Little Gifts

They are the kinds of lost dog stories you want to read!

Sad to see OES on the list. The first ever dog of my own choosing was an Old English and she was a cracker of a dog. So many amazing breeds on the list that we might eventually lose out here because of a lack of interest.

As a Queenslander I have camped many times on the island. But my last stay was about 25 years ago. We had set up by ourselves in a flat spot just off the beach (so not in the camp grounds). We had a 4WD with a tent that flipped off the back to create a sleeping area with a base. All our food items were in metal eskies and lock boxes and we had a cooking tray that pulled out of the 4WD, so nothing of interest in our tent area but us humans when we slept. We'd locked up and were down the beach fishing. I decided to walk back to camp as it was getting late and a bit cold. On my way back I started to get 'rounded up' by about 5 dingoes. They were trying to get me surrounded and pushed into the shrubbery and very nearly succeeded. My partner couldn't hear me over the wind and waves. I only just managed to get back to the car and lock myself in. Never been back to the islands since (friends still used to go every Christmas and New Year). My second close call with dingoes - the other was at Ayres Rock. Both packs were very opportunistic. They've learnt and adapted and we haven't. Time to give the island back to them I think or only camp in fenced areas and travel only in high vehicles, like you would on Safari in Africa.

I think she thought she was in Asia and hey she did buy the harness from Temu! But seriously, did it not dawn on her that she hadn't seen other people driving their dogs around like that? And does she not have any friends or family who could've mentioned something?

I find people like that quite sickening. I truly don't understand the interest in watching any animal fight either for its life or to kill another life. Even worse they are deliberately creating an artificial life and death spectacle that there is no natural need for (ie they are not wild animals trying to survive and thrive). I have no idea what goes on in these people's brains and can't relate to them in anyway. Plus add to it the forced breeding set up you have to wonder what other sick stuff, violence and power plays these people are also into.

Just magical to see! And I didn't realise but she is only 3 now and given she was lost for over 500 days she was quite young when her ordeal first happened, so I think they are even luckier that she has adjusted as quickly as she has.

There was a post accusing Kangala of stringing it out so they could make more in donations. The person (American I think) said they've trapped loads of strays and never took so long. Always someone online who knows better!

There is some video footage of Valerie. She looks amazing! https://www.facebook.com/kangalarescue

Lets not forget that had they brought in suitable skilled rescuers they likely wouldn't have paid them a penny to do days of heartbreaking work to triage, save, euthanise, rehabilitate or relocate any of the koalas, so cost was not a factor in their decision. Probably what was was outsiders seeing the reality of what had happened and how many koalas were harmed and lost. Decisions weren't made about the koalas - they were made to suit the humans, as usual.

From what I saw volunteers sighted her (perhaps on trail cameras) in March this year a couple of times in the same area, so were able to commence a targeted rescue. It still took them almost 2 months to capture her. She's obviously been off the radar for a very long time and stopped behaving like a spoilt pet. From memory the owners stayed in the area for weeks searching for her when she first went missing and I guess it gets to a point that without any signs of life, at some point you'd have to assume she's passed to the elements. It would be awful not knowing what happened to your doggo, especially in such a harsh environment.

Amazing outcome! I hope we hear more about her transition back to being a companion animal again as there could be some good learnings for other lost dogs existing in survival mode.

I am sorry you have been through this experience. But I am even more sorry Cosmo has because he is the one who doesn't understand what has happened. While it is true that dogs are legally 'property' that we can do with what we want, their needs are much more complex than any other property we own. You have now had the experience of owning and losing a pet. It hurts but he has been gone for weeks now and to be honest what has truly changed at your house since he has been gone besides your feelings? You can't hedge all your bets on your mother in law that her simply being there will fix any problems he had. You surrendered him for a reason that still exists. I feel that is something you just have to accept now. If you choose to get a pet again then you now have more knowledge to choose the right breed for your home or to have other strategies in place to give it the attention and care it needs if you are all living busy lives (dog walkers and doggy day care also exists for this reason). Don't choose a dog based on looks and cuteness. It has to fit in with your expectations and lifestyle or you will have Cosmo 2.0. In relation to the rescue - rescues deal with surrenders day in and day out for a myriad of reasons. Some are very sad and some are total BS. I only know of one person who surrendered out of desperation one day (her dog had difficult behaviours) and she changed her mind the next day. After much discussion and consideration her dog was returned and remained with her into old age. She actually became my friend and once she had the support for the breed she needed, her commitment to her doggo was strong. It was a unique and genuine situation at the time. But you are relying on yet another person coming into your house to 'fix things'. You and your family are not planning to do anything differently for a dog you supposedly love. Can you see how that doesn't look like a solution for Cosmo? The rescue cares only about him at this point because he has already been let down by his owners and they are trying to pick up the pieces. A hard lesson learned by you of course but I feel you need to let him get on with his life now. He's been through enough change. If you purchase or adopt in the future please do so with more consideration of how that specific dog blends with your household so that all your collective needs will be met. Plenty of working people have pets remember - it's what you do to meet their needs when noone is home that is as important as the love you shower upon them when you are all together. Please take some time to accept how you got into this situation and learn from it. Cosmo is on his own new journey now.

My beef with them is slightly different. I don't believe they are doing what they say they are doing in a way that benefits the animals and I abhor their fundraising methods of using the faces of animals they have already euthanised, pretending that if people donate that animal will go on to have an amazing life. Very misleading and I think most of their money comes from fundraising and not selling seized animals. It also comes from big govt grants to do certain work when they actually farm that work out to unfunded rescues to do. They lost their way a long, long time ago and it is about time something changed.

The power of both good police work and social media!

I had an old stafford girl. I also had her son (both foster fails) and he passed. She aged overnight. Then we ended up with an older pup for temp fostering and she got a new lease on life. A few years on from that we lost a doggo for behavioural reasons and the remaining female dog (who was not old) really struggled being an only dog and started being quite naughty. We ended up taking in another male dog similar in age who needed a home and all the behavioural stuff settled, but the strange thing was when she passed of old age the remaining boy doggo loved being on his own! He did not skip a beat! I wouldn't necessarily recommend getting a pup of course as they will have very different energy levels, but certainly I think some dogs feel safer being part of a pack, while others are just fine. You don't need to rush anything but just keep your eye on how your Jack Russell is coping. You might need to create some new energy around the house and give your boy more focussed attention too. Most rescues are likely to want the dog to be indoor outdoor but it can't hurt to ask them and tell them your situation because they might know of just the right dog for you.

Rescues I know of in QLD are already doing work like this all the time. Sounds weird to me too that an interstate pound has managed to get involved, unless they just happen to have a better transport arrangement for that area or know someone personally in that pound.

Quick Albert update - he is doing great on the Royal Canin. He was so excited to go back to kibble! Weirdo! In another couple of weeks I'm adding fish to see if he still tolerates that.

I've got a dumb story relating to this. We had a big gauge out of our backyard (suburbs) due to a flooding incident. When my stafford boy passed I decided to take him home and bury him in the hole and get it filled back in. I used to live rural prior to that and burying your dogs at home was the norm. Fast forward quite some time and we had foster fail Stussy, also a pied stafford. She was only a couple of months old and came into the house one night with a huge bone. I asked my sister if she'd given it to her (nope) then I worried a neighbour had thrown it over the fence. Then I went all around the yard and found out poor Bundy had risen to the surface over time and she'd dug him up! Never again!

Had a consult with my amazing vet this morning (which he didn't even charge me for!). Given all the info about when the nausea happens, types of vomits, types of poos, overall health, etc, my vet is still feeling it is a developed dietary intolerance (he talked about other symptoms that would usually be evident with both the pancreatitis and bacterial overgrowth). Since he has no issues on the chicken and rice that is a good starting point but it wont meet all his dietary needs. So we will be trialling Royal Canin Anallergenic and every 2 to 3 weeks we will introduce a new protein and just keep building from there. This week I also bought 3 huge chickens on special so I can boil up and keep on hand AND a huge bag of rice so we never run out of that either! I also rang Pet Circle and they worked with me to refund a full/unopened bag of Black Hawk Salmon I still have here (which was nice of them). I have everything crossed that he goes ok on the Royal Canin and we can keep adding things and he stays well! Thank you everyone for all the great advice!

Thank you both so much - that was very interesting reading! I have a vet consult this Thursday to discuss all the suggestions/advice with my vet. I usually have a bit of a gut feeling about things but I still can't get a sense of whether he might have an actual condition or has just developed food sensitivity. Apart from an upset tummy and some unpleasant looking poo here and there he appears happy and healthy, like nothing is wrong. But if the wrong thing is in his stomach and he starts processing it and realises then it wants out again. That makes me think its the food because if it was bacteria or related to an organ not functioning properly you think you'd still see some indications on the chicken and rice. But a day back on that diet and everything is totally normal again. But I really do appreciate all the suggestions to look into (I've made a list!) as it must be awful to repeatedly have an upset stomach. I think we've got whatever it is early too - no noticeable weight loss or ongoing disinterest in food at present (although I don't feel chicken and rice will give him everything he needs). Once I know what he can and can't tolerate I'll be excited to organise a new diet for him (even though kibble with toppings is easier). From what I've now read though this can all take a while.

Coneye I was one of those volunteers for a couple of years. I can still remember when they stopped letting us feed the dogs and pups (for reasons unknown). We were allowed to do the cleaning and socialising. The staff were nowhere to be seen for hours at a time. We'd have done all the cleaning and the pups in particular would be starving and we couldn't do anything about it The refuge would open at like 10am and those unfed pups and dogs were all feral so we couldn't be in there socialising them and noone was interested in them because they weren't being all calm and cute. There was noone we could talk to about our concerns either. This was a while ago now so things will have changed, but the staff attitude towards the dogs at that location was abysmal and that stuff is entrenched. There was also a huge walk in cage up the front for surrenders. People would come in tears giving up their pets. Reception would say all these kind things to them about them getting a new home straight away then black tag them and put them in the cage for immediate euth. They weren't even being assessed and I think that happened at times when they were already full. That's the organisational culture people are donating their money to. To me though are no better than the church run orphanages of old. They just shouldn't exist anymore.

Yes thank you Mairead. I have it written down to talk with the vet about already. Was just wondering about testing options so will add TLI to the list!

As per another topic I have going about specific kibble, it look like Albert has a bigger problem than we thought. A half serve of the Hills Biome kibble with his chicken and rice meant he was sick all last night. We've gone back to chicken and rice today and will call the vet tomorrow. I'm just wondering if anyone has done testing for food intolerances and sensitivities? More for gut issues than skin issues but I assume testing is the same? Did you do it through the vet or did you try a company like this one? The cost seems reasonable to me to just go ahead and organise one for him and use it alongside whatever the vet suggests moving forward, but I was after people's thoughts. Thank you! https://www.testmypetsaustralia.com/

I definitely have to listen to this! My sister and I feel Albert is always trying to tell us stuff!

That's interesting Rascal. I've switched between BH and Canidae for years now without problem, but each dog is different and of course quality of brands can also change over time. Most important for me too is that the dog likes it and does well on it. Albert isn't now so its gone. The challenge now is finding something he will eat and maintain condition on. What have your doggos liked and done well on the best?