A Melody of Joy

The ultimate dream for a wandering stray or abandoned dog is to be fed, rescued and eventually homed. Homing is hard, and for those abandoned, it would be rehoming. Already many pedigrees are abandoned and looking for homes, what more chance does a cross breed have. While this is true for all dogs, it is more difficult to rehome big dogs especially those who are older. With God’s help, we have managed to find homes for puppies and most calls we receive are always enquiries for a pup. The minute they hear of a dog past a year it gets harder and for our Patches, four years, considered by many pre-adopters is much too old for them.

How untrue it is that big and older dogs cannot learn, cannot adjust. Dogs are adaptable creatures. They adapt to survive. If they had to swim they would, if they had to climb they would. If they had to eat kibble and biscuit when they have been fed rice and cans, they would. If their leg got amputated or lost one eye, the dog would pick itself up, shake his body, with a wave of his tail, learnt to walk with three legs or see with that remaining eye. Yes this is true not just for dogs but for cats or any of the animals that God created. They were made strong and brave and they do not sit and mope and sigh for the "what ifs" or "why me". Rather they focus their energy on the will to survive and adapt because that is the only way or no way at all.

Besides, older dogs, having gone past their puppy antics are calm and perfect for children, especially very young children. It is a myth that kids should grow up with puppies. It is a romantically, sentimental and Disney oriented concept that needs to be revisited and argued. Take if from us, from a personal and real-life point of view, we who have had puppies and kids, we break that myth immediately. If you do have very young kids and pups, adult supervision is very much needed and closely too. Children have to be taught at a very early stage that puppies nibble, they bite, they chew, they scratch but all done in play, never in malice or spite but are parents of this day and age ready? An older dog may suit them better as they are more laid back. And so it is that we had an older dog to rehome, our Patches.

Our Awesome Patches, he has come a long way with us. From the time we started feeding him last year in the open he has now realised his dream of "coming home to stay" because he has held on to the dream, with us, he has held on, as sung in the theme song in our blog.

We first met Patches sometime in late September last year just about the time when Milo was first rescued from his noose and removed to a Shelter leaving behind a folorn and lonely Blackie because we could not locate nor catch her. Blackie was often seen running alone and for a period of time, missing for a couple of weeks. When we finally saw her during our feeding, we found her with Patches who was later joined by Junior, the little black pup.

(http://homelessinseletar.blogspot.com/2008_10_01_archive.html - A Broken Hearted Melody).

The first time we met Patch, he bowed to us.
We were impress by his size, colour, his hound like
features and his wonderful personality. Pack eating in the wild. Notice that
Patches is outside the facility while the
others are inside. It was hard to get him
to go back in each time.

The very first time we met Patch, we were totally impressed with him. He was huge and he was majestic. He carried himself with a very confident and alpha domineering air. He lorded head and shoulders and gruff woofs over all the other puny looking dogs and overshadowed them with his vibrant orangey brown fur covered in black patch, stripes and zig zag. In a crowd of strays, you will never miss Patches. In fact some of us called him the Hound then, because we were convinced he had hound blood, a fact which was confirmed by the vet much later, a name we later changed when another feeder kept referring him to that patched dog. Patches, we felt was a name better suited to his markings for identification. Though his name among us changed, his persona did not and Patches remained always our majestic dog, our big goof-ball, the sunshine in our lives for he would do the craziest things and make us laugh, yes to all of us he is our Awesome Patches.

Male bonding, Patches and Junior out in the wild.
If you see one, you see the other no matter where they roam. An unlikely pair but good friends.

On the evening of November 21, Patches and Junior were rescued and moved to a shelter (http://homelessinseletar.blogspot.com/2008_11_01_archive.html – Rats Pack–the boyz).

At that time we had no plans, no place even to put the two we rescued. We had to scramble for one and thank God our friends did come through for us to temporarily board the two big grown dogs. We never had any intention to move them from their feeding area as the place they were residing then was safe but because Patches was often seen chasing people, motorcycles, bicycles and trucks in that location, we felt he was beginning to look too obvious, drawing too much attention not just to himself but to young Junior too, and behaving too friendly. He would often run to people and jump on them in play but often misunderstood and we have seen people screaming and running away in fright. And worse, Junior pup followed because everything Patches did was imitated by Junior who adored and worshipped him. If you saw Patch around, you would see Junior. Those two were inseparable – best friends and Patches protected Junior from the other big dogs.

Patches never understood why people ran away in fear because he is actually a sweet boy and loves making friends. He is like a pup in a big dog's body, like a child in an adult, never growing up, like a canine Peter Pan. He, more than the rest of our Rats Pack loved to belong. He demanded attention because once he had a family but then he was left behind and abandoned by his owners. He never understood that spent the rest of his time searching for his previous family.

“I AM a big boy. When I grow up, I want to be as tall as him.” Patches’ signature jump when he sees visitors.
Thank you Uncle D for taking such good care of me
in the kennels.

A pensive Patches looks longingly at us
beckoning us to take him out to freedom

But he always has a big smile for us. His
trademark goofy smile is one we will not forget.
Yes, the kennels will be quieter and less chaotic
without Patches around.

At that time, we knew it would not be easy to rehome Patches as he is a mature dog, big in size, exuberant and a little different looking but we often reminded ourselves that we will try. As long as we are able and they are healthy, we will try. We had a hope that somewhere out there, there will be a special place especially for Patches. He is the one who loves to be with people the most, if there is any dog who craves for love and human touch, that’s Patches. We knew that one day someone would be able to see him for his beauty, his brindle colour, his unsual zig zag stripes, his efferversent personality and say “What a beautiful dog!” because to us, he truly is. It is not his fault he was born looking different, God gave him this for a reason, to stand out in the crowd and Patches does. Yes, Patches did need to be accepted for himself, by his own standards and by someone special who would see the beauty in him.

Patches getting ready for his journey Home.
Note his shiny new collar and tag.

Goodbye Junior Boy. Take care of yourself
now that I’m going home. Be good buddy, my little boy.

Goodbye my sweet MamaBrown. Someone will
take you home one day, you just wait and see.
You are such a gentle soul with so much love,
I hope one day we’ll meet again.
(MB is Patches girlfriend)

And the someone did appear in the form of Mrs A who called us about adopting a big grown dog, fierce to intruders but friendly and sweet to her family especially her kids. Mrs. A came with her children L and B and the children loved Patches on the spot. Although they had originally intended to adopt a much younger dog, they decided that with Patches’ personality and sweetness yet sort of menancing look, even if Patch is four years old, they would give him a home. With a "Hurray“ and "Whoops of Joy" we hastened to get him ready, microchipped, vet checked, etc.

Patches comes to stay with his towel in tow.

See his big ‘barang-barang’ bag. The dog in the
background is his new older sister who he can romp
and create new adventures.

Indeed it was a touching time last Sat, March 14th, when Patches arrived at his new family's home; a sprawling estate in the west. As befitting his majestic status and demeanor, he was accompanied no less than with an entourage of 2 cars and 5 escorts on his journey to his new home. He had been bathed and scarf-ed and smelt sweet. He seemed to know what was happening as he was quiet in the car, excited but not boisterous, rather serious and perhaps a little nostalgic. Our various team members had also prepared a big goody-bag for him; ranging from bags of treats (one called the dog's bak kwa), a special stainless steel collar, an engraved tag, a bath towel, some cans and kibbles, a squeaky ball and an orange soft toy. This for a dog who expected nothing but to be loved, but from all the feeders whose life he has lit up and touched by his sheer presence and open personality, we could not let Patches leave us empty handed. We do not know if he still plays with squeaky ball and toys but we had to give him something to take home to. Patches can not leave us empty handed for he has made our life full and rich. There would never be another dog like this, that much we are sure. He has nothing but pure innocence and joy and an open hearted enjoyment of people and children. This is the day we have all been praying for, the day for him has finally arrived. This is our BIG baby who is the first to leave our fold; the first in our feeding and rescue efforts, the first big mature dog, now ready to enter a new phase in life. Yes this is a milestone for him as well as for our efforts.

Patches being offered iced cold water from Mrs. A.
Mrs. A, you impressed us with your love and your open heart.
To see you offering Patches water from a cup really
heartens us. We will never forget this scene. We can’t thank
you enough.

Patches' faith in us never waivered all the while even when he was in the shelter. He accepted the shelter with a c'est la vie attitude but we could tell he didn’t like being cramped up. He tried to get out each time we visited him and it made us sad to see him, a big dog stuck in his cell but he was always with a big goofy smile, his deep woofs and his signature jump on you; the constant wag of his thick, bushy and wavy tail and his cheerful outlook. All these we are going to miss...

Patches has brought us so much joy and fond memories. We will never forget
• We remember how in the wild he would always look for an opportunity to jump into the car. We had to be careful we left no gap otherwise next you would fine a big goofy head smiling from the driver's seat and the hard part would be to get him out. Try doing that with a big dog who loves car rides. Ha!

• We remember how he would refused to go back to the safe facility after he had eaten. The others in the pack would obediently head back when we shooed them back but never Patches. He would plonk his big bum on the floor and stare at us haughtily when we tell him to go back, sometimes woofed at us as if in reply "I'll go when I'm good and ready and I'm not ready... yet!" and if you waved a stick as if to threaten him, he would stand up and go "grrrrrr" in response and we would hurriedly drop the stick and run back to the car because a huge dog like Patches growling is nothing you want to reckon with.

• We also remember how he would always chase our car after we had done our feeding. We would be so careful to distract him before driving off otherwise our hearts would break when we look at the rear view mirror to see an orange/brown/black dog running after us and woofing away shouting "Wait up, wait up, don't go, I want to go too". Yes many times tears would flow because we would drive even faster because we couldn't take him home. We wished we could but we couldn't.

• We also remember the day he donated blood, how his eyes closed and refused to open even when the vet had given him a "wake up" jab and we kept shaking and shouting his name. Much to our relief, when we waved a stick of treat right under his nose, his eyes popped open immediately and he grabbed at the treat. Even the vet had to laugh.

• And how he clutched that same treat in his mouth and groggily walked over to where sweet Davee was. Whether he was showing off his treat to Davee or wanting to give it to her, we never really knew but N. told him gently, “Thank you Patches but Davee can’t eat it,” whereupon he slowly walked back to us. Yes Patches is our clown, our special boy, our sunshine. The one who makes us laugh even during our darkest hour.

Patches, the blood donor – his act of love and
sacrifice for Davee (who has since passed on) and other
needy dogs.

Patches doesn't have to run or chase anymore. He now has a big garden to explore. He has children he can play with, and children are his first love for we have witnessed him woofing at a passerby child just to get her to come to him and pat him. He has canine friends to romp with and he Belongs. Yes he finally belongs. He now has a family of his very own. We are very grateful to Mrs A, Mr B and her family for giving Patches a home and making his dream and our dreams come true. Patches no longer needs to sing his broken hearted melody, that has now become a melody of joy.

Imparting last words and pats from our
Mentor and Guide, who has been there for Patch
during his stay at the kennels.
“Take care of your new family Patch. Be there
for them just as you have always been there for your pack,
and bring them sunshine and joy just as you have
brought to us.

During the challenging days of feeding Patches and his pack, our thoughts were just keeping them full and alive. Ours was a journey of faith we took with Patches and the dogs we rescued and those we couldn't. When out in the wild, they faced an uncertain future, never knowing how long it would be before they got knocked down by cars or trucks or picked up by authorities or caught by poachers. And when in the shelter, never knowing how long they will lead a life as a kennel dog with no home to call their own. A kennel is a safe place and sanctuary but not a home. Dogs like Patches need a family to belong as they were once pet dogs. But God has been good and faithful and has brought this opportunity for Patch. The irony of it all is that Patches was deemed the most difficult to rehome given his size, age, colouring and some deemed, menancing look. But God has taught us a lesson in Faith; that nothing is impossible if we continue to believe and to trust. This is a lesson that when things seem impossible, Faith can move mountains.

And Patches’ last words “Mine, this is my home.
I now belong.” as he marks his territory and makes
his presence felt.
Patches wears his scarf proudly, a gift bestowed
on him the day he gave his blood for needy dogs.

For those who have followed Patches’ story in our blog from the time he was rescued and for those who have cared for him one way or another, we send our heartfelt thanks to you. It was your encouragement, your comments, advice, your giving and most of all your love for Patches that kept this team going for him. We hope that for the rest of the Rats Pack and those out in the wild, they can hold on to that dream with us, that one day they may have a home they can finally come home to stay.

For those of you who are contemplating an addition of a furry friend to the family, do consider adopting instead of buying. There are many homeless dogs looking for home. A homeless dog is not a wild dog. Many are made strays because of the choices their owners made, something beyond the dogs' control. A dog will never abandon you but unfortunately owners have not returned that favour. All they want is another chance and a new home where they can re-belong.


Blackie and Shadow

Both of them have been avoiding us for the last two weeks. Perhaps Indy’s yelps when we pulled her out from the hole traumatised them as no one as spotted them since. We are very worried and have been leaving food but not sure who has been eating them as no one has seen them. This morning, Wednesday March 18, we are very happy. We have spotted both of them in the field where they used to hang around. Shadow in the area where we always leave our food and Blackie on the ground further afield. And yes, unfortunately for us, much much to our regret, she looks like she might be in the early stages of pregnancy. We can't really be sure and we hope we are wrong.

We can only speculate that possibly Shadow is a male. What has happened to him to make him so fearful we do not know, completely unusual for a male dog no matter how timid they are, but if Shadow is a male, it does explain lot of things. That is the reason why Blackie has accepted him so easily into the fold while she chases Alsie away on sight. And that that Indy was close to Shadow probably because he was a surrogate dad.

Sigh. We HAVE to catch Blackie, we don't know how but we have to and we have to do it fast, before the pregnancy develops further or we will have yet another litter of black pups that we will have difficult rehoming. This time, they are Shadow’s pups.

On hindsight, we probably should have put contraceptives into her food but how are we to do that with the young pups eating from the same mound of food. Won’t that affect their health and growth. Our concern all along wasn't just Blackie but her puppies too so how could we endanger their development and growth into a one tracked purpose. Besides how can we make sure she actually eats the food because she never allow us near enough to see. We know nothing medically and it also never occurred to us that Blackie can be on heat so early. The pups are barely four months and when researching through the internet and speaking with those in the know, bitches get into heat between four to six months after a birthing. How can it be that Blackie was on heat so much earlier than that? We had thought all along that if we can rescue the pups before they hit the four months, we still have time to rescue the mother and sterilise her but Blackie has been avoiding us since a month and a half back. How do you catch a dog who doesn’t want to be caught nor appear during the the feedings. It is back to the famous Catch 22 cliché again.

Only God can help us now, only He can help us solve Blackie’s situation for we are helpless.

Alsie

Dear Alsie has not been sighted for a while, at least in the last few weeks. The food we leave for her is eaten we know but we see male spraying of urine and Alsie is a female. Who has then been eating the kibbles we leave behind? Again today is a good day, March 18, Alsie came to the feeder’s office this morning waiting. She ate half a can of food and bacon strips. She loves those but she doesn’t stay long to finish her can nor her kibble. Instead she looks nervously to her left and right as if she is running from someone or something. Poor Alsie. The workers’ dormitories are directly opposite now and in an open space when it used to be fenced up. If Alsie mistakenly heads for that direction, she is up for grabs. We are so worried for her but what can we do.

We think we can use professional help to trap her, she will definitely be easier than Blackie who is famously smart in avoiding gadgets but Blackie comes from a different background all together. Alsie is a pet dog and has not much of survivial instinct, but if we do catch her, where can we put her. Is there someone who can adopt her onsite? Is there anyone out there reading this blog who can commit for her, not just a pledge or a promise but a commitment because if we do catch her, there is not turning back, we will have to move her to the adopters’ location almost immediately.

We know that she being a pet dog before will adjust very quickly to love and pats but we still need a committed home for her before we can venture into anything bold. We cannot raise her hopes to let her down again. She has been abandoned before and we cannot do it again to her.

Is there anyone who can take Alsie in as a pet? She will make an excellent companian and friend. Adoption on-site is unusual but it is not improbable. Please help us to help Alsie. She is young, less than a year and a half and very beautiful and we all know how loyal and devoted she is. We will send her for her vaccinations and sterilisation but we need a home to put her.

Please call us at 98383820 or email anaterry@singnet.com.sg if you can help Alsie.

THE RATS PACK FOR ADOPTION

We have wonderful dogs with great pesonalities for adoption.

We invite you to view the individual dogs and their profile-http://theratspackadoption.blogspot.com/

Please call us at 98383820 or anaterry@singnet.com or homelessinseletar@yahoo.com.sg if you wish to ask about them or view them.

They are more beautiful in person than in photos

Sweet and mild PANDA pup for Adoption

Panda is a lovely pup with beautiful markings, very mild, gentle and quiet. She has already been trained on paper by her fosterers in this short period. She gets along with people and children and is docile. She deserves a chance at love and at a family. Panda is four plus months and eats well and very healthy. She walks beautifully on leash.

Panda is currently being fostered and enjoying cuddles and pets as well as friendship from other dogs. She is slowly discovering the joys of being a puppy all over again instead of being humped and chased by other adult dogs, she now has doggy friends to share with her toys and chewies. Instead of piteous whining, Panda now wuffs in delight and excitment just as she should, yes, as she rightfully should.

Is there anyone out there who can give her that new life? Please contact trlytru@yahoo.com.sg or 98383820

APPEAL TO LOOK OUT FOR LOST DOG

This is an appeal for a lost dog from a co-rescuer. (We are still running this appeal. If the dog owner has not given up hope, we won't too.)

We are looking for our female Labrador Retriever. She's cream/beige colour and small built. She ran away from home (Kuo Chuan Ave, near Marine Parade) in Nov 2008. We are not even sure if she's still in the eastern part of Singapore anymore. She's microchipped and licensed. We've reported to SPCA, AVA, Petcall, pasted posters, written to the vets, ran around, peeped into neighbour's houses hoping for a sight of her, and so on. We are still searching for her. She may have been kept by someone who doesn't want to return, or sold to someone who ignorantly bought her..

Please, please help keep a lookout. Perhaps your neighbour just got a new but matured dog? Or has someone offered to sell you a similar looking dog? Please, if anyone sees a dog that resembles that in the pictures, please call us immediately. 9389 9896 / 9106 2928. Appreciate any help.

REWARD of S$5000 for information leading to the recovery of the lost dog. No questions asked.