Operation Ebony Pup - Indy

After three weeks of Saturday morning jogs under the hot sun and humid temperature looking for and chasing Indy, we were very low on hopes and possess little of positive attitude. Ever since Sissy was caught, Indy has not come to us and would instead play a game of 'catch me if you can' each time we approach her with our food. We can tell she really wants to be near us but perhaps Blackie's teaching has been so complete and thorough that Indy just can't bring herself to do that. With no other pups to boost her confidence and saddled instead with a timid and cautious mother and an even more terrified resident Shadow, Indy has no example to follow except "run away' from people, dogs and everything else that moves.

The week before, we were joined by some very good friends and when we could not catch her and later could not locate her when she went into hiding, they encouraged us not to give up. So the next Saturday, we mounted yet another search, the fourth week counting and with the same team of good friends who also brought more friends. Two of these friends are in the dog training division of their units. They came with zeal and passion and a very positive attitude which influenced us and gave us hope which was by now slowly dying.

The morning started worse than ever before because there were no dogs out in the field. Usually when we arrive, we would see Blackie and Indy and after running around trying to catch them and corner them, they go back to the forest to hide. At least we knew they were inside or a rough location where they are hiding. However that morning, there was no dog. Are they even around, we don't know and we have no one to ask because no workmen, no residents, no guards were around then. So where do we start? Which area marks the spot? Where and how do we even begin. sigh. In a vast area full of trees, foliage, tall lallang, thorny bushes, barbed wired, iguanas and cobras and what-have-yous, it was akin to looking for a needle in a haystack.

Full of zeal and hope but slowly fading as the task was daunting - where to go next. Some of us went in to the forest from the left, some from the right and some midway. We used sticks to hit each lallang bush partly to scare snakes in case they startle us and partly to flush out a pup or a dog? After half and hour of fruitless looking and poking and shouting out Indy and Blackie's name, to be confronted by silence and nil movement except our own, some of us wondered whether the dogs were even around. Perhaps they had moved their location.

Some in the group persisted and carried on from mid point when suddenly one of our feeders shouted that he had spotted Indy. Perhaps there were just two people in that area as most of us had taken a break, Indy became brave and crept out and ran towards him as if in play as she recognised him. But as usual when she approached him, she would turn around and run away in her usual game of tag, then she reappeared to run away again. But this time, we had professionals with us who zoomed into near that location and everyone in the group cornered the area where we had seen her fled. The atmosphere became charged with a surge of adrenalin and now, finally a light at the end of the tunnel. Now we have a location, now we have a hope.

There were ten of us so we made a square but as we cornered the square, there is no dog to be seen and no sound and no movement. Now that we have a smaller area to target, we started using sticks again to poke all the bushes but still no dog. Strange. We checked with everyone in that 'square' but no one had seen any movement, where did she go. She couldn't have just disappeared and especially since she isn’t that small in size anymore. She has to be around, but where? This is like an episode from the Bermuda Triangle disappearing act. One of the dog unit guys then said he could smell a dog around, he looked at the bushes and started moving them. He discovered that beneath each bush, there are holes and not solid ground so he started moving all the bushes in our ‘squared’ area while the rest of us stood in our corners to make sure Indy does not run past us. After intense waiting and silence, there was a shout and yes in one of the holes under a big bush, right below in the darkness, trying to hide herself, with eyes staring up in fear, a little black pup crouched hiding – our darling Indy. One of our team members gently pulled her out by the scruff of her neck whereupon she yelped very loudly and struggled to free herself. Carefully, we placed her in a net and secured her with two leash. No, we cannot afford to lose her now, and carried her to safety, the whole time talking to her and assuring her that everything was ok. She was understandably frightened but she was not trembling, which is a good sign.

There was a let up of pent up emotions, eyes wet, tears of relief, joy, visible sighs, congratulatory pats on the backs of those who had sniffed and done the actual rescue and excitement that at last, finally we have rescued Indy puppy after so many weeks of worry and fear.

Photos of a young Indy and her antics. Notice her front and back left tippy tips of her toes are white, that's how you know which is Indy.

Some of us, then left to bring Indy to the vet to have her checked out and the others stayed back to see if they could find Blackie, now flushed with Indy's success, they might be fortunate again. But after another two hours search, Blackie could not be found. Much later when the group was packing to leave and leaving the site, one of them saw a black tail running off into the vastness of the forest. Yes, we speculate that unfortunately Blackie had witnessed everything. She had heard Indy yelp and she had seen us take Indy away and now she is even more frightened, sadly, even more terrified. She now knows that all her pups have been 'taken'. Poor Blackie. How do we explain to her it is for their good.

In the meantime, Indy has been declared healthy by the vet. We have seen her sister Isabella (formerly Friendie) and Indy is not smaller in comparison, in size or height. Thankfully, she has grown and developed at the same rate as her sister who is in a home environment. Her fur is not in the best of condition but it is understandable given the environment and condition she has been exposed to. With the right food and vitamins and proper care, Indy will be just like her three sisters who are reportedly doing very well.

Indy is now in a fosterer's home and beginning to appreciate and understand home life, pats and cuddles. She is still a little shy and cautious being the longest out in the wild and much influence from Blackie and Shadow but we know it will be a short matter of time she will open her heart to love and respond to human affections. We are so happy to announce that Indy has already been adopted by a marvellous couple who had contacted us a long time ago and indicated their interest, Long before Indy was caught, they have been in touch with us and been kept updated on the development of our operations. They have liked what they have been reading about Blackie, the ebony pups and Indy and were patiently waiting the whole time, even offering help with the capture as well as food. They had said they would wait for her even when we kept failing week after week. They have since visited her a few times and showered her with gifts and lots of love and touches.

Indy now wags her tail in happiness and excitement when she receives visitors although still cautious. She is not one for exuberance, just like Sissy, being the quieter of the litter but her tail has wagged wagged wagged, much to our joy. She is eating and drinking well. These are baby steps towards her domestication but we are so glad she is adjusting well and so quickly too. Unlike Sissy, she did not cry the first night away from her nest. Perhaps there is not much to miss other than Blackie. All her sisters have gone before her and the nest is empty and Blackie being the roamer she is, is hardly around. Shadow, we don't even know sleeps where. Sissy cried the first night as she missed Indy, we know for a fact as they were very close but Indy didn't have much to cry for as she has been alone ever since we took Sissy away. In other words, poor Indy has been left pretty much alone these past weeks to fend for herself. This is the reason why it was so urgent and important that we remove Indy as soon as possible as we knew that the longer she stayed out in the forest, the more unsocialised and timid she would be, and the danger she was in being unprotected in the midst of cobras, snakes and poachers..

The Ebony pups are now all safe and happy in their new homes. Indy will join her family very soon and she represents the last of the litter we thought we could not save. Initially, there were doubts we could help them. Even among ourselves we could not agree. Remember that at one time we had even thought of sending them to SPCA to let them be put down humanely rather than be food, since the Chinese New Year was approaching. That was the most difficult period for us. In our small circle, we had our own arguments but none of us could make the decision to send them to their deaths. But in that difficult time, many of you, readers emailed or smsed us offering your support, some gave ideas, some offered homes to foster them. Many of you encouraged us not to give up and we were heartened that all of you cared. The Ebony pups and their ordeal have touched your hearts too. And many of you helped to send emails or put up on forums that there were five little black pups looking for homes and look at the fruition of our combined efforts. Little Friendie, Whitie, Indy and Lil Sis are all now safe and sound in their new homes. They are no longer little but now almost four months, teenage pups. They are alive. They are happy and each have a family to call their own. They have come a long way from the thorny, cold, open and wet forest, unsocialised, unloved and untouched. Yes, their lives have changed but for the better. We are sad we lost White Tip along the way. We will never forget that little face staring at us the very first time we spotted them in their nest. It was the face of White Tip and will be forever imprinted in our memory and our blog. We wish we had manage to save all five but four out of five is a good number. This last rescue is for White Tip. This is our tribute.

Regretfully, we lost White Tip along the way. We never got a chance to find out if White Tip was a male or female. He/She would have made a great dog, companion and friend. The loss was ours, certainly. Poor White Tip.

Meanwhile, Blackie, on the other hand has been avoiding us. She does not come when we call her. We do not even know if she is still in the same location. Since Saturday, after the operation, we have only seen Blackie once but she ran even further when she saw the feeder, the same feeder who she has acknowledged more than the other feeders as this feeder has known her since she was just a teenage pup.

We still leave food for Blackie and Shadow everyday but we do not know who eats them. Is it the birds? for we see them by the flock or is it the dogs. Everyday we will sms each other "No dogs in sight" and we will all sigh and shake our heads. Where are you Blackie? You are always worrying us. Ever since we have known you, we have always been worried for you. When will be the day we can see you safe and secure and we can enjoy seeing you happy.

We pray that God keeps Blackie safe, safe till we can rescue her.

We may be wrong, and we hope we are wrong, but we wonder if Blackie is pregnant. She is either too afraid of us to appear or she is sick or she is pregnant. These can be the only reasons why she does not even appear for her food. The last time she was pregnant she also avoided us and didn't eat for a while. And by the time she came out for her feed, her tummy was already showing and much too late for us to do anything for her. We hope sincerely we are wrong. Now we do not even know what to do. How do we catch her when we can't even see her. Many people have told us not to leave the Mommy dog behind, yes we know that and we will not abandon her but she is avoiding us, perhaps it is she who has abandoned us.

Footnote:
We would not have been able to rescue and rehome Indy had not it been for the help and compassion of a very special group of people:

M our long suffering friend, mentor and guide who has always given us his support and aid towards the welfare and care of our efforts.

G and W who came consecutively two weeks in a row to help. They were the ones who helped to bring in their friends C and A who are the dog experts and who 'sniffed' out Indy. J who also came twice in a row to help out and roped in her friend J and we all made ten members to corner the 'square'.

Yes if not for your support and help, little Indy will still be out there in the wilds. On behalf of Blackie, thank you very much. You have given her last baby a hope for the future. We will rescue Blackie too, we will, just waiting for the timing and opportunity.

We have a series of thanks to extend :

Ms. A and her colleagues Ms. J, Ms. S and Mr. P who have very kindly donated towards purchase of food for our feeding and given us words of encouragement. We will carry with us, their support in our efforts. Ms. A has always been around to give us creative advice from Day 1 and this blog's name was founded with her ideas.

Ms. K and Ms. K who came from far away and visited the Rat Pack and brought them treats, along with pats and cuddles. The Pack enjoyed having visitors and getting out of their kennels. K and K are school going teenagers and came with a lot of heart and passion.

And again to Ms. A who has helped us purchase treats and kibbles at discounted prices for our feeding and also her kind donation of shampoo and biscuits. Your aid comes handy not just to us but to the feeders in other locations who we are in touch with.

PANDA

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 currently being fostered by Aunty S. and Uncle K. and enjoying cuddles and pets as well as friendship from their happy and playful dog. 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 a kor-kor doggy to share with her toys and chewies. Instead of piteous whining, Panda will now woof and wuff 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

THE RATS PACK 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 know more or to view them

APPEAL TO LOOK OUT FOR LOST DOG This is an appeal for a lost dog from a co-rescuer.

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.