Little Rose: "I Want to Live"

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to fight for your life, just to live on for the ones you love?

This is Little Rose’s story; she loves, she fights – but she needs our help to stay alive.

Little Rose was rescued some time ago when she was found with a crushed paw. Imagine the amount of pain she had to endure as a young dog – living on the streets and fighting for food with a hind paw that was crushed beyond repair. To reduce the risks of infections or future complications, veterinarians had no choice but to amputate Little Rose’s entire hind leg. Fortunately, this brave lad recovered well and has been living safely in a shelter.

However, Little Rose and the other dogs’ stay at the shelter were cut short when the owner could not afford the upkeep of the place. Ten of the dogs had come to live with our dogs at Zeus Residence, while three others (including Little Rose) were moved to a neighbouring shelter. Had volunteers not relocated Little Rose, she would have been sent to be euthanized.  On the death roll is no place for a young and sweet dog like Little Rose. She deserved a second chance and her wish came true.

All was well, till about two weeks ago – volunteers heard that Little Rose had not been eating well and decided to check on her. As we entered the kennel, we knew immediately that something was not right. Little Rose was quiet and inactive; a huge contrast from her usual self. Upon approaching her, we were horrified with what we saw.

A huge puncture wound was seen on her side and pus was oozing out. This was a sign of an infection and she needed medical attention straightaway. Volunteers immediately took her to the vet; her eyes were downcast and terrified.  Tia, a volunteer, communicated with Little Rose via Animal Communication and uncovered that Little Rose had been attacked by two other dogs from the same kennel.

Upon arrival, the vet checked Little Rose for other wounds that she might have sustained. To our utter disbelief, this poor dog had another three bite marks on her stomach – one of which was the size of a 50-cent coin!  For a better look at the wounds, the vet technician had to shave off the fur from the site. Poor Little Rose cringed in excruciating pain as her wounds were examined and flushed with saline solution. The puncture wounds were so infected and raw that it hurt us to just look at this dog’s skinny frame – not to mention her eyes that portrayed fear and insecurity, speaking so much of the pain she had to endure.

The vet advised against stitching up Little Rose’s wounds because after performing some tests, it was found that she had not one, but TWO strains of the tick fever virus! Should she undergo an operation to stitch her wounds up, her heart may not be able to withstand general anaesthesia required for the procedure. This meant that Little Rose had to recover own her own in the most sterile environment possible.

That being said, Little Rose was then scheduled to be hospitalised for a short period, during which she was given medical treatment for her wounds and tick fever. Due to the increasing amount of vet bills, a foster took Little Rose home five days later and has been taking care of her. Though Little Rose has been steadily recovering and her wounds are healing well, she is still not out of the woods and her life is still on the line due to the two strains of tick fever. Her blood test results have reflected that she is anaemic and her white blood count has escalated. She is due for another health check soon to ensure that her blood count has not dropped further and her blood work has returned to a more normal level.

Besides paying for the medical expenses of little Rose, we are also housing ten of Little Rose’s shelter mates . Although our expenses have increased significantly, so have our joy – the joy of knowing that we have prevented them from having their lives cut short as a result of lack of funding. The joy of seeing their grateful faces, their doleful gazes and spring in their steps knowing they have been given a second chance to live.

It is an uphill task to keep Zeus Residence going, to provide a shelter for those who are homeless (at the last count, we have 43 furry residents) and medical attention for the injured and sick, like Little Rose.

You can help by:

1. Volunteering with us - any form of help from bathing the dogs, walking them, transporting them to the vet or to their new homes or just simply being there to pat and give them a hug.
2. Fostering an injured dog such as Little Rose.  Providing a clean and safe environment for them to recover fully.
3. Sponsoring of Dog Food dry and can food (Nature's Gift) for our 43 furry residents as well as the factory dogs that we feed from PET HQ at 6265 8510 (Peggy).
4. Contribution of any amount to defray the boarding cost at Zeus Residence. Cheque to be written to Ericsson Pet Farm Pte Ltd
5. Contribution of any amount to defray the cost of medical bills of injured and sick animals. Our bill at Mt Pleasant has snowballed as a result of our many rescue efforts such as that of paying for Little Rose’s medical bill. Cheques to be written: Mount Pleasant Animal Medical Centre (Bedok) Pte Ltd.

Please mail your cheques to: 8 Raffles Avenue #02-04 The Esplanade, Singapore 039802. 

Thank you for being the person who makes a difference to the often forgotten ones.

Fosterers – The Unsung Heroes

Baxter was fostered and nursed by Irene.

Being offered a foster place means everything to our dogs; a second chance in life. Without fosterers, we would not be able to help as many dogs as we do.

No matter how many animal shelters there are, there will always be times when they’ve reached saturation points and dogs have to be turned away. This is where an animal fosterer plays a critical role. Fosterers save lives by allowing many others to be helped and fostered dogs generally get adopted faster into their permanent homes.

Who they are
Fosterers are people who temporarily provide a safe and caring environment in their own home until a permanent home is found, helping them make the transition from their current predicament (of abandonment by their previous owner, a stray recovering from a horrific injury, or one that has just escaped the jaws of death, rescued from being put to sleep) to a new adoptive family. It’s a tremendously fulfilling position to be in, knowing that you’ve helped these animals through a difficult period of their lives and transforming them into socialised adoptable dogs, ensuring greater success in rehoming them.

What fostering involves
There are different roles for different types of fosterers. Besides providing a safe and loving environment to the fostered animal, a fosterer might be called upon to:

A) Monitor the temperament of the animal
B) Nurse them back to health
C) Provide basic training

A) Monitoring
Like us, dogs too have their own unique nature and characteristics. This knowledge helps us to match our dog to the right home and would allow them to integrate quickly into their new permanent homes.

Fosterers provide invaluable information about our rescued dogs, such as acceptance of visitors, whether they are friendly with children and other dogs, their behaviour when left alone, whether they drag on the leash, etc.

Nursing a 3 week old kitten, one needs to bottle
feed it every 2 to 3 hours and help it to urine and poo.

B) Nursing
Many a time, we have had dogs come to us in very poor condition, e.g. Malnourished, skin problems, infected eyes etc. These conditions are better managed in a home environment. Other times, stray kittens or puppies are rescued and they need to be fed regularly for a period of time.

Others may be ill and need to be given medication at certain times of the day or perhaps be bathed with vet prescribed shampoos periodically, and have to be brought to the vet if unwell. Fosterers provide such vital care to these animals.

Once back to health, the chances of them being rehomed will increase many-fold.

Kaelyn our youngest volunteer
walking Tiger at the Park

C) Training
It is easier to adopt out a toilet trained dog with good manners to good, prospective homes.

Every dog wants to be loved, well taken care of, and protected by their owners. But first, the dogs have to be trained and they are taught basic commands such as ‘Sit’ and ‘Stay’ etc. Training these dogs and makes it easier for the adopters to handle the dog in future.

In addition, the fosterer helps these dogs get used to living in a proper home and around humans, making it easier for dogs to adapt when they find themselves in their permanent homes.

The fulfilment
The fulfilment of dog fostering is immeasurable. Yes, it hurts when you’ve bonded with the dog and it has to leave for its permanent home and yes, it does take up time, effort, dedication and genuine care, so it’s not a job for everyone. But the sense of purpose and fulfilment you receive knowing that you have made a huge difference by helping one more dog find its way into a happy home where it will be loved and cared for makes it all worthwhile.

If you would like to join the ranks of being a foster parent and help give our furry friends a second chance in life, email us at dogstalk@starhub.net.sg.