Meet Rod, a true survivor

Hello everyone!

It's time for a little update from life at our rescue centre in Assagao, Goa. It has suddenly gotten very busy around here now that the tourist season has started and more people bring animals and visit the centre. We have a wonderful team of volunteers who come daily to walk all the dogs and care for the puppies and kittens. They always find time to play with me and give me a cuddle and they also bring treats so we're getting spoiled rotten up here these days!

I want you all to meet Rod who was brought to the centre in September with multiple fractures to his front and hind legs. He was in a really bad state but his caretaker had pleaded with our vets to do their best to save him. He has undergone orthopaedic surgery and had his legs pinned. He was unable to walk for so long but is recovering well and should hopefully be able to go home soon.

The astounding thing about Rod is that despite his physical and mental trauma he is still a happy and friendly dog thanks to all the care he has received from our volunteers. In the beginning he was frightened and his fear turned to aggression. He started associating people with pain because every time he saw a human being it was a vet or a nurse treating him or a kennel boy scrubbing his cage. He lacked loving attention and started growling at everyone.

Luckily a volunteer, Jan, took him under her wing and has spent countless hours pampering him and taking him out for a bit of exercise and playtime. Rod has started to love life again and he is the happiest little dog again.

It is still uncertain when Rod will be able to go back to his caretaker but hopefully it won't be too long. His pins have come out so now he just needs to build up the strength in his legs again. Until then no doubt Jan will continue to ensure that his time at the centre is the best it can be.

Things have finally picked up in the vet department again (we have been short of vets since spring and unable to find suitable replacements for the ones we lost) and we are almost back to a full team of vets. That means that the wheels have started turning faster again and more dogs get sterilised, which is great. I'm busy making sure the new vets pick me as their favourite centre dog and they already seem to love me.

All the other centre dogs are doing great although we all suffer a bit in the heat these days. Hopefully the weather will cool down soon. Moti has been treated for a urine infection which caused her to be incontinent but she's fine now.

Boris has finally settled in properly and has stopped fighting with everyone, although he still tends to throw his weight around a little too much for my liking!

I will be in touch again soon.

Lots of love