he was either too weak or too wary of humans, and didn’t show any interest in the biscuits. I could see that his skin was terribly inflamed, raw and sore and he was very sick. He needed immediate medical attention. I knew I could not just walk away. I called Lisa and we decided that he needed to see a vet immediately. I then drove for about an hour to bring him to the vet at Bedok. As I was driving, I could hear him cry and I could smell his sickness, sort of like rotting flesh.

In the carrier on the way to the vet

At the vet's, he would not come out of the carrier. He needed to be coaxed with food to come out. At first, he was wary. He turned his head away. We spoke to him and the vet tech slowly got closer to Oscar and touched him gently on his head. Gradually, perhaps convinced that he would not be harmed, he turned to eat his food. He got out of the carrier he was in, hesitated and then decided that he was not that hungry to take further risk and retreated back to the carrier. The vet tech then crawled a little into the carrier and wrapped Oscar with a towel and carried him out. Oscar cried in fear. His eyes widened with panic and bewilderment. I was told he could only be about 6 months old.  

This is Oscar's home

The water that Oscar drinks

 The vet took a sample of his skin to test for mites and found that he has Demodex Mange or Red Mange. It is a common form of canine mange which burrow, feed and reproduce under the skin of dogs and usually signify an underlying immunodeficiency. Mange causes severe irritation with symptoms of inflammation, itching and hair loss. Once the dog begins scratching, soreness and redness begin to develop leading to crusty skin and scabs. I was told that in severe cases, when the immune system of the dog suffers because of any number of circumstances, it can be life-threatening. Oscar has rather severe demodex mange. His skin was terribly sore and oozing pus. I took a look at the mites under the microscope and there were many and they looked malicious.

Mites, seen under the microscope

Demodex Mange is not typically contagious from dogs to dogs or to people and can be treated. However, with Oscar’s severity, it might take months before we see positive results.

Getting proper food and shelter for the first time in his life, at the clinic

Little Oscar all curled up and resting

We are appealing for a foster to help care for Oscar till he finds a permanent home. If we can’t get a foster, we would have to return him back to the cemetery. He needs medication and care. We have opted to give him weekly injections to treat his mange as it is not possible to feed him daily medication at the cemetery. As it is, this little puppy hardly gets a regular meal living out in the wilderness. . . . .

Oscar is my first rescue and long after I have left him, I could still see him and hear his cries. I know the reality is that if we can’t find a foster for little Oscar, he would be returned to the cemetery tomorrow. I fear he will not survive without proper care. He doesn’t even have proper shelter and food. I hope that he would still be waiting for me to pick him up for his weekly jabs next week, until he is stronger or better yet, we find him a foster who would nurse him back to health and perhaps a forever home.

Written by Lily Woon. Photo credits : Lily, Amanda Liew, Nicholas and Iris Ng

Updates on Babu Boy and Beano

Babu Boy

We thank everyone for your prayers, words of encouragement and support. Finally, we have some good news to share on Babu!

His condition is now, overall, considered improved and stable.

Over the weekend, the vet told us there was no noticeable teeth chattering or ear twitching during the hour that a vet nurse was with him. His breathing is much less rapid now, at 48 breaths per minute. The normal rate is 24 to 30 breaths.

Babu managed to drink some milk and liver soup. He loves Magnolia milk and drinks almost one large pack a day. He is also starting to eat some duck and chicken meat. We know it’s not the healthiest of foods but as long as he is eating, we’re pleased! He has lost so much weight, having not eaten for almost 10 days. He is gaining strength and responding to his name when we call him from outside the isolation room.

Babu, taken before he fell ill

We thank Veronique for bringing food and milk to Babu everyday.

We are so glad that Babu appears to be growing stronger. Please continue to keep Babu in your prayers. If all goes well, we can discharge him in a few days to a foster's home. Would anyone be able to foster Babu?

Beano has distemper!

After we found out Babu Boy had distemper, we tested Beano last week and his results gave the all-clear. However on Saturday, the hospital called to inform us that Beano has tick fever and heartworm. We also realized that he was losing weight and coughing. We were extremely worried and immediately discharged him from the hospital to take him to another vet for a distemper test.

Eye, nose and saliva swabs to test for distemper at another clinic

Nick assisting while Dr Chan draws blood to test Beano for heartworm and tick fever. Because of Beano's distemper, and as a safety precaution, he was not allowed into the clinic

As a precautionary measure, Beano was not allowed in the clinic and we waited outside for him to be tested for distemper. The eye, nose and saliva swabs were tested and to our shock, little Beano was tested positive for distemper. Beano was vaccinated after initially testing negative for distemper a week ago, so we are monitoring to see if his symptoms and test results arose due to the vaccination. We are saddened  and worried by this piece of news.

Poor Beano and Babu have gone through so much pain and suffering, one after the other. We don’t want to speculate how Beano got distemper.  

Thank you Sherry, Nick and Iris for fetching Beano to the vet and waiting all Sunday when Beano had no foster to go to. We also thank Joanne for rushing to get a van and asking a family member to foster Beano temporarily, and sending Beano to his foster home.

Beano's wound is much better but its taking a long time to close up

Little Beano

Beano's left ear has curled up after his injury. We're not sure if he has lost hearing in that ear

Beano's ears flip backwards now

We thank Rina, who cancelled her own medical appointment, to bring Marcus and Laurel to test for distemper today. Since both dogs share a kennel and were in the same hospital as Beano, we became worried as Marcus had a runny nose and kept sleeping as he was very tired (we recognized these as symptoms of distemper). Fortunately, both Marcus and Laurel's results reflected negative for distemper. 

This is Marcus with Sherry. Marcus is an old rescued street dog. Stay tuned to his story on our blog. Marcus lives in the boarding kennel with Laurel

Laurel stays at the kennels and is waiting for her own forever home. Save a life and adopt Laurel.

Lisa and Rina walking Marcus and Laurel. They took these two doggies for an ice-cream outing and Laurel absolutely loves vanilla ice-cream!

Beano and Babu Boy contracting distemper has caused us a lot of unnecessary money, time, worry and effort as we had to track back on all the dogs which had been at the previous vet centre and sending all of them for distemper tests. It has been a logistical nightmare and is extremely tedious for all our volunteers. We’ve also had to disinfect our cars and send our own pets for distemper tests.

Beano

Now Babu urgently needs a foster because the clinic has only one isolation room, which must be released for Beano as he desperately requires treatment for distemper, seeing how he has not eaten for the past 3 days. We intend to discharge Babu by this Thursday evening. He needs someone with a helper home all day to observe him although his condition is, thankfully, now stable. Please get in touch with us if you or someone you know is able and willing to foster Babu Boy. Preferably someone who does not have dogs at home. Email alicia@hopedogrescue.org


We would like to thank everyone who has gone out of their way to help our dogs, and showed concern for them. As always, your compassion touches us.

We're Praying For A Miracle For Babu

It is with a heavy heart that we pen Babu Boy's latest update.

His condition has deteriorated rapidly. His ears now have a slight twitching, and one eye has also started twitching – these are signs of further neurological damage. The vet is starting Babu on seizure medication to hopefully delay the seizures. The vet has also started Babu on tube feeding, as he has not eaten in 8 days. 

Babu in healthier and happier days

His family, the workers at the factory, want to take him back as soon as possible, and they have prepared a room for him. We don't mind taking him back, so that he can spend his remaining days with his family. But we're worried that the germs from his illness will be passed to the other two female dogs. 

We want to bring the two females in for a distemper test and vaccination, but the workers won't let us take them, after what has happened to Babu. We understand. They don't blame us, but they don't want anything to happen to the girls as well. The girls are very depressed and have been in hiding ever since Babu, their pack leader, left.

We are terribly sad. We are still hoping for the best, but it doesn't look good. We are torn as to what to do now; if we send Babu back home, it will only be a matter of days that he leaves for good. He will suffer from great distress and pain, going into seizures in the office at the worksite. Rushing him to the vet when that happens will be too late, and he could suffer till the end.

Towels from Babu's family. We have put these in his room at the clinic, hoping that their smell will empower him to keep fighting on. (We thank Veronique for going to pick up the towels)

Yet, we know this is what Babu wants: to be with his family just one last time, to go back to where he grew up and lived all his life. We know he misses his daily swims in the river. (Yes, he is only 3 years old. Way too young to have him taken from us.)

We wish that we could turn back the hands of time, that we had known the signs of distemper... instead of delaying his much needed treatment. Babu is paying dearly for our mistake.

Our hearts are breaking.

Babu Updates

He came to us and we were supposed to help him get better, but now Babu may end up with his life cut short.

The next few days are crucial for Babu. His plasma transfusion went successfully, and he seems a little perkier although he is still refusing food.

His future hangs in the balance.

If he gets better, it’s a miracle. If he gets worse, we may decide to take him back to be with family – the workers who have cared for him at the factory where he lives, and the other dogs that live with him.

Dr Chan says his condition has stabilised, although his kidneys have now been affected slightly by distemper. His teeth have started chattering, and he makes chewing gum movements -  a sign the condition has started to affect him neurologically. The next stage is seizures, and after that, it’s death.

We visited him this afternoon. He drank a little milk, which the workers brought for him last night. The workers, who know him well and love him so much, told us he loves milk.

Baby Babu when he was a little puppy. The workers have taken good care of him since he was 2 mths old.
(Photograph courtesy of Sharma, Babu's best friend)

We wanted to bring him back to visit his family, but were worried that he could pass the virus to the other two female dogs. We wanted to bring the dogs to the vet to be tested for distemper and vaccinated, but if they are carrying the virus, it could trigger adverse reactions and more dogs might be harmed.

Plasma transfusion is very costly, and because he is in isolation, he has a vet nurse attending to him most of the time. The hospital bill is estimated to be $4,000 for a five-day stay. We don’t usually spend so much on a rescue dog because we feel the money spent on one dog could be used to help many more dogs. However, Babu has had a very hard month – two leg surgeries that he bravely soldiered through after his hit-and-run accident, then his body weakening so drastically from pneumonia – and we want to give the best after all that he has been through. We can’t let him down now.

If you would like to make a donation towards his vet bill, please send a cheque to The Animal Doctors at Block 108, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4, #01-94/96, Singapore 560108. The cheque should be made out to “The Animal Doctors Pte Ltd”, and at the back of the cheque, write “HOPE Dog Rescue/Babu”. Please request for a receipt.

* Please note that no visitors are allowed. We understand your concern but he needs his rest and not be unduly stressed. Should you wish to receive regular updates, please email us. Thank you.

Written by YQ

Babu Fights For His Life

26 April 2012 was a happy day for me, as we managed to take Babu Boy to the vet and save his leg. Saving dogs is always a happy moment for me.

Slightly more than a month and two leg surgeries later, Babu Boy is lying in the vet, fighting for his life again. He has canine distemper.

Babu, with muscus dripping from his nose

How did this happen? I have been asking myself this all day, ever since I found out around noon today. Did he contract it from the hospital where he had been warded for the past week? Was it already in him and only recently surfaced because his immunity is low? I don’t have the answer. Images of him have been running repeatedly through my mind. I recall how the workers carried him out from hiding, into my van to go to the vet. I recall how he wagged his tail and greeted me each time I visited him at the vet or at the foster home. I miss his brown eyes looking at me and asking when he can run in the open fields again.

I visited him this evening after work. He didn’t even know I was there... He was struggling to survive.

This morning our friend, Veronique, helped us discharge Babu Boy from the hospital, to transfer him to another vet. Volunteers Rina, Johnathan and Cherlyn were also at the hospital to help carry Babu. They sat at the back of the pet transport to monitor his condition and constantly reassured him.

Babu not wanting to sit, even though he was very weak and tired

Babu Boy was warded at the hospital for a week, as the stitch on his leg wound had opened. Little did we expect the turn of events over the next few days. We were told one afternoon that he had thrown up a few times and there were actually strains of blood in the last vomitus. The vets then treated him for gastrointestinal problems. They also told us that he was not eating and thus had to be put on a drip and syringe-fed. When we visited him, he was down in the dumps and struggled to stand up to greet us.

The following day, we called the hospital for an update on his condition. It turned out that he had contracted pneumonia and they were treating him for that. They said this could be due to an infection, but were uncertain of the source; antibiotics was prescribed for his infection.

A day later, we were told his blood count had dropped and he was anemic. They then treated him for tick fever (even though his results showed he had been tested negative for tick fever) because his symptoms were similar to that of tick fever. I asked if they needed to conduct more tests to find out the underlying cause so that this problem can be treated before his condition further deteriorates, but was told that we should see results in 3 days’ time.

Just arrived at the vet, testing for distemper outside the clinic premises as distemper is highly contagious

Blood dripping from Babu's nose

Nose swab test for distemper (Babu didn't like it, so he kept fidgeting)

Poor Babu has lost a lot of weight

Exhausted after the journey

After discussing with volunteers Veronique and Joanne, we decided to quickly discharge Babu Boy and take him to another vet where we could hopefully obtain a more accurate prognosis. Unfortunately, that’s when we were hit hard with the news that he has canine distemper. In fact, we were in disbelief and the vet actually conducted the test twice to confirm that he is indeed suffering from this life-threatening disease. Distemper is highly contagious and chances of survival are slim.

This afternoon Babu Boy was given a plasma transfusion to boost his platelet count. When we visited him this evening, he was halfway through the second bag.

Preparing to start on the plasma transfusion

Looking at how the vet techs are attired, you can judge how highly contagious canine distemper is

The workers came to visit Babu again after work and I could see sadness in their eyes. They kept asking me, "Why? How can happen like that? Why can like that?" I really wish I had answers for them. All I know is that his family has been patiently waiting for his joyous return after his leg had recovered, not to hear me tell them that he is now left with only 10% chance of survival.

I hate to say that we have done all we can for him and now he has to fight this battle on his own, because the fact is, I feel we didn’t do all that we could have. Throwing up, the blood strains in his vomitus, being diagnosed for gastrointestinal problems and then pneumonia - all these were signs of canine distemper and yet no one thought about running a test on that. I don’t blame myself for the state he is in now, but I do blame myself for not acting faster, resulting in the spreading of virus within his body for almost a week before we transferred him to another vet for treatment.

(taken from outside)

In strict isolation, thus we were not allowed to enter

This is where he fights for his life

I pray that he will survive. I pray that come tomorrow morning, the vet will call and tell me that a miracle happened overnight and that Babu is strong and eating again. He has not eaten in 6 days and has lost so much weight.

The workers tell me that Babu used to play soccer with them in the evenings. They tell me, "in India, dog eat grass, vomit and then better already. No medicine". I wish it was that simple; I really do.

To the reckless driver who slammed your car into poor Babu, you have shattered more than just the bone in his leg.

Babu's family waiting for his return

I have not been this sad in a long time, although I know I have to be strong for Babu. I have promised him that if he eats just a few pieces of chicken, I will take him back to visit his family and he can be with them again. I hope he heard me.

I hope the angels heard me too, for I have asked them to give him the strength and will to pull through this.  

I thank Veronique for putting the initial deposit to check Babu into the vet, and the volunteers for going down to help at such short notice. Thank you.

*Note: Beano has also been tested for canine distemper and the results reflect NEGATIVE. We are appealing for a foster for Beano so he can be discharged from the hospital very soon.

Babu Boy's Courage

It may not have been the most comfortable of lives; food was not in abundance and his family could not provide the best for him. It was a simple life. But one he treasured and loved.

Babu having his bandage removed last week, with Nicholas by his side.

Thanks to the reckless act of one driver, Babu Boy was forced to leave his family - two other female dogs and the workers at the factory where he lived - behind and live among people he does not know.

While he has received much love from all of you over these past weeks, Babu is depressed and sad to be away from his family. Angry and frustrated to be have his movements restricted, where once he could go wherever he wanted - even taking a leisurely swim in the river.

For those of you who have been reading our blog, you know Babu's story. He was hit by a car and it broke his leg. The first steel plate that was inserted into his injured leg bent under his weight and he had to go through another surgery to insert a stronger plate into his leg.

Babu's wound where the steel plate was inserted

After Babu Boy’s second surgery, he was discharged and placed in a foster’s home to recuperate. However, a few days back, his wound opened and he had to go back to hospital for one stitch.

His leg is looking good and recovering well

This week, he ran a fever and vomited blood. The hospital has conducted an X-Ray and blood tests but found nothing wrong. An ultrasound and check for tick fever, as well as other tests have not revealed any answers. He has an enlarged spleen and the vets are treating him for a gastrointestinal problem. As a precautionary measure, he has been started on medication for tick fever.

He has not eaten for two days and has lost a lot of weight. He wears an e-collar but out of frustration, he keeps pulling out his drip. He may need a blood transfusion and we have to standby a doggy blood donor.

We hope and pray Babu will not get into any emergency situation where a transfusion is needed and we have to scramble to get his blood type.

We are very worried about Babu and sad that he has had to go through so much in such a short span of time.

And so is his family.

Babu Boy and his two female friends living at the workers' quarters

Babu Boy - taken at his home

"Home" photographs courtesy of Sharma - Babu's caregiver. 

They obviously do love him a lot to have photographs of the dogs.

Two workers came to visit Babu today (Friday). They boiled some chicken breast and rushed down after work to see him. Babu was very happy to see them and wagged his tail. He tried to stand up but he was so weak.

We learnt just how attached Babu is to them. The workers told us that every morning at 7am, Babu would stand with the engineer as the workers receive their briefing for the day. When the workers head off to work, Babu would go lie down in the shelter, with his gaze toward the gate, waiting for his family to return at 5.30pm.

The two other female dogs have been missing Babu too. He is their leader. Without him around they have been lost and hide in their container and sleep all day. They only come out during meal times.

Babu's family needs him.

And Babu needs his family.

Babu has been microchipped. Once he is well enough to return to the worksite, the workers will license him with AVA.

We thank everyone for their love and concern for Babu. We are touched by their generous contributions to helping a street dog.

Written by A.Wong