Kitty By The Sea

We went to Changi Beach Park and had been swimming for a few hours, when I decided to get out of the water and get into dry clothes. I noticed a number of stray cats milling around, healthy and robust, and blending in with the surroundings. On my way back from the changing room however, I came across an orange and white male cat, near the Bistro Changi restaurant.

On the way to the vet

I stopped to give him some attention, with each and every pat I felt his pain and yet I could tell that he felt some relief at the same time. I felt my heart break. He was severely emaciated and in poor health as I patted him, I could feel the pronounced ridge of his spine, could see the way his ribs showed through his sides. There was mucous dripping from his nostrils, and yellow pus coming from his right eye, while his left eye had a black crust in the corner. His head was oversized for his body. His right ear appeared to be chewed up at the tip. His fur was streaked with black dirt that blended into his skin. Overall, he looked like a living skeleton.

He looked at me with the saddest, most weary gaze, and opened his mouth to mew, but there was no sound. Through tearing eyes, I noticed that the right side of his face was extremely swollen to the size of a big lime. My heart went out to him. It was obvious that he was in acute discomfort and pain, and without medical attention, he would continue to waste away until he succumbed to his ailments. I attempted to entice him with fish (from the nearby nasi lemak shop) and water in hopes that he might eat. The cat's eager reaction indicated that he was ravenous; but after a few feeble bites, he appeared to retch in extreme pain, and I realized that hungry as he was, he was unable to chew or swallow; only by breaking the fish into tiny fragments was he able to eat a little, but still in great discomfort.

Years of suffering on the streets

My wife and I realized that this pitiful creature would not survive for much longer on his own. Despite his poor condition, Sparticus, as we named him, was extremely affectionate and craved affection. He kept rubbing himself up against my legs, and even sat down next to me, trusting me with every fibre of his being to keep him safe and sound. I knew I couldn't disappoint his trusting soul. Questions raced through my mind. How did he end up in this state? How many years had he been here? Would he survive? I hoped he would, he was such a lovely soul, with so much love to give. It just broke my heart that he would suffer a slow painful death.

Hardship and sadness written on his face

We saw HOPE Dog Rescue's profile on Facebook, and placed our own hope in the fact that despite priority concern for dogs, HOPE also cares about the welfare of felines, and could help us with this poor cat. Despite his apprehensiveness, Sparticus was simply too weak to resist being collected and taken to the Mount Pleasant Animal Medical Centre. There, Dr. Chan took Sparticus into her care and provided an initial assessment.

Dr Chan reckoned he is rather old, perhaps 8 or 9 years old

Extremely weak and dehydrated

Sparticus weighed 3.06 kg, and was dangerously dehydrated. He had large, excruciating ulcers on the back of his tongue, which had made it so difficult to eat; the large lump on his jaw was due to a severely inflamed lymph node.  As she felt his gut, she noted that he had a lot of gas and his gut was unusually thick; the only hopeful sign for him was that his temperature was normal. Dr Chan had Sparticus put on intravenous drip to rehydrate him, and a blood test was done to diagnose his condition, which turned out to be FIV (Feline Aids). She explained that even after his physical rehabilitation, returning him to Changi would inevitably be futile, because without human care, he would only continue to deteriorate. He requires the compassion and love of a foster care giver, or better still, a caring person willing to adopt him. Even though he's been a stray all his life, Sparticus has a sweet and affectionate disposition, and only needs his love reciprocated.

Emaciated and dehydrated

Sparticus is still warded at the vet and we are hoping that someone will offer him a home instead of having to disappoint him and put him back on the streets.

Safe for the first time in his life. Help give him a home before he is discharged.

To help Sparticus, please email fiona@hopedogrescue.org

Story contributed by Mike B. Photographs courtesy of Mike B and Esther Low.

We Are Proud Of Rhea

On one of those days that we were at the vet with Babu and Beano for their check up, one of our volunteers spoke with a kind lady, who was also in the waiting room. After learning about our work at HOPE Dog Rescue, the kind lady actually donated S$1,000 to our cause, much to our pleasant surprise.

Later, we learnt that her daughter, Rhea, had just celebrated her 10^th birthday party. However, instead of accepting gifts from her friends, Rhea told them to save their money so that they could donate it to HOPE Dog Rescue for the animals in need. We are very grateful for Rhea’s kind generosity and thoughtfulness at such a tender age. Most 10-year-olds hanker after the latest gadgets and computer games, but Rhea has displayed maturity beyond her years; her parents have certainly done a fantastic job in raising this young lady. 

Meeting Beano for the first time in person

Rhea getting acquainted with Prince

Beano calmly looks on as Rhea pats his head

Below, Rhea has penned some of her thoughts on our dogs:


I’ve always been intrigued by the wonder that surrounds dogs. And when my mum told me about Beano, Prince and of course HOPE Dog Rescue itself, I realized what had put that curiosity into my mind. What intrigued me were their loyalty and their bravery. You see, Beano had acid poured on him and unfortunately he is dependent on human beings. Yet despite the cruelty meted out to him, he is still very affectionate towards us. And Prince who is one of the cutest dogs ever is getting starved to death, yet he endures the pain, as he understands that life has obstacles.

Even though it’s true that, “Yes, life does have obstacles,” the grudge that some humans hold over dogs is just purely insane. I mean, all dogs need is love! And if some humans just don’t have the capability to make a dog happy and feel loved, then they are definitely extremely mean people. Please do not be that mean person. Please adopt a pet, not from a kennel or a pet shop, but from a rescue group like HOPE Dog Rescue. For you this might be a small gesture, but for them it is their life.

Written by RHEA SHRIVASTAVA (only 10 years old)

Note: If you have a message for Rhea, please post it on our blog comments or email it to fiona@hopedogrescue and I will forward it to Rhea and Mommy. Thank you.

HappyGram

This is a HAPPYGRAM from a very happy dog who was rescued by our volunteers more than a year ago.

Simon (black) and his brother Daniel (chocolate brown) were rescued from under a truck in an industrial estate on January 25^th 2011. They were taken to the home of a volunteer where they had a luxurious soapy bath and thereafter were declared healthy by the neighbourhood vet.

Simon and Daniel when they were first rescued

In the weeks following their rescue, they had an idyllic life, getting regular nourishing meals and playing in the garden of their foster home. They also had a chance to learn good doggie manners from big brothers Eddie and Peter.  Not only that, they had regular playtimes with the neighbour’s children and they became very well socialized. Simon was more timid than Daniel who enjoyed regular skateboard rides with neighbour Tom.

Simon was soon adopted by the Tay family and he got a new name! Considering his glossy black coat, “Blackie” was a name that suited him well. He became best buddy to the three children of the Tay family, Charis, Carmen and Dylan.

"Blackie"

In the meantime, Blackie got bigger and bigger and BIGGER... Now at the age of one year, he is a bundle of positive energy which he lavishes on anyone who is interested in his company. He is very good friends with other dogs in his neighborhood and enjoys his walks immensely. Even the teenage children in his new neighborhood queue up to take him for walks!

M.S recently paid a visit to say hi to Blackie and what a welcome she got! Perhaps Blackie could not say it in words, but he made himself clearly understood. Blackie said, “Thank you for rescuing me and finding me such a loving and wonderful family to spend the rest of my life with”.

Daniel was just as fortunate as his brother. He was adopted by a Scottish family who now call him "Dan" and love him to bits.  His family was relocated shortly after his adoption and he now lives in Western Australia.

"Dan"

Dan and his family. They have since migrated and taken Dan with them.

Happy dogs indeed. 

Molly's Updates

Since her amputation, Molly has been recovering slowly but surely; we are also glad to see her appetite improving. However, she appears upset and is trying hard to manage her emotions. Although Molly understands our good intentions and no longer has to struggle with the intense pain, she remains afraid and uncertain about her fate in this new environment. She had been living with the pain from her injured leg for so long, yet now she has to deal with the loss of her limb.

Molly feeling sorry for herself

Stitches where her limb had been removed

Molly tries hard to cope with her loss

Molly is very thin. Thankfully, she is eating well

Poor Molly needs a friend

Like humans, animals do grieve too and Molly is learning to cope with her loss, so she tends to be snappy at times. What she needs now is just some space and time alone; so we will respect that and keep by her side, waiting for her to recover physically and emotionally.

Fortunately, it is comforting to see Molly’s face light up during meal times, just like a true local foodie! Molly’s willpower has been tested time and again; she deserves to live in the warmth of a loving home, free from any more torment. Yes, Molly may have lost a leg but she certainly has not lost her amazing fighting spirit or capacity to love. Would you please take this sweet girl home to give her love and a peace of mind for the rest of her life? If so, please contact Fiona at fiona@hopedogrescue.org.

Molly and our volunteers are ever grateful to the generous donors who contributed to her vet bills and food supplies. She may not have pulled through without your support. Thank you all.

By Kyna Tan

Good Golly Poor Molly!

Not the nicest picture to start a blog post with and I know that many might not have the stomach for it, but I sincerely beseech everyone to stay on and read about the ordeal of strong sweet Molly.

It was slightly after 2am on a weekday when I received a text from a friend, Astha. She had spotted a dog that had 'lost a paw', loitering at her block in Bukit Panjang. Lost a paw?? Fiona and I didn't really know what that meant but we rushed down all the same.

A bag of bones; a sad painful sight

Nothing could quite prepare us for the sight. The dog had literally lost a paw. (This dog would later come to be named Molly.) It was dark and we can't really make out how bad the injury was but we can see a good bit of the bone where her paw should have been. As the stench of rotting flesh filled the air, it gave us an inkling of the severity of her wound.

On top of that, Molly was also emaciated. (Later we learned at the vet that she weighs only a mere 10kg.) She was ravenous despite that Astha had already fed her. We tried to take advantage of that and used food to lure her into the carrier. But I have come to realise that rescue work is not easy. Molly was very wary of human and refused to come near us even when there was food. This was going to be a long night. 

There was no way we can rush things. We had to approach her slowly so as not to startle her. Although she was in pain and hopping on 3 legs, she was still very nimble. The slightest bit of movement from us was enough to scare her into running in the opposite direction. In fact, I remained crouched most of the time. Amazing that I can still walk after that.

Since Molly refused to come near us, we left trails of food leading to the carrier. The plan was for Fiona to push her in and close the gate, while my job was to hide behind the carrier and tilt it with all my might so that she can't come back out. Every time she comes near the carrier, I would hold my breath. In part was because of the nauseating putrid smell and the other was because I was so afraid that she would run off just by me breathing. It sounds silly but we failed so many times that I was despairing we might never get to help her.

All too soon, we ran out of food because Molly would eat up the trails of food but never venture far enough into the carrier. Astha kindly offered to run to a 7-eleven to buy more canned food. There was nothing else that we can do but to patiently repeat this over and over again. I must have been getting pretty desperate, for I started to plead with Molly in my head. And after what seems like eternity, Molly finally trusted us enough to forage deeper into the carrier for food. That was the cue and we sprung into action. Success! We can all finally breathe a sigh of relief, now that we managed to have her safely in the carrier and get her the help that she needs, after two hours of trying.

It was almost 5am by the time we got home and poor Fiona had only 2 hours of sleep before she was due to get up and bring 2 strays for sterilization. I have the utmost respect for Fiona and her team. The amount of dedication and sacrifice that they put in is unbelievable.

Molly waiting for the van from Green Haven to take her to the vet

The next day, residents from Green Haven helped us bring Molly to the vet as her carrier could not fit into our small van

 

In the daylight, we can now see the extensive damage to her leg. You can't see it from here but it was infested with maggots. Apart from losing a paw, there was also a deep puncture hole on her front left leg, equally maggot infested. It looks like her leg was caught in something. A wild boar trap maybe? Does anyone know if there're traps in Bukit Panjang area?

Molly had remained surprisingly calm throughout it all. It was as though she knew that we were helping her. I believe that she has a really sweet and gentle disposition because she did not turn aggressive like other dogs normally would when they are in severe pain.

Sweet, strong Molly waiting for the vet to see her

The vet nurse at The Animal Drs trying to leash Molly and take her out but Molly was snappy, possibly from all the pain and uncertainty

After almost ten attempts, the vet nurse finally managed to throw the leash around Molly's neck. By then, Molly was very exhausted.

Trying to muzzle Molly, in order to test her for distemper (standard protocol for all new clients)

One can never ever have the strength and resilience of a dog / animal. If it was anyone of us, we would have fainted from the pain and excessive bleeding

I can't even bear to look at the wound, let alone suffer from this pain. I don't know how Molly does it but I know it's beyond me.

Did you see the fat maggots crawling around in the video?

Finally allowing herself to be patted by the vet nurse

Molly lying in the consultation room waiting for her blood test results. Results showed that she has low red blood count and was positive for heartworm. To undergo a surgical procedure would have been a high risk. We may lose her on the table

Having her wound cleaned

Molly was put on drip to stabilize her condition before surgery was carried out

Molly would have to be amputated from the shoulder below. But the vet says that she might die on the table because she had very low red blood count from excessive loss of blood and she also has heartworm. There was however no choice but to go ahead with the surgery, as her leg was septic and had swelled to twice its size. Without the amputation, she would most definitely die from the sepsis. Everyone at HOPE Dog Rescue was very worried and kept her in our prayers as she underwent surgery.

Dear Molly who loves life had battled death and won! She is currently warded and recovering at the clinic. But sad to say her ordeal is far from over. Her next hurdle now is to find someone to adopt or foster her. If there's no one to take her in, she would have to stay at a kennel.

This stump at her shoulder would likely get infected if she is to stay at a kennel because it is dirty and wet. After Molly's struggle, she deserves a loving home that can nurse her back to health.

Molly's surgery is estimated to cost about $3500. While every cent is well-spent, it is something that HOPE Dog Rescue can ill afford.

If you can help in any way, be it adopting; fostering; or donating towards her surgery; please email fiona@hopedogrescue.org

Story by Esther Low. Photo credits: Esther Low, Leslie Kok, Iris Ng.