Tuesday 16 December 2008

Puppy love at Christmas

Hi there!

Well, Christmas is drawing near and as always this is a busy time for all at the centre in Assagao.

Happy puppy We have lots of volunteers who come up to walk the dogs, care for the puppies and play with us. We currently have three girls working in our puppy section making sure they are all treated for worms, fleas and ticks and to pamper them to make their stay at the centre a fun and comfortable one. They also help the people who come to adopt the puppies to make sure they pick the right puppy. The pups all have different personalities and some people want a lively and naughty one and others want a gentle and loving one.

Puppy in food bowlAll the puppies adopted from the centre are sterilised and vaccinated free of charge by IAR and they also get free treatment for a year if they fall sick. After all, we want to make sure the little ones have as good a life as possible once they leave the centre so we need to support the new owners. We also want to encourage local people to adopt a local breed dog and save a life, rather than seek out breeders who charge a bomb for a pedigree pup that will continue to cost the owner a lot of money in special care. After all, we local breed dogs are sturdy and used to the Indian climate. We're not fussy about what we eat and we rarely fall sick. We are very loyal and excellent guard dogs so there is absolutely no excuse not to pick one of us!

Kitten and puppyI feel so lucky to have been saved by the people at the centre because heaven knows what fate would have been in store for me had I not been rescued. It sends chills down my spine just thinking about it. What's worse is that I am but one of the lucky ones. Far too many pups are abandoned to fend for themselves, few of which survive, so naturally it warms all of our hearts when a puppy finds a loving home.

Oh look, the bone man just arrived! That means we all get a bone to chew but only if we get there before he runs out so I’d better run over and make sure I get mine!

Will be in touch again soon!

2 comments:

diane m. kastel said...

Who is the puppy in the top picture that is black and white with floppy ears? He is so cute! What is his or her name?

Olive said...

Hi Diane,

The puppy in the picture was brought in for adoption by a kind tourist who had noticed it roaming around abandoned at the local market. We named him Sparky because he was so active and always on the look out for mischief to commit. The volunteers loved him and used to take him out to the field to play with other puppies. He was adopted by a local family and is still, to our knowledge, doing well.

Warm regards,
Olive