General Chat

I've got a couple - can I dump them here?




(change the title and you might generate even more support)

Lou,
As usual you say it as it is. I love all animals but especially dogs. I had a rescue dog from Wood Green Animal Shelter and he was such a wonderful companion. He loved the car, the children and life. He was with me for 6 years and I miss him dreadfully.For personal reasons I can't have a dog just now but when things improve the first thing I'll do
is look for another rescue dog.

When my son was at Leeds Uni I used to pass a Dogs Trust on my way off of the motorway towards the Seacroft area? It was out in the country. My other son kept begging me to stop but I knew that if I did it wouldn't stop at one!


Viv

My last dog was a rescue and she was wonderful.

Two of my 3 cats are rescues too.

I would recommend Lurchers for people with children - they are such gentle, laid back dogs. A great rescue place for them is based in Yorkshire - http://www.lurcher.org/kaye/LurcherLinkwebpages/Lurcherlinkfrontpage.html

I have been looking for a lurcher for a while now but on Sunday a friend is bringing round a retired greyhound! I hope we like each other.

Bev I cant answer your Q but my rescues are always those that are the hardest to rehome - they have social or medical problems.

But for all there faults likeyou say you would fight for them. Mine take a long time to to learn to trust let alone love - but when they do - I find it so rewarding and love them to bis. All my animals are insured and thats a topic for another night but I have not had a problem insuring any of them and pay less in insurance per year than I claim for some.

But see see them learn to trust and if your lucky learn to love what greater gift can their be?

i have a gsd pup who is 9mths old. we bought her in good faith when she was 8wks old. well, it turned out that she had the hips of a 9yr old at 5mths!!! i could wring the womans neck who we bought her from, she is a complete lunatic, pee's at the smell of a visitor, will not walk without a gentle leader etc, but i would fight anyone to the death to give her up!! the thing that bugs me is that there were 14 pups in the litter she came from, and the vet said that all the puppies would have been affected with bad hips, not just her, so how does the breeder live with herself? thats what i'd like to know
happy xmas
bev.x

Lou I see what you are saying - we always take food to our local shelter at Xmas and if we are at home arrange to bring food (Xmas dinner on a plate) to our local emergancy vet on Xmas day (Its two roads away).

But another poster made an important point about toys we hadnt considered - so instead of food this year we have bought toys to ditribute to the two local animal charities we support.

Lou,

good luck in all you do for these animals.
I rescued a dog from Battersea, she was 8 years old and no one wanted her as she was soo old, she had been there 4 months, so of course she came home with us. She was a lovely old lady and she stayed with us for 9 yrs, she is still in our hearts, in fact I have tears in my eyes now just thinking of her. Loving and faithful until the end bless her.
It breaks my heart out here as there are far too many dogs dumped, left to roam the streets, abused etc and it is not just the Spanish, but the Brits too (not being racist here, stating facts). I have a cat now, my little Honey, who's Mum was a stray and I inherited one of the litter. I would like to give a dog a home however we do not have a fence around our property and we fly back and forward to the Uk every 6 weeks so its not fair on a dog, cats are more independent - and Honey's second home is with my neighbour anyway (who has the Mum).

Support neutering programmes if you can, which helps reduce the amount of unwanted strays.

Lesley in Spain x

You're so right Maddie, it's hard to say no - but often the right thing to do..
We are fuller here than we should be and it's come to the point where it just isn't possible for us to take more in - It really upsets me, but i just wouldn't have enough hours in the day for them all to have the proper care they need...
The only thing i can do now to help is find other suitable homes when people bring their 'unwanted pets' to me, although even that is becomming difficult as i'm filling friends homes up quickly too, lol...

I think offering our support to animal charities especially at this time of year makes a massive difference, no matter how small the gift you donate...

Thankyou to all who have added to this thread and all those who feel the same as i about animals - wish the world was full of people like us...

LOU XXXXXXXXxxxxxxxxxx
(Almost went for a group hug but i'll refrain, PMSL)

I would love more too, but with 5 cats, all rescue ones, 3 of them males, and we have a wee problem with all 3 at times (one of them is a bit of a grump).
I don't think he, for one, would accept any more. And that's beside the financial side of things.
Oops, rambling on now ............ who's next?
x
Chris - love it!

Brian - once a thief always a thief - ours is 15 yrs old and still at it at any opportunity - I do get cross as he gets lots of goodies and OH always leaves him something of whatever he eats. Ours was found in the street with mother and 6 other siblings aged 4 wks so son always has reckoned theft is in his genes!! Our other dogs have been good with the exception of one Christmas when our dau. on Christmas Day was allowed to have some chocs from the tree. Was she disappointed - every one was hanging from the branch, tinfoil shape intact and EMPTY! One large Newfoundland had got the lot but he had done it so daintily!

Lou - I would so love to take on more - but one of my rescues has such problems that the one sibling we rescued last Nov she has only just started to tolorate and accept - anymore would be too much for her.

OH and I would have a houseful, but we know their welfare comes before our own and although the youngest wouldnt bat an eyelid at more compnay out eldest wouldnt cope.

We feel so much at this time of year for those deserted its just not right. But it would also not be right for our eldest - she has had such a heard time adjusting to another and is doing well - another would tip her over the edge :(

kEEP UP THE GOOD WORK lOU, YOU ARE BRILL,


cAZ XXXX

my kitty "stray"

has her own kitty advent calender huby thinks im mad lol

I get so angry at this issue, and at times like this am ashamed to be human.
I have to confess it's now one of the reasons I don't like Christmas anymore! :-((((((
x

Maddy...does she have an advent callender?
A friend of mine's dog has one, dog chocolate of course.

Marion

My little dog is a rescue one and if my health was better I would love another,she gets her christmas pressies and she sends cards to family.After all she is family too.

Maddyxxx

Thats nice :))

Heres a poem that was in our local rspca news letter:
By Darryl Ashton,
Puppy Love For Flora

I'm shut behind this stair gate
And I'm only six months old
My owner says I pee and chew
And don't do what I'm told

I try to be a good dog
like the greyhound in the hall
But Blosson's ten and sleeps a lot
And that's no fun at all

I'd like to be the other side
Don't want to be alone
But chewing everything in sight
Is more fun than a bone?

I'll have to try much harder
To do the things I should
Then I might hear the magic words
"Oh Flora! You are good "

Regarding rescue versus going to a breeder, remember that most pedigree breeds have a rescue organisation - that's where we got ours from and he was a rare breed so I'm sure most breeds will have dogs needing homes.

Many Tears is one of my Favourite rescues!!!
(I have a link to them from my site!)

i did want to say - now i've thawed out and am less grumpy, that it's not just dogs at this time of year - it's alsorts of animals being dumped....!

I'm going to nudge up that animal thread (think it was Cris?) Please help if you are able - to make a donation to an animal charity near you (old bedding would do!) anything you can afford....xxx

LOU XXXXXXXxxxxxxx

ps. Joy - if you don't eat those chocs soon i'll be driving down to help you ;-)))