How many times can a dog stand to be abandoned?
I do not write often about our dog-saving activity at stray-dogs.org, but here is another story
In Taiwan, there is a male Husky which has been abandoned 4 times already, and all only during eight months.
When volunteers enter a dog shelter, most dogs will start to shake their tails and bark to try to get their attention.
Duke.
But he never did that. He lowers his gaze and turns his back to the volunteer. It is because he already knows he will not have any chance to leave the shelter or even to be adopted, because he has learned he will always be returned to the shelter very soon.
The shelter vet told us mostly young men adopted him but just kept him for 2 months or less. They returned him because he “was no more fun” or parents were against keeping dog.
When he finally was adopted for the 4th time, we were traveling to Germany in June. We did not hear any news until August when a volunteer told us he had been returned again.
We were hesitant to take him because we already have so many dogs in our care. But then someone told my wife the newspapers were picking the story up and there would be a report about the dog in the papers soon.
That was when we finally decided to bring him to our place first. While having his story on the newspaper seems to be good thing, because it will attract a large crowd of potential adopters, most of these people will be fast deciders. Seeing the story and thinking “oh my, that dog is so poor” and then rushing to adopt it. However, fast decisions are not always well thought-out and so the Husky might very likely end up being returned to the shelter for a fifth time – because people suddenly discover a dog requires time and some funding for food and vet.
But what about the feelings of the dog? How many times can he continue to live with being cast out on a regular basis? We have seen many dogs simply “giving up” and refusing their food until they were starved, because they did not want to go on anymore. A wolf is a pack animal and so is a dog, and a family becomes his pack. As wolfs or dogs are sticking together and even give their life for their pack members, no dog can understand why it suddenly gets thrown out without doing anything wrong.
Okay, this treatment is going to end now; we took him into our care to avoid seeing him getting cast out for a fifth time.
His name is Duke, my wife chose that name.
Duke is in treatment now and we will try to find one good home for him.
He will be adoptable very soon, when his treatment is finished.
Bob, you will get an extra star in Heaven for this action. You have saved this dog’s life and soul. Poor little thing.
And yes, pets get depressed, dogs understand unfairness very well, they give us unconditional love. Gosh, I feel guilty every time I go to work and feel their gazes upon me. Imagine 4 homes, all broken hearts. Gosh.
Sigh. This is a desperate case, so, here is a complicated and not ideal idea.
I prefer trying to solve dog issues here in Taiwan. I am not big on shipping them all over to other places that also have lots of animals in shelters hoping for homes before their week(s) is up. However, being of a certain gender, I am not always logical.
Here is the deal - if we take this option, must act fast:
I need to be in Canada Sept 17. I had planned on flying in there about a week before that.
I had found a home in Canada willing to take in another husky - good home, has another husky, spends time in the snow. However, the rescuer in Taiwan for that other dog has a chance at finding a home here in Taiwan. Fingers crossed that works out.
SInce I am not bringing that dog, there is a chance I could bring the dog you have.
In order to bring a dog to Canada, I need to book the dog within 24 hours of booking my ticket. My ticket is already booked, dogless, however, because of the airline giving me misinformation about being able to take a dog, I am able to cancel this ticket with 100% refund. Then I could rebook on an airline that allows the dog.
There are a lot of catches, of course.
I need to find another ticket at this late hour that is not unreasonably more expensive than the one I have ( I would be willing to fork over about $5000NT extra, but that is about my limit)
I cannot afford to pay for the dog’s shipment or shots - at a cost of about $20,000+, as estimated by Straydog in another thread. (I recently paid $15000 for shots and blood tests to Belgium to try to get two cats to the people who had them before and moved to England. They changed their minds, so I am feeling a bit burned)
I would obviously need to see if the Canadian family is willing to take on this dog. (what can you tell us about the dog… personality, gender, spayed?, why was it returned 4 times? , aggression, ok with kids, cats? and so on…)
… I am sure with a plan this complicated, there are bound to be other issues.
One other poster expressed interest. Let’s explore that option first - they asked if the dog is ok with cats, I believe. If that doesn’t work out, we need to get on this one right away, as it usually takes at least two weeks to get everything together to go overseas. I would need commitments from everyone involved before putting my neck out again.
Good luck!
please, anyone with a better plan/idea, please chime in…
Thanks for your help.
First, I failed to see a posting of another poster you mentioned who is interested, so if you know more please tell me.
We can explore this option of course.
Second, if you could take the dog to Canada and we are sure the home is okay, then we would pay all the cost for the dog, shots, papers and the dogs ticket cost; we did that procedure several times before; also to Canada. Then, we would need to know when you arrive and what airport Regarding airline we stay away from EVA, because they charge 3 times what China Airlines charges for dog transport.
Dog description: The shelter personnel told us the dog had been adopted 4 times by teenagers, all young guys and their impression was they had the dog as a fashion accessory, one was quoted to have said, walking on the beach with a big dog attracts the ladies.
Quoted reasons for returning were “no time” and “parents against it”.
We found him to be extremely good natured, greeting our rescuer friendly with licking and wanting to hug. We couldn’t test it with cats as we don’t have now, but he was great with children.
Barking: He doesn’t, like many Huskies he doesn’t seem to do that at all. He is doing a bit of “talking” instead of barking (some Huskies seem to try to mimic human talking), but very few and in low voice.
Would be nice if we can work something out, thanks again!
if you cannot bring the dog (or it is Eva, which is 3 times the dog fare) then we can also arrange the flight by ourselves by searching for another person to bring it along, in that case we would need someone to pick up the dog at the airport!
When I was at AT, we didn’t actively seek homes overseas, as, like kage, we believed that our role was to promote adoptions here and not pass our problem onto someone else. But with huskies, it is different, and the RSPCA when visiting us agreed that this was one breed they would seek homes for overseas. Aside from the weather in Taiwan being very unsuitable for them, huskies also need constant companionship and huge amounts of energetic exercise - none of which they are likely to find in Taipei. So, we sent our huskies to Canada. There is a husky rescue group that were more than happy to take huskies from Taiwan for us. If you need, I can send you their info.
Best of luck, and this boy is actually one of the lucky ones now. Great to see all the work you’re doing for the dogs, b_h. :bravo:
[quote=“Stray Dog”]When I was at AT, we didn’t actively seek homes overseas, as, like kage, we believed that our role was to promote adoptions here and not pass our problem onto someone else. But with huskies, it is different, and the RSPCA when visiting us agreed that this was one breed they would seek homes for overseas. Aside from the weather in Taiwan being very unsuitable for them, huskies also need constant companionship and huge amounts of energetic exercise - none of which they are likely to find in Taipei. So, we sent our huskies to Canada. There is a husky rescue group that were more than happy to take huskies from Taiwan for us. If you need, I can send you their info.
Best of luck, and this boy is actually one of the lucky ones now. Great to see all the work you’re doing for the dogs, b_h. :bravo:[/quote]
Yes, that would be great. We actually have 2 Huskies and 1 Malamute in our care now including the Husky above. So no matter if Kage and us sort something out, we still have the others.
:bravo:
[quote]First, I failed to see a posting of another poster you mentioned who is interested, so if you know more please tell me.
We can explore this option of course.
[/quote]
Yes I asked if Duke is ok with cats. Reason being is I currently have two cats and I am interested in getting a dog, however, in this case with the Husky, I would consider taking him back home with me in December.
My family has raised Malamutes and Huskies (amongst other breeds) for years and years and when my mother visited Taiwan she was appalled and pissed to see such a number of these breeds in this horrendous weather.
Hence, does Duke get along with cats??? It is an option I would be willing to look at as well. That is a heart-wrenching story, and I would like to see this fine dog get a good home it deserves.
[quote=“cjc444”][quote]First, I failed to see a posting of another poster you mentioned who is interested, so if you know more please tell me.
We can explore this option of course.
[/quote]
Yes I asked if Duke is ok with cats. Reason being is I currently have two cats and I am interested in getting a dog, however, in this case with the Husky, I would consider taking him back home with me in December.
My family has raised Malamutes and Huskies (amongst other breeds) for years and years and when my mother visited Taiwan she was appalled and pissed to see such a number of these breeds in this horrendous weather.
Hence, does Duke get along with cats??? It is an option I would be willing to look at as well. That is a heart-wrenching story, and I would like to see this fine dog get a good home it deserves.[/quote]
It would be terrific if that would work out. OK, we did not test, how he (we called him Duke BTW, but feel free to change that, he is not used to his new name yet) gets along with cats. We will try it! My wife will borrow two test subjects from a group member and then we see how it goes. I will report back soon!
Thanks also to Stray Dog and Kage on behalf of the stray-dogs.org members!
Hm. It sounds like there are enough dogs with you for cjc444 to take either a husky or a malamute AND for me to take a husky , provided a good home can be assured.
I had planned on using Eva, as they have direct flights to Vancouver, but I can look into China Airlines as well. I don’t really have time to research it today, though. Probably will get on it late tonight or tomorrow morning…
If you take Eva we can find a flight Guardian who will bring the dog along on his or her ticket and then you just pick up the dog in Vancouver. All paperwork and expenses will be on us.
Cjc444 and Kage,
We have tested Duke with 3 cats and he didn’t care for them, just plain ignored them, so that looked really good.
[b]EDIT: Can we continue to discuss the details by email?
I read this news and found Duke has been abandoned 6 times at least.
As I read Duke Chinese story and found the volunteer said Duke has good behavior in the shelter but very sad. Other dogs had bitten him and he did not bite back.
Sigh! such good dog should have a sweet home.
Where is Duke finial sweet home?
[quote=“Stray Dog”]When I was at AT, we didn’t actively seek homes overseas, as, like kage, we believed that our role was to promote adoptions here and not pass our problem onto someone else. But with huskies, it is different, and the RSPCA when visiting us agreed that this was one breed they would seek homes for overseas. Aside from the weather in Taiwan being very unsuitable for them, huskies also need constant companionship and huge amounts of energetic exercise - none of which they are likely to find in Taipei. So, we sent our huskies to Canada. There is a husky rescue group that were more than happy to take huskies from Taiwan for us. If you need, I can send you their info.
Best of luck, and this boy is actually one of the lucky ones now. Great to see all the work you’re doing for the dogs, b_h. :bravo:[/quote]
Do you really think this husky org. can help Duke in this case?
Hi bob_honest, I sent a couple emails about Duke to the address you provided. Feel free to call me, my phone number is in the email. This needs to be either dropped, or sorted out as soon as possible. Please call me.
I cannot get a flight on China Airlines - all flights are booked around the dates I need to go. Eva has a seat available, but it is $13,000 more than what I paid, NOT including the large fee you mentioned Eva charges for the dog. If I am going to change the ticket, I need to act fast. Can Duke be ready to fly by Sept 10?
Why I cannot take a dog on the flight I have booked:
I am flying Air Canada, but because the flight is operated by Eva, I cannot take a dog. In order to take a dog, I have to actually book with the airline I fly with. (ie - buy an Eva ticket through Eva, or a China Air ticket through China Airlines).
Meeting someone else (a “guardian”) at the airport in Vancouver is an option, although a bit tricky since I will only be in the country for just over a week… then back to Taiwan.
Anyone flying to Vancouver, BC, Canada Sept 10 to 18?
I just talked to the people taking care of Duke right now and they said September 10 is too early as he still needs a bit of treatment before he can be sent somewhere. One possibility would be, in case you have a possible home form him, to bring us and those adopters into contact and then we can fly Duke out later by ourselves, via another flight guardian.
Ok, Thanks for letting me know. I could have moved the flight a few days to give it an even two weeks, but it looks like I should let it drop. I will email the contact information to you.
Bear in mind, the potential adopters live almost a days journey North - not very close to Vancouver at all. It will be a challenge to find a guardian able to transport Duke up there.
Hmm - this is the third time I have found a home for a dog in Canada and the rescuers on the Taiwan side have declined. Perhaps I should stop putting these dogs on facebook.
We didn’t actually reject, all treatment will be done in 2 weeks and we will try to find a flight guardian. So that would be end of September, please confirm.
Sorry I didn’t know action would be so fast this time while he is still in treatment, that’s why we wanted to post this a bit earlier. Wife will now start to look for flight guardian.
My wife will send this weekend’s photo to you, thanks again.
from a group member and then we see how it goes. I will report back soon!