Finally a forever home for two boisterous brothers!

Hello hello,

It's a sad fact that from time to time animals end up back at the IAR centre here in Goa for reasons that are beyond everyone's control. Ronnie and Reggie are two such animals. They are brothers and came back to us at about five months old, when the lady who adopted them as young pups became disabled and was no longer able to care for this lively young pair.

This put the young dogs into a category known as 're-homers' - not good news for many animals. If a dog or cat has been a household pet, he or she cannot then go to live in a feral environment, so if another home can't be found there's no long term place for them to go. And as large, feisty, half grown pups Ron and Reg were not the kind of pets that people usually adopt: most come looking for cute puppies and kittens.

But back in Vagator there is a restaurant that is open year round and an animal-loving chef named Sunil works there. IAR's work controlling the dog population is massively successful in the area and consequently there are few pups around that can join a naturally depleting, non-breeding pack. Sunil found that he had far more spare food than was needed to feed the existing beach pack that he is caretaker of: so right at the time when we were all hoping for a miracle to save Reggie and Ronnie, the centre was asked to supply two healthy, sterilised, vaccinated young dogs to join the Vagator pack.

As Reggie and Ronnie had already had so much disruption in their short adolescent lives, it was agreed that a transition period would help them before they were let loose into yet another new environment. The brothers went to spend some time in an IAR-approved foster home where they could be socialised and observed to ensure they were absolutely fit and healthy and wouldn't disrupt or infect the healthy Vagator pack.

Some days later the boys were at last introduced to Sunil, the other dogs and their new home. They were confined for a while, until they associated this, yet another new place, as home. Then the brothers were released into what must be any dog's idea of heaven.

They have a wide expanse of beach to run freely on and explore, a new canine family pack headed by the alpha female Khali who was instantly accepting and protective of them. And they have food and shelter as and when they desire it provided by Sunil who in turn has the support and back up of IAR should he need help with any of the dogs.

So Reggie and Ronnie at last have a forever home, albeit not a conventional house but as members of a happy, healthy pack, with the continued care and love of a human caretaker and the IAR centre. A well-deserved happy ending for the two boisterous brothers, and I couldn't be happier for them!

Love from me,

Olive x

Raising Alexi

Hello friends,

I feel sure you'll like my latest story: recently a man presented himself at our outpatients department with a small sick bird that was in need of help. It was a poor young parrot of only a few weeks old, unable even to stand or feed itself. I saw him for myself and a sorry sight he was!

It is illegal to keep any indigenous wild animal or bird in Goa, so this baby was taken into the safe custody of the rescue centre.

The vets identified him as an Alexandrine Parakeet, not a native bird of Goa but originating from elsewhere in India where this baby was probably stolen from its mother.

His future was uncertain but the team was determined to do all they could to nurture this parrot and help him survive. He was named Alexi and all the staff, but particularly Manik and Abbey, took turns to feed and give him water at very regular intervals. Alexi soon began to grow and thrive but his appetite and social demands grew with him! He proved seriously high maintenance!

So at present he is being fostered at a safe home nearby where his needs are catered for as closely as possible to mimic the relationship he would have had in the wild with his parents. They would normally be in attendance for up to three years, the age when an Alexandrine becomes mature and independent.

After weeks of being hand fed, Alexi is now helping himself to his favourite foods, which are at present mango, guava, chillies and lightly poached dahl with peas and carrots cut into Alexi-beak sized pieces.

He just loves to be touched and likes to climb, chew, flap his growing wings and bounce and chuckle with joy at bath time.

As Alexi is not a domestic creature it would be lovely eventually to release him into the wild, but there are no others of his species here in Goa and he has become tame and domesticated as a result of having to be hand reared. So his future may be in a suitable sanctuary where he could live happily for as long as the next four decades.

One thing's for sure, he wouldn't have lasted much longer without the treatment and care of the team at the centre. I hope things continue to go well for Alexi, he's a bright little bird with a real zest for life now he's in good hands.

Bye for now!

The centre gets set for tough times ahead

Dear Friends,

The season has drawn to an end here in Goa and most of the foreign tourists have gone home. The weather is getting hotter and more humid and it takes its toll on both 2 and 4 legged creatures. All us dogs here at Animal Tracks are queuing up for the best places in the shade and if you’re not fast someone else will have taken your favourite spot. With so many centre dogs around there also tends to be a line for the water bowls so I like to nip round the front court when the plants have been watered and have a drink there... no one else likes that idea so I’m left in peace.

As always the coming of the monsoon means extra work for the staff at the centre. When most of the beach shacks and restaurants shut down along the tourist strip many dogs that have been well fed during the season are left without food and they therefore take to the villages in search for something to eat. Here they get into fights with packs of dogs already occupying the territory and sometimes they inflict terrible wounds on one another. Without proper food females become weak and unable to care for their pups and whenever possible families are brought to the centre to be cared for until the pups are old enough to be put up for adoption.

It is a pattern which repeats itself every year and luckily it is anticipated so resources are set aside to cope with the increase of starving, injured and orphan dogs during the coming months. Homes are found every day for abandoned pups which would have stood only a slim chance of making it on their own and vets are working tirelessly at sterilizing the stray dogs so the numbers don’t increase. Every so often some new members are added to our centre dog gang and we always welcome new arrivals. I just hope that one day no dog living on the street will have to worry about where the next meal is coming from.

Lots of love,

Olive x

Stella and Amelie get the Animal Tracks treatment

Hello dear friends,

Please say hello to Stella and Amelie, two patients at Animal Tracks who have been with us for a while. Poor Stella had an accident and broke her leg but luckily someone saw her hobbling around and called our number. Stella was brought in and had to undergo some really clever orthopaedic surgery to mend her broken bone. The healing process for this kind of surgery is very long so it is very important that patients who have to be with us for several weeks receive lots of special care and attention. Luckily many volunteers come to the centre to offer their company to the dogs. Those like Stella who cannot be walked are cuddled and given treats and Stella soon settled in and became very friendly with everyone. She is now almost ready to go back to Arpora where she came from and be reunited with all her friends there. Naturally, she has also been sterilised and vaccinated against rabies so her future life can be happy and trouble free.

Amelie was brought in from Candolim. She was fit and healthy…a little too fit and healthy because she was chasing and killing chickens and piglets in the village, much to the distress of the local residents! Once someone tried to catch her but she got frightened and bit the person and that was the last straw for the villagers. They called the IAR office and asked for Amelie to be removed. Situations like these are always difficult because we dogs cannot simply be moved from one area to another. Stray dogs are very territorial and will fight a newcomer to the death if necessary. Hence Amelie was brought to Animal Tracks where her temper was assessed to decide what further action was appropriate. It turns out that Amelie is actually a very sweet and active dog and without a doubt if given to the right home a perfect guard dog and playful friend. She is currently waiting for such a home to be found and in the meantime staff and volunteers make sure she gets lots of attention and stimulation. I hope to write and tell you soon that a good home has been found for her.

Bye for now!

Olive x

Update on Pinky and Perky

Hello everybody!

I thought I'd take the opportunity today to give you a brief update on our two friends Pinky and Perky who have been with us at Animal Tracks for quite some time now.

These two pigs were reared as babies by a couple living in Goa but they were forced to give them up owing to circumstances beyond their control and brought them to the centre in the hope that a new home could be found for them. Well, more than one year has passed and they are still with us and have become part of the team here. They have had their very own pen built for them where they laze about all day and visitors love popping over to say hello.

As time goes by it is going to become more and more difficult to say goodbye to Pinky and Perky and all the staff and animals here have become so attached to them that I doubt we’ll ever agree that another home is good enough! Their health is good, they are well cared for and get lots of attention from everybody and they’ve often told me how happy and lucky they feel to have ended up here as opposed to being surrendered to an unknown fate.

Lots of love,

Olive x

Fallen Fish Eagle recovers from fracture

Dear Friends,

Alongside the daily work of looking after and treating all us domestic dogs, cats and cattle, the vets at Animal Tracks frequently encounter cases involving wild animals that are in need of help. Numerous reptiles, rodents and birds pass through our gates every year and each one benefits from the special expertise of our highly qualified veterinary team.

Take this young Fish Eagle for example. He was found fallen from a tree, unable to fly because the fall had resulted in a fracture to his leg. He was brought to the centre and it was quickly assessed that orthopaedic surgery was needed. As you can imagine this was going to be a very delicate operation on such an animal! The surgery was successful and the eagle now has to recover before any attempts at releasing him are made.

Being very young the process of releasing the eagle will be gradual and carefully supervised. He needs to learn to fly again and his ability to survive in the wild has to be assessed. The Fish Eagle is a protected species in India and it is common that they use the Western coast surrounding Goa as their nesting area. If all goes well this handsome chap will make a full recovery and fly off to his natural habitat in the next couple of months.

Love from me,

Olive x

Dr Astrid gets the point after cat Mitsy swallows a needle!

Hello everyone!

After my last shocker of a story I think it's time for something a little less heartbreaking and with an instant happy ending. It is about another cat which ran into a bit of misfortune. Gosh, I'm so glad I’ve been born a dog! These cats just seem to be followed around by bad luck these days!

This cat, Mitsy, was unlucky enough to somehow manage to swallow a needle! No one knows how the needle got into her throat but luckily she was brought to the centre before it had done too much damage. Dr Astrid was on duty and she immediately took an x-ray of Mitsy's throat to assess the injury. Her initial assumption was that the needle would have to be surgically removed so she got herself ready to start the procedure.

Mitsy was sedated and before commencing the surgery Dr Astrid put her fingers inside Mitsy's throat to see if she was able to reach the needle. As she did this she actually managed to catch the needle and pull it out without causing any trauma to Mitsy's throat and Mitsy has now made a full recovery without having to have an operation. Lucky for Mitsy - that must surely have cost her one of her nine lives. Let's hope she's not as careless with the rest of them!

Bye for now!

Love Olive x