The Zeus Times - July 2011

Dear Friends,

The past 4 weeks have been extremely eventful and demanding. We had to attend to the puppies, help a lost dog and attend to some of our dogs at Zeus Playhouse who were afflicted by Kennel Cough. Thankfully, Dr Ang, who is our attending vet, visited the kennels last Saturday and the dogs were given their required medication and vaccinations.

Unfortunately, one of our puppies, Wang Wang, who was only 2.5 months old, caught pneumonia and passed away on 7 July after fighting a hard battle for 6 days. Tia and Steven held a cremation service to commemorate her and she will be missed dearly. But we are also glad that Wang Wang passed away peacefully and with dignity, knowing that we loved and supported her throughout the ordeal.

The Rescue of 5 Breeding Dogs



On 17 July, we rescued 5 dogs from a breeder. These 5 dogs consisted of 2 Schnauzers, 2 Norwich Terriers and 1 Maltese. They were rescued because we didn't want them to suffer again in the hands of other breeders, which might lead to abandonment once they’re deemed as ‘useless’ and can no longer breed for their benefit. Like every other dog, we believe that they too deserve a Second Chance to be loved and cared for by their owners.






Churro, a 4 yr old female Norwich Terrier


After a full health medical examination for the dogs by Dr Ang, we discovered that most of them had ear infections, dry eyes and bad teeth. Sadly both the Schnauzers have heartworm and one of the Norwich Terriers has kidney failure.

If you’d like to help with the dogs’ medical fees, a cheque can be made to ‘Mount Pleasant Animal Medical Centre (Bedok) Ptd Ltd’ or ‘Mount Pleasant Animal Medical Centre (Redhill) Pte Ltd’ and please kindly mail the cheque to 8 Raffles Avenue, #02-04, The Esplanade Mall S(039802) and write “In Aid of 5 Breeding Dogs” behind the cheque.

JoJo, a female Maltese being examined by Dr Ang and she is in good health.

Mon Mon, a female Schnauzer was diagnosed with Heartworms.

Toffee, a 4 yr old male Norwich Terrier was diagnosed with Kidney Failure.

He is now receiving treatment and taken care off by his foster family.

Twinkle, a female Schnauzer was also diagnosed with Heartworms.

Adoption Drive

We would like to thank everyone who visited the Adoption Drive, which was organised by Hill’s Pet Nutrition and Science Diet on 25 and 26 June. 6 lucky dogs have being adopted by very loving families and we are very grateful to these families for giving them a well-deserved second chance.

We will be organising an Adoption Drive on:

Date: Sunday, 31 July

Time: 3pm to 6pm

Venue: Ericsson Pet Farm, No. 16 Pasir Ris Farmway 2

For more details of our dogs that are up for adoption, please click Zeus Top Dogs.


Animal Communication Workshop




Rosina Maria Arquati our Animal Communicator will be in town in October to conduct Animal Communication Workshops.

The workshop details as follows:

Animal Communication - Foundation (Level 1)
Date: Sat, 15 and Sun, 16 Oct 2011
Time: 10:30am to 5:30 pm
Fees: S$500 (inclusive of vegetarian lunch)

Animal Communication - Intermediate (Level 2)
Date: Tue, 18 Oct 2011
Time: 10:30am to 5:30 pm
Fees: S$480 (inclusive of vegetarian lunch)

Venue: Hort Park function Room located at Alexandra Road/Hyderabad Road

Private Session with Rosina
If you’d like a private session between Rosina and your pet, please SMS in to 9199 6247 or email: dogstalk@starhub.net.sg and we will slot you in for an appointment as she will be in Singapore from 15 to 22 October 2011. Each session costs S$250 for 45 mins.

Lost & Found

Girl Girl, The Jack Russell Terrier

On a fateful Saturday morning, a female Jack Russell followed Mdm Phua home from the market. As Mdm Phua was unable to keep the dog, she called Zeus Communications for assistance. Hence we went to Telok Blangah to fetch the dog and boarded it at the kennel till we found her owner. It was extremely fortunate that the dog was micro chipped and that the owner had registered the details with AVA , so we managed to trace her owner with the assistance of AVA and they were happily reunited on 21 June.

Note to Pet Owners - The Importance of Micro Chipping

Should your dog ever go missing, the finder will be able to locate you with the assistance of AVA and Pet Call. So if your pet isn't micro chipped yet, please make it a priority to do so.

Friend, The Mongrel
On17 July afternoon, Friend had managed to escape from his adopter's house and although both foster and rescuer had combed the area for him for hours, they were still unable to find him. They were extremely worried because Friend isn't street smart, is wary of people and timid. With Friend missing, they felt like a part of their lives were empty and were constantly panicking over Friend’s safety.

Zeus then assisted in finding Friend by guiding the rescuer on what needed to be done. At 9 pm, we received a call from the rescuer that Friend had been found and everyone’s hearts were finally at ease.

Please click for more details about animal communication workshop.

Volunteers

If you love the sun, water and bubbles, we need you!

We require volunteers to help bathe the dogs on weekends between 2.30pm to 5.30pm.

If you’re interested to volunteer, please drop us an email at dogstalk@starhub.net.sg and indicate on the subject heading "Volunteer to Bathe Dogs".

Miss Fiona Foo has left us as a volunteer to embark on a new journey, hence Fiona will no longer be representing Zeus Communications and we would like to wish her well and all the best with her future endeavours.

Please contact Lynda at Hp: 9199 6247 (SMS) or email: dogstalk@starhub.net.sg if you need assistance and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

Please do bear with us during this transitional period and be reassured that Zeus Communications is still in function and that we will continue our work in Animal Communications and Animal Welfare.

Perhaps now it is the time for me to share with you the reason why Zeus Communications was started. 9 days before my dog, Zeus passed away, he had many wishes that I had to fulfill for him and it was amazing how intensely we communicated during those 9 days. Firstly, he did not like staying at the vet and wanted to go home in the evening after treatment. He also desired to see some human friends whom he had not seen for years because he missed them deeply and wanted to bid them farewell in his own way. Most importantly, he wanted to take a last look at the place that he grew up at and enjoy as many more car rides as possible. He then passed away peacefully on 7 April 2010 after I granted all his wishes. It is difficult to describe how I felt when he passed away, but to put it simply, yes, I was sad to lose my best friend, but also very happy that he had the best life during his 9 years with me and that I could grant his last wishes.

After his passing, I decided to set up a registered company to conduct Animal Communications Workshops, hence this is how Zeus Communications came about. These workshops are meant to teach students how to communicate with animals and to let them understand that animals have emotions and feelings just like us humans. Our main objective is to make sure that owners try to work things out with their pets instead of giving them up.

In addition, we do Reiki for Pets which is safe and complements both Western and Chinese medicine for pets. Not only does it promote healing and recovery when your pet is ill, it also reduces possible side effects from medication. Not to mention, Reiki can also help with emotional and behavourial problems in pets.

Despite the reason for setting up Zeus Communications, animal rescue just happened naturally as we moved on. Because I have been in the Animal Rescue circle for close to 20 years, it is hard to turn away when you see an injured animal asking for help, especially hit and run victims and abused animals. We do what we can with the resources that we have, and we are very thankful to all our supporters who have made our work possible. We also emphasize to our volunteers that safety is our priority and that we can’t get ourselves hurt or bitten by an animal. If the animal is too wild or ferocious, we will step back and get assistance from the experts.

Do stay tuned for more stories on our work and dogs that have found a safe haven at our kennels. Once again, thank you for all your support, as Zeus Communications will not be where it is today without you.

Thank You & Best Wishes,
Lynda Goh

Animal Abusers Need Help Too

Journalist, Agatha Koh Brazil, interviews Lynda Goh and finds out what Lynda would do if she was given $1 million.
Source: TODAY, 20 March 2010

"What have they done wrong? They don't deserve such treatment" she asked about the stray and abandoned dogs she rescues.

Abused. Little George, a Shihtzu, was beaten so badly by his owner that
he not only lost one eye, his eyesight, but one of his legs was also broken into three.
George now has difficulty walking but despite that,
George is the sweetest little dog you will ever meet;

loving and trusting.

The 39-year-old has a particularly soft spot for older canines, especially whose who have been "thrown out" by their owners because of age or disabilities.

"Helping them gives me great satisfaction because they have given so much. And whatever you do for them, they are appreciative," said Lynda.

Animals have emotions too, she has to constantly remind the pet owners she counsels.

"We pass our own emotions onto our dogs, and they pick this up... if a husband and wife quarrels, their dog will be affected," she said.

The saddest rescues she does are the dogs whose elderly owners are unable to care for them any more. She has seen enough cases of pet dogs who die soon after their beloved owners pass away.

Towards this end, if $1 million were to come her way, there is no question what Lynda would do.

"I would like to set up a foundation... I think it is not right that once the owners have passed on or are in an old folk's home that animals should go homeless. I would like to do something for them," she stated, the memory of a rescue fresh in her mind.

When an elderly woman had to be sent to a hospice because of terminal throat cancer, she left her pet dog behind in her apartment. It wasn't until Lynda was alerted sometime later - by the woman's relative from Kuala Lumpur - that the dog was rescued.

When it became evident that the woman was not going to make it, Lynda brought the dog to the hospice to see her. Staff there told her that for days before the visit, the elderly woman was only saying "Snoopy, Snoopy" - her dog's name.

On the day of the visit, she was unusually "alert", Lynda was also told. The next day after a joyful reunion with her pet, the elderly woman went into a coma and subsequently died.

And while her mission is to care for abused dogs, their abusers are on Lynda's minds too.

"Why do people abuse dogs? For that matter, why do people abuse their wives? It must be habitual and done out of a sense of frustration."

For that matter, if she would be able to set up her dream foundation, it would in some way also try and reach out to animal abusers.

"We are all educated," she said, "and yet animal abuse continues." At the very basic level, it is a challenge getting people to understand why they should sterilize their pets. And don't get her started on the types of abuse.

Throwing kerosene at dogs is common, she said, and just recently a recent rescue involved a dog abandoned in a box, put out under the sun.

While she hopes that there will be a new generation of animal lovers to continue the type of work she does, the results still keep Lynda going.

"When I see results, that's what keeps me going, And I want to do more."

Dogs at the Puppy Mill are over used and treated like breeding machines.

What do they have to look forward to?

Nothing, except a lousy diet, being forced to mate and

then have their puppies taken away
and sold when they are barely ready to go.

These poor dogs have never experienced Love, Hugs nor the Human Touch.

Neither have these dogs ever seen their puppies grow up.

Is this the life they deserve?

What have they done to deserve such fate?

All they want is a second chance.

A real life, to love and to be loved.

About Lynda

As a child, Lynda had always loved animals. She found great joy and pleasure being with them, helping them and being surrounded by them. Her journey in animal welfare seems to have been carved out for her, even before she knew it.

At a tender age of ten, Lynda would save her school pocket money, catch a cat or puppy from the streets, take them home and hide them in her bedroom. After school, she would take the cat or puppy in a taxi, to the Vet, to have the animal sterilized, before releasing them back on the streets. Of course there were some animals that she couldn't bear to return, and they ended up living with her! Most children at this age would be either too busy playing with friends or on computer games, but Lynda knew her purpose in life. Some adults might not even know enough about sterilization, let alone a ten year old.

She continued sterilizing street cats and dogs with her own savings till she was in her late twenties, when she heard of Noah's Ark and realized that she and the society had been doing rather similar work. In the late 90s, she visited Noah's Ark (then located at Jalan Kayu, Singapore) although her visits were not regular. Throughout these years, Lynda had many pets, mostly given up by friends or rescued from the streets.

When Noah's Ark moved to JB, Malaysia, Lynda lost touch with them and it was only after some years that she found out where they had moved to and asked a friend to show her the exact location. That visit in 2002 was the start of Lynda's commitment and dedication to Noah's Ark and its animals. She realized that they needed funds to maintain and upkeep the animals, so Lynda used her own money, bought merchandise and sold them at events to raise funds for Noah's Ark. It was an uphill climb when she first started volunteering as most Singaporeans, like herself, had no idea where Noah's Ark had moved to in Johor so Lynda spent a lot of time, money and efforts creating an awareness again. She spent her own money printing name cards, buying merchandise etc all for the benefit of the animals.

Lynda started as a Volunteer in March 2002 and she became the Vice President of Noah's Ark CARES from June 2005 to April 2010 and those eight years saw her commitment, passion and dedication to the animals. She often slaved till the wee hours of the morning, especially before an event - designing new merchandise, ensuring the merchandise would be ready for sale at the event, getting volunteers, banners, promotional flyers - it was mostly a one-woman show for most part of the eight years. Lynda also took the initiative to design and sell Noah's Ark calendars which has now become an annual affair, launched a book and video in 2009 in tribute of the founder, Raymund Wee, and ensure that the Noah's Ark's blog kept readers, friends and supporters abreast of its events and rescue work. In July 2009, Lynda organized Noah's Ark's inaugural fund raising dinner and the evening was a sell-out.

Apart from organizing events, Lynda also utilized her annual leave to give school talks to children from Primary schools, right through to Junior College, and even office lunch time talks as she truly wanted to share the work of Noah's Ark, as well as educate the young generation on sterilization, respecting their pets and not abandoning them.

As if she didn't have enough on her plate, apart from holding a regular full time job, Lynda would also spend her nights checking on foster dogs, interviewing prospective owners keen on adopting dogs, conducting house checks, follow up visits on adopted dogs, attending meetings with organizations who were keen to organize events or partner Noah's Ark in events, as well as going into industrial estates to catch female dogs for sterilization. Sometimes she would come across injured dogs and she would rescue them and take them to the Vet. Often her days would not end till after midnight. Its amazing that her passion drives her to do such wonderful things for the animals.

Lynda believes that pets make good companion animals, especially for the elderly and often when she came across an abandoned pet, she would take them home to foster, nurse them back to health, and then find a new home for the animal. Sometimes she would meet elderly people living on their own, who would truly benefit from having a companion animal. Lynda would give them the dog, buy all the food bowls and necessities and provide them with dog food supply and help pay the pet's vet bills, all from her own pocket. She also does regular visits to ensure both the elderly person and the pet are doing fine. There seems no limit to her kindness and compassion.

It has always been her belief to adopt dogs above 5 years old, because they have a slimmer chance of being adopted and she always believes in giving them a second chance in life, even if they don't have many years with her. Her present brood of dogs consists of the old, deaf, blind and three-legged. Lynda feels that even if they only had a few months with her, they would have at least known what love and happiness meant.

In 2009, Lynda went to Hong Kong to attend workshops on Animal Communication (website: http://rosina.wordpress.com/)  and animal healing and armed with new knowledge, she continues to enjoy her work with animals. With animal communication, Lynda is here to help pets and owners to solve emotional / behavioural issues.

Often animals "misbehave" because they want to bring your attention to something but they just dont know how. Sometimes also, the animals take on the stress of the family or its owners. Lynda is also able help sick pets who are in pain or discomfort by comforting them. This does not mean that your pet does not need to visit the Vet. Visiting the Vet is always topmost on the list but healing and positive energy can sometimes help alleviate the pain that the pet feels.

In March 2010, Lynda was nominated and in the top 5 running for the Singapore's Woman Award. Although she did not win the award, it was a milestone as it was the first time that someone from an animal welfare was recognized for her work.

Many volunteers, friends and supporters have been inspired by Lynda's work and we thank her for her years of unfailing passion, dedication and commitment to the animals, always believing that she is their voice. She has touched many lives, humans and animals alike, and they'll always be grateful to her for crossing their paths. I know I am.

Source: TODAY, 25 March 2010

Source: TODAY, 26 March 2010