Dogs,Dogs & more Dogs

Today Karin & I teamed up again to visit some previous adoptions and take care of some other doggy matters together.

After this mornings vet trip for TvT & Sterilisations (starting out at 09:00), we visited a temple near Hang Dong where there were apparently some serious cases of TvT. None of the dogs were around when we arrived but Karin said she would follow up tomorrow. (She did, there were 3 serious cases of TvT)


Next we did a couple of follow up visits in the village near the shelter.

(Yes that is a dog in a metal bowl for a bed, next to an electricity generator for welding!!)

Aidut was the dog who previously had a problem with blood parasites and this week we are checking if he had been given his medication. Some of it was missing from the bag but about 80% of what should have been given was still there.

He was covered in red dye and the owner said the local authority vet had visited the village, giving sterilisations on the spot for 100baht. Poor Aidut showed the wound to us readily and we saw the stitch, on the scrotum, and noted it was looking unhealthy. The vet had taken the money & run. No meds, no after care. No collar to stop Aidut licking & no bandage covering the wound. Maybe their policy is to reduce numbers by sterilisation.....?! We bandaged the wound & gave him a collar for a few days. He sat in his bed for a diary photo. We hope he doesn't move about too much in his sleep!

Another doggy Bouy, living at the same home as Mee, was also not eating for a while. Turned out he had some pretty nasty gum & teeth infections & would need some antibiotics & maybe an extraction or 2.

Next we headed to Airport Plaza, returning Freeway after her sterilisation last week and gave her vaccinations too along with a few tasty snacks to welcome her home.

We met the very kind lady from the Plaza office who regularly feeds the residents of the car park. One poor guy was having problems walking on a hind leg and another had got thin & not eating. The vet said the leg problem was an old injury to the tibia and there appeared to be some ligament damage in the elbow area. He suggested anti inflammatory tablets to relieve the problem but said there was nothing more that could be done.

He said the problem with the other fella (gingjok) was not obvious but should be observed.

Next we visited a pair of previously adopted puppies and gave them their second vaccinations. They were very playful and were obviously enjoying their freedom in a new home.

We came across this poor fella wearing a big leather muzzle with the price /product lable still on it, exactly infront of the dogs eye view. Looked like Hannibal Lecter. He also had 2 big ding dong clang clang bells on his collar. That all came off, poor guy.

So back to the vet & pick up the sterilisations but enroute, we stopped off to see another serious TvT / Cancer case and took her along with us for a blood check.

We also caught up with some other dog loving people who had 2 Golden Retrievers & 2 Dalmations.

The female Dalmation Tdik, had puss coming from her vulva and it looks like Pyometra. I will take her to be sterilised & clean out the infection on Saturday.

By now its getting late, 20:00 and some folks turned up at the shelter, wanting to adopt. In the darkness ( and the smog of distant burn offs!) these 2 young people met Karin & she introduced her to some dogs and fell in love with Mom Maem and adopted him. I got home at 21:00

Friday Vet Run

Taking the trip back to the city with JJ were Mutt, ET, Kachou Daeng & Kam along with her 5 pups.

Mutt had been suffering with parasites in his blood and a chronic liver condition. The effect was that his hair had dropped out in places and lost co-ordination of his legs. Today he is having his blood tested with a result available tomorrow. But already it is clear that his liver has improved as his gums are a natural colour and his hair has grown back. At least we can now take him off his medication.

ET is suffering with a runny nose and conjunctivitis of the cornea, Kerititis, which is also termed corneal ulcer. This problem seems to affect many dogs we have cared for. For humans, having their sight affected is very distressing, imagine what it must be like for a dog, especially one that is living rough on the streets. ET was rescued from Kachou, along with Daeng, as they were seriously in danger of being poisoned.

Kachou Daeng came along for a general check up and proved to be ok.

Kam is doing her best to mother her pups. They are now a month old and the vet warned that the mother's immunity that is passed to them, generally only lasts 1 month. So watch this space but lets hope they all survive. From the photo, I think I now know who fathered the puppy's. Taylor has that loose skin look about his face too!

After lunch (Pad mee hoc kiang, aroy mak!) I picked up Mira, Wallace, Yaa, Duchess and a village dog Aidut.

Mira was bitten yesterday by BuunKeow and her left front ankle is infected and swollen. The vet flushed it out with providene and left the wound open. He gave her an anti inflammatory injection and suggested she take Rimydil too.

Wallace came along for a check on his eyes & a limping back leg. The vet couldn't find anything wrong with his leg but said the eye was an old corneal ulcer which didn't need any treatment. The vet was amazed at the improvement in Wallace since he first saw him, his skin improved and his hair growing back. Poor guy was so scared at the examination that he poo'd and wee'd constantly. I already stunk from Mira's vomit but now I felt I was unclean!

Ya, had previously suffered from TvT but after the tumour subsided, her vulva prolapsed and just lately it seems a little more inflamed. The vet examined her and said that the tumour was not returning, if it was he said, there would be blood.

Next up was Duchess who Kh Yom thought had puss coming from her vulva. It transpires that there is a slight infection of the external skin of the vulva (labia) that would appear to be from constantly being moist and dirty. This would be due to the condition of incontinence she suffers as a result of nervous trauma. We will need to try & clean her more often and then try to keep her dry. The vet suggested baby nappy's/diapers/pampers. (Sorry but wikipedia is fascinating sometimes!)

And finally there was Aidut. He had blood taken for a full blood count, as parasites had previously been busy eating his platelets and his blood was so thin at one stage he had blood running from his nose. We will await the result to see if he needs further treatment. He is more lively this week and apparently according to his owner, back to his old self.

On the way back to the shelter, I pulled off the road to help a dog out of trouble. Some stupid, immature, inhumane and despicable person (a lazy singlet wearing greasy looking guy actually) had tied a plastic toy to the dogs tail.

10 hour day - Fe's gets sterilised - Its official !

At 8:30 this morning I went to the shelter to pick up the dogs that were due to go to the vet today. There was Fe, previously sterilised last July and then pregnant & gave birth last December. There was Aunty, who was affected by Distemper when she was younger and as a consequence, nods her head 24 hours a day. And then there was Molly, who is currently on heat. So all 3 needing a little bit of special treatment during the operation.

The vet advised me afterwards, that Fe had definitely not been previously sterilised as there were no signs of scar tissue and she had both her ovaries & fallopian tubes intact. Molly's op was successful without complication and Aunty was sedated with a different anaesthetic to deal with her condition appropriately.

Also along today is Daeng Gwaa, the dog from the village. The owner of the dogs' father is still threatening to kill Daeng Gwaa.

From the shelter, Naiomi & Luca who are both suffering from a persistent cough. The vet said their lungs are ok and that was a relief. He suggested we change their meds slightly.

And finally this morning, I took along a village dog called Aidut, a Jack Russell / Beagle cross. He is suffering with blood parasites and last week his blood platelets were so low that blood poored from his nose. Today he received an injection to boost his blood condition. Cute little guy.

Left the 4 for sterilisation with the vet & took the other 3 back to the shelter / home.

Met up with Kh Yu at the NakornPayap International School to drop off some sales & information stuff for a forthcoming Movie Night they are holding to raise money for our shelter.

For lunch I met a friend at his home and his sister who is visiting from Holland. Renate joined me in the afternoon, when I went back to the shelter & collected Sandy & Diane to return them to their previous homes, now having recovered from their operations.

While we were at the shelter I could see Renate falling in love for so many of the dogs at the shelter and she found it very difficult to hide the tears.

We took Sandy back to Wat Doi Kam and met up with the usual crowd there and it was great to see so many of the pack. She was now sterilised and looking fatter than when she came to the shelter a month ago.








We then went to Big C and returned Diane to her mate, Valentino. He looked very happy to see her, standing back and chilling out as she polished off the remnants of a pile of chicken bones. Her small operation to remove her rear dew claws was a sucess and she no longer limped or showed signs of discomfort from her legs.







Learning how to drive away from Big C now, Valentino always wants to follow me and I inevitably turn back and stop him running. This hurts every time. Today though I did a bit of a detour and snaked through traffic till he lost sight of me.











At about 16:30 we drove to Kachow market to meet up with a coffee stall vendor who cares for dogs in the area. She had been looking after a little Labrador type pup who dragged his legs behind him. We picked him up and he will stay the night at the shelter before seeing the Orthopedic specialist at the small animal hospital tomorrow morning.




Dropped Renate off at her home in a flood of tears and promised we would do this again. She is a great animal lover and I look forward to seeing her again soon.

Picked up the 4 sterilisations from the vets and took them back to the shelter and their homes.

Arrived home at 19:00.