The Zeus Times - April 2012

Dear Friends of Zeus

Three months have passed and we will be celebrating Easter this Sunday. 

Time really files when you are focused in the rescue of dogs that need your help.  Together with the volunteers, we have put our positive energy to rescue and help these dogs within our abilities and resources. 

We at Zeus Comm. are very grateful to the team of volunteers who have dedicated their time and effort to help on this on-going cause.  Without the generosity and care from our supporters and sponsors, we would not have been able to continue our work in rescuing and rehoming of abandoned, abused and breeding dogs.  

Volunteers

We have also been attracting and recruiting young volunteers from CHIJ St. Nicholas Girls School (Secondary), Methodist Girls School, Singapore Chinese Girls School and Coral Secondary School to name a few. 

When these 15 yr old volunteers first arrived at the shelter, they were overwhelmed with fear as they never expected to see so many dogs roaming free – most of the volunteers are non dog owners and we are so touched to see our youths having so much love to give to the animals. 

We must thank Rover and Rosie, a pair of rescued Golden Retriever for giving them confidence to work with the other dogs.  Please visit students' experiences to find out more about their work with the dogs.

Rosina with Kiki a rescued Chihuahua.

Animal Communicator

We are very excited that our Animal Communicator, Rosina Arquati was in town since Friday, 23 March to teach animal communication to our participants. This will be her fourth year in Singapore teaching animal communication.

Lunch with Your Dogs on Friday, 6 April

We are also hosting Zeus Doggy Lunch for your dogs to meet Rosina on Friday, 6 April from 12:30pm to 2:30pm – if you have not signed up, you may register with us at dogstalk@starhub.net.sg  Please visit doggy lunch for more details.  The funds raised from the luncheon will go towards the upkeep of the 45 dogs at Zeus Residence.

After Rosina’s visit in Singapore, she will be going to Penang to share with our animal loving friends about Animal Communication – the event is organized by SPCA Penang.  If you have friends in Penang and they want to know what Animal Communication is all about, please inform them to attend the tea party on Saturday, 7 April at 3pm at Tenby School, 3 Lintang Lembah Permail, Tanjung Bungah.

Dog Whisperer Free Pet Shop by National Geographic Channel

We would like to thank all dog lovers for informing their friends and for visiting the Dog Whisperer Free Pet Shop by National Geographic Channel.  With your support, many dogs from Noah’s Ark CARES, Animal Lovers League, Action for Singapore Dogs, Gentle Paws and Zeus Comm. have found their forever homes. 

Noah’s Ark CARES has kindly allowed our dogs from Zeus to be part of the event.  We are so happy to inform you that 14 dogs have found home through the awareness raised by National Geographic Channel.  During the event the team of volunteers helped to educate and raise awareness to potential dog owners to adopt instead of buying.

We are very pleased to see more people being aware of the importance of adopting vs buying especially after the publicity of the Pasir Ris Breeding Farm in April 2010.  People are more compassionate when they understand what goes on behind these breeding farms and the abuse and neglect by the breeders to these poor dogs that live in small cages in the worst environment possible.  These dogs are eventually abandoned or put down once they are of no value to the breeders.

We are very thankful and grateful to their owners for giving the dogs a second chance and for opening up their hearts and homes for them.

Rescued

During the Chinese New Year weekend, we received a call from a security guard in Tuas informing us that a dog (Blackie) was attacked and badly injured. 

It was dark, at first we thought that Blackie was abused by humans and as we look closer at his wounds Blackie was attacked by a pack of stray dogs.  He had several punctured wounds on his face and almost lost his eye. 

It took us about an hour to catch Blackie in order to bring him to the vet for treatment.  He struggled when we managed to loop the leash round his neck and he almost chewed the leash off.  Arther quickly covered Blackie’s face with a bath towel in order to carry him into the van. 

When we arrived at the vet, we were faced with the challenge of getting him out of the van and ensuring that he did not escape.  Surprisingly he was well behaved when we put the leash around him and Arther carried him into the hospital.

Blackie was very frightened like most dogs are at the vet. The vet had to sedate him so that we could do the necessary tests to ensure that his bones were not fractured, because he was not able to put his hind down.  We were worried that he might be hit by a car, to be save we did an x-ray on his hind legs.

After being at the vet for about 2 hours, we were elated when the vet informed us he was not in danger – all he needed was a good rest and his wounds cleaned regularly.  Blackie’s wound healed in a week!

When Blackie was healed, he told us he wanted to stay at Zeus Residence and didn’t want to go back to the streets.  If you would like to sponsor Blackie’s stay at Zeus Residence, please write into dogstalk@starhub.net.sg

Thank you.



Vicky The Shih Tzu

More often than not, we cross paths with irresponsible pet owners who claim to love their pets but neglect them. Or love them for a while then that love dies when they find new interests in life.

I recently found out about an 8 year old Shih Tzu, Vicky, through a friend. Vicky's owner has a full-time job and the poor dog was often caged up at home for long hours while she was at work, losing most of her paper-training concepts. The friend who contacted me knew about Vicky's situation of being locked up for long periods and tried persuading the owner to put the dog up for adoption. The owner could not bear to give Vicky up and promised to re-train her, love her and bring her for her due vaccinations, sterilization and necessary medical assessments.

One year later, still nothing was done. The owner was way too busy with work to care about poor little Vicky. During her frequent trips overseas, Vicky would be left alone at home, caged up with just a huge bowl of food and water. Did the owner expect a dog to know how to ration her food and water intake for a week??

Vicky's cleanliness, hygiene and health were neglected to a great extent. When my friend contacted me to help the owner, Vicky already had skin and ear infections. I talked to the owner and she decided that she couldn't handle the responsibilities of owning Vicky. The owner felt that Vicky was already 8 years old and an old dog could never be taught new tricks – and in this instance, could not re-learn her paper-training and basic commands. The owner also admitted that a dog that is caged and neglected is a "poor thing" and finally gave up ownership and thus, ending Vicky’s suffering.

Look at Vicky now!

Vicky was fostered by a kind family and has been through thorough health checks. Besides being on medication for her skin and ear infections, Vicky has been given an excellent bill of health.

We are pleased to let you know that Vicky has seen found her forever home and we are so happy for her new family has accepted her after what she has gone through.c.

Why keep a pet when you’re not going to care for it?

Don’t leave your furry friends in the lurch.

Pets are like children, they need accompaniment, trust and most importantly, loving care.

Contributed by Ruo Hui

Good Golly, Ms Molly

Molly has an irresistible, magical quality that shines to show she’s the happiest doggie you’ve ever met. She’s got smiling eyes, a warm, fun-loving personality that wins you over within seconds of first meeting her.

Molly has a secret though: a dark, painful secret that she doesn’t talk about these days. To her, every day is a blessing and she gives great joy when I wake up to see her face in the mornings.

When I first heard of Molly, she had just been rescued JRT from a breeding farm. Although I was glad she was safe, I thought nothing more of it initially. 

However, when I met her the next day, something changed. There was something I saw in her eyes. They somehow gave a glimpse of her hopes and promises. There wasn’t the slightest hint of her past hardship, no trace in her eyes of the pain she had endured. If there was one clear indication, it was that she was not giving up on love and companionship.

See the glitter in her eyes!

It was only a matter of time that I found out about Molly’s dark, painful secret: she had a fractured hip, bones and a completely broken leg. No one knows for sure how she came to suffer these painful injuries. Adding to this, she was an expectant Mum when she was brought in. Being in such a state, the Vet recommended an emergency abortion.

Till this day, I still cannot put the precise moment or the exact emotion when she touched me, drawing me close to her for some strange reason. I have two dogs and pups but yet there was a compelling sense to help her.

Molly at the vet - looking as cheery as ever!

Molly's seven broken bones!

Next scene: She arrived at my home after her discharge, much to my delight. In the beginning, even though I wanted to reach out and hold her, I was afraid I would hurt her fragile condition. She came to my home, after having had an abortion, re-stitched and her leg, still broken. 

Although told she was not in pain, I was still very apprehensive. I must admit, it took me a quite a while to work up the courage to pick her and hold her. Now, I just can’t hold her enough. Over the days, she has built up her strength and confidence and races around her room freely. Molly is a free-spirit again, having found warmth and love, and giving back just as much, if not more.

Nowadays, she can easily draw a chuckle from me when I least expect. She reminds me of the cartoon “Road Runner“, when she zips around on her three legs. I call her my Comet.  She is not shy and lets my other dogs and pups know she is in charge. She is mellowing a little now, as she nurtures a special bond with one of our pups, Matthew. They play like kids do, and when Matt gets too rough, she walks away. Just like some classy great ole’ dame, she gets grumpy when she is tired. 

This is when she wants her quiet time. When tucked in for the night, she reaches for her prized possession, her towel. At sleep, she always looks peaceful and contented, like a little angel.

Isn't that a cheeky smile?

Molly has taught me one great lesson, without saying a word – the true meaning of second chances. Even after all she’s been through at some others’ hands, she has kept faith in being utterly trusting, forgiving and loving. Molly has added a new emotional dimension to my life and I’m glad she’s part of the family – she’s got the best bet for a place in the sun in my home…. 

Written by Susan Dhanwant, Molly's new mommy

We would like to thank Susan for generously sponsoring the printing of the shirts. 

Update On Jill and Molly (Rescued Breeding Dogs)

We recently brought Molly and Jill back to the vet’s, and Molly saw Dr. Simon Quek, a bone specialist, for a second opinion to check if an amputation of her right hind leg is really necessary. The previous vet had said that Molly’s leg was broken in 3 places, but Dr Quek confirms that it was SEVEN instead! Our jaws just dropped when we heard that. It is very likely that she was hit by a car and has been living in pain for many months, as the injury seems to be very old. However, Molly has learnt to live with the pain and her body has grown numb to it. She even runs pretty fast using 3 legs. 

It was decided that amputation of her right hind leg will no longer be necessary since she seems to be coping well. What Molly’s owner needs to look out for now is pain, or if her knee bones start to jut out of her skin, as the bone has entirely snapped into 2 pieces and there is no union of the bones anymore. Our volunteers and Molly’s owner were extremely elated that Molly is able to keep her leg.

Molly enjoying her ice-cream as celebration of the awesome news!

Susan, the angel in Molly's life

As for Jill, she took another blood test at the vet, where 3 weeks ago she received a blood transfusion from Jewel. The blood test results this time showed that Jill’s blood count is almost normal and her life is no longer at risk. The blood test also revealed another miracle; Dr Quek said that he does not think that she has kidney failure although the initial results showed that she had. The only explanation we have for the initial diagnosis of kidney failure is that when we first rescued Jill, she was very ill, under nourished and probably had been ill for a long time as well. 

Jill having her vanilla ice-cream

Jill looking so much better!

Jill also had a poor diet, which led to malnutrition, therefore her kidney results were very bad. We are also now convinced that it is also unlikely that Jill has kidney failure at all as she was not displaying any symptoms of constant thirst. Patients with kidney failure drink water non-stop, but Jill does not.


It was a great day as not only did we receive simply good news, they were TWO miraculous pieces of good news! We decided to give both doggies a treat and took them out for some vanilla ice-cream after their visit to the vet. They were pleasantly surprised, licking and slurping up their ice-cream happily.


As you know, Jill has not been adopted yet; she is still waiting for a permanent home and the tender loving care she needs. The common concern was that she “won’t live very long”, but after reading this, most people will know that Jill is not going to depart anytime soon. Won’t you consider supporting her? If you are unable to adopt Jill, you can help out by sharing her story with friends and relatives.


Written by Natalie Chew

Zeus Advocates Better Breeding Standards‏

Dear Friends,

Some of us have registered to attend the conference organized by ACRES.

Volunteers of Zeus Communications and fellow animal lovers plan to go together as a team to stand up for the animals. There is strength in numbers, we believe.

We are the animals’ voices; lets speak out for them! 

Our objective is to set better, more humane breeding standards for the animals.

To go as a team, we would like our friends and fellow animal lovers to wear this t-shirt to advocate our message at the forum. 

Front

Back

Should you wish to purchase a shirt, regardless of whether or not you're attending the conference, it is sold at $15 each. Please email us your shirt size mailto:dogs_ink@singnet.com.sg%C2%A0 by June 9 and you can do a fund transfer for the shirt payment. We hope you will buy a t-shirt and wear this to the forum, to support our work and our stance against puppy mills and breeding farms.

Email us with the following details please :
Shirt size
Mailing address (to post the shirt to you)

If you are planning to attend the conference, please register directly with ACRES and we hope to see you there! 

Details of the conference from ACRES as follows:

Be Engaged - Help Shape Animal Welfare Policies in Singapore

Dear Animal Lovers, this might be something you want to attend, just to
hear what they have to say.
 
Be Engaged - Help Shape Animal Welfare Policies in Singapore
Over the years, there has been much concern about animal welfare
issues in Singapore. There has been an increasing media coverage on
these issues and member of the public have voiced their concerns
through emails to AVA, on newspaper forums, blogs and on facebook.
 
Organised by ACRES in collaboration with Chong Pang grassroots and
with the support of Minister K Shanmugam, SPCA would like to invite
you to the first-ever Public Forum on Animal Welfare Policies giving
you the opportunity to be engaged, to voice your concerns and help
shape animal welfare policies in Singapore.
 
EVENT DETAILS 
Date : 18th June 2011 (Saturday)
Time : 2.00pm - 5.00pm
Venue : Chong Pang Community Club Hall (21 Yishun Ring Road, Singapore 768677)

http://www.street-directory.com/singpost/singpost.cgi?postalcode=768677

Please RSVP by sending an email with your name and age to
 publicfeedback@acres.org.sg
 
We hope to see you there!

Life As A Stray

Strays . . . .some people are repelled by the word.

Why feed them? Isn't it tiring? They are dirty, a nuisance and they carry germs, diseases...  Why care for them? They are just strays.  Yes, they are just strays and we love and care for them tremendously because we have the capacity to give them food, love and happiness.


Perhaps not to the full extent of those words, but enough to check on our regular brood, to feed them at least once a week and to ensure they are well and unhurt.

A sweet old furry stray, waiting for someone to come along and feed her. Better yet, take her home.

Do they really belong on the streets?

Barely past a month old and not knowing where his next meal will be coming from

Despite the sometimes unspeakable pain we feel when we see them in accidents, abused and suffering, they make our lives whole. Complete. They teach us about life, courage, endurance, loyalty, strength, perseverance and even joy and laughter. They inspire us. They bring smiles to our faces when we see them race to us, as fast as their little legs can carry them; pouncing on us as if we were their masters.

A life of aimless wandering

Pregnant, nowhere to go and no hope in sight

A stray pup scavenging for food

Survival of the fiercest

Thin, fearful and scar-ridden

A painful and pitiful sight. She would not allow us to approach her.

These “just strays” have taught us very important lessons in life; faith and forgiveness.  They live in the present and they get on with life, unlike us who dwell on our past with “what ifs” and what could have been.

Trust

Leader of the pack

It is an amazing journey we have chosen to fulfill in this life. If you are ever feeling down and needing someone to lift your broken spirits, go feed a stray. You will immediately feel your spirits uplifted and appreciate what you have in life because these “just strays”, despite having nothing to live for in their lives, are able to find peace and contentment.

How long are we going to go on doing this? For as long as we can. For as long as YOU care.

There is nothing more rewarding than saving a life.  Our wallets are always empty but our hearts are always full. Our work is never done. We make a difference everyday.

We would like to thank the students of St Anthony's Canossian Secondary School, their principal, Ms Melanie Martens, teacher Ms Chia Sui Yoon and the following students for making the video specially for Zeus Communications and helping us highlight the plight of the strays and the love we have for them.

Juliana Chia

Janine Loi

Lim Yu Ning

Cherie Zheng

Written by Fiona

Boy Adopts Pedigree Dogs, Then Sells Them (Straits Times, 26 May 2011)

Pet owners, please beware when you give your dog up for rehoming, or when you are looking for a foster. If it's not a friend of yours nor a recommendation, please be careful; do your own due diligence. One careless move and your dog might fall into the wrong hands.

If you have bought a dog from this young Indian boy, S, please email us: dogs_ink@singnet.com.sg

Polling Day

For a better future – Venus votes for Zeus 

Venus, rescued and brought back to beauty

For better living – we are better at upgrading. 

Duke votes for Zeus

 Duke, from pavement to carpet

For better medical care – Tiger votes for Zeus

Tiger has yet to be adopted. He can no longer live on the streets and Zeus Communications rents kennel space for Tiger. He looks forward to his weekly visits from young Kaelyn and other volunteers

For better comfort – Marcus votes for Zeus

Marcus, his eye could not be saved

For better support – Lady Dawn votes for Zeus

Lady Dawn

For weekend car rides - Little Joe votes for Zeus

Little Joe, from living under a container to high-rise (factory) living

For better food – Vote for Zeus

We thank everyone who has donated food to the factory animals

The street animals vote for Zeus!

We would like to thank all the street animals we have worked with, for inspiring us to do more for them.

This is a prayer for all the street animals: The Prayer by Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli

Written by Fiona. (No Fun Intended!)

Third Time Lucky?

Why does my heart ache so? Am I so unlovable? Why don’t they want me? Is it because I'm no longer cute… energetic… young? I miss my human family so much, but I knew it was time to go away. I had become a burden to them and they didn't want me around anymore.  I remember that day when I slipped out of my home unnoticed; it was the most difficult decision in my life, the hardest thing for me to do. But I loved them and I wanted them to be happy.  

A kind family saw me wandering the streets and took me home for fear that I’d be knocked down by the passing traffic.  For a while I was happy and felt secure. But my kind guardian soon left to go overseas.  Her parents didn't know what to do with me. And their new helper didn’t like me. Once more, I had become a burden to my new family, and they wanted me out of their home. Is it me? Why? If nobody else would take me in, I was going to be sent away to be ‘put to sleep’.  I know I'm getting old, but I feel it’s not my time to die…not yet. I still have so much love to give. If only somebody would give me a chance. They say, third time lucky – I hope I’ll be lucky to find somebody who will love and want me for who I am.

This is the moment for Goldie, make it happen!

If you are that somebody, please email meltwn@hotmail.com. As Goldie is approximately 10 years old, Zeus will take her for a complete health check before you adopt her. This would include a complete blood count, liver and kidney check, vaccination and microchip.

Written by Michelle Lazar