There are hundreds of millions of homeless dogs in the world — some estimates say as many as six hundred million, and almost all of them wound up that way because of the failure of humans to do their part. Either people did not give strong Pack Leadership and gave up the dogs because of behavioral issues, or they didn’t provide proper protection, so the dogs ran away.
There are also people doing their part to try to reverse the trend, either by providing no-kill shelters, operating rescues that place dogs in homes, or promoting spay and neuter. They’re doing amazing work. I understand that not everybody can run out and adopt every unwanted dog at the local shelter, but there is something you can do to help.
How you can help
What you can do is foster dogs, especially if you can’t make a commitment for the dog’s lifetime. The immediate goal of foster programs is to get the dogs out of the shelters and in temporary homes, and this is a benefit to both of them. It gives the shelters more room to take in other animals, and gets the dog out of the often chaotic atmosphere of the shelter and into a much calmer home environment.
Most shelters are willing to train their foster volunteers, as well as provide discounts on food and give medical treatment, so the financial commitment is lower than it would be for a permanent adoption.
It isn’t necessarily a commitment for seven days a week, either. Many shelters will foster out dogs for weekends or holidays (or on your schedule), mainly as a way to help the animals become socialized and allow their foster family to help train and rehabilitate them. November and December in particular are the months when shelters need holiday foster families.
The benefits of fostering
Have you always wanted to raise a puppy but didn’t want to commit to a dog? You can with many foster programs that are designed specifically to place young litters with families until they are 8 to 10 weeks old. It’s a great way to learn about puppy development, as well as to practice early housetraining and obedience.
The point of foster programs, beyond alleviating crowding, is to help make the dogs adoptable by rehabilitating them. But it doesn’t just benefit the shelter and dog. As the foster owner, it’s a great way for you to learn and practice your Pack Leader skills, especially if you foster many different dogs with different energy levels and temperaments.
How fostering helps your pack
This part will actually help your future dogs as well. Maybe you had a dog in the past that had behavioral issues you just couldn’t fix, which is one of the reasons many dogs wind up in shelters in the first place. By working temporarily with a dog with a similar issue, you can become a better dog owner, more able to handle these issues if you do decide to adopt another dog later on, but without the pressure of knowing you’re stuck with this dog if you can’t rehabilitate it.
If you already have a dog that needs socialization, fostering can be a great no-commitment way to help in this process by bringing a second dog into the home. If they don’t get along, at least you don’t have the problem of having two dogs battling each other for their entire lives — but you can learn how to avoid this by seeing your dog interact with different dogs.
Fostering is a great way to help dogs in need until they find a forever home, and to make yourself a better Pack Leader. And who knows? You might become what’s known as a “foster failure” — that is, the proud, permanent adopter of a homeless dog.
Whether you “fail” or not, it’s a win-win situation for you, the shelter, and the dog. So, if you can, check with your local shelter or rescue to find out about becoming a foster volunteer, and help us tackle the problem of homeless animals until there are no more unwanted dogs.
Stay calm, and foster!
There are millions of homeless dogs in the world, and a large number of them are currently in shelters waiting for one of two options: a forever home, or death. Often, people are reluctant to adopt shelter dogs because of certain preconceived notions about them. Here, we debunk five common myths about shelter dogs.
1. They’re in the shelter because something is wrong with them
This myth comes from common misunderstandings about how dogs wind up in shelters in the first place. The perception is that dogs end up in animal shelters because they were strays, they were seized in police raids, or they were aggressive. So, they will tend to run away, they will have emotional problems because of how they were treated, or they are just vicious.
But, in reality, a big reason that dogs wind up in shelters is because they were given up by their owners for reasons that have nothing to do with the dog’s behavior. A lot of families give up their dogs because they can’t afford them anymore, or they are forced to move to a place where they can’t have dogs or, worse, can’t have a dog of a particular breed.
2. You’ll never know their history
While this may be true, it’s not a bad thing, because that shelter dog will never really know its own history, either — especially not once it’s brought into a loving home with good Pack Leaders. Dogs don’t dwell on the past, and we shouldn't either, especially when it comes to dogs.
There are shelters that offer a glimpse of the dog’s story, but that’s not necessarily a good thing because, again, humans like to dwell in the past. Whether the dog was abused by children, thrown out of a car, rescued from a dog-fighting ring, or whatever traumatic event she went through, it's past. Dogs live in the moment.
A dog's past will only be a problem if you constantly dwell on what happened before the shelter. The dog forgot about it once it wasn’t happening anymore, and you can help the dog forget as well by not triggering anything that resembles that early trauma.
3. They may have a disease
Yes, they may, kennel cough being particularly common. However, most shelters nowadays will also provide you with a voucher for a subsidized or no-cost first vet visit, and the more devastating diseases have vaccines that are routinely provided by the shelter, like the DHPP (Distemper/Hepatitis/Parvovirus/Parainfluenza) shot, as well as a rabies vaccination. Shelters also make sure that dogs are free of fleas and worms, and they provide spaying and neutering as part of the adoption process.
4. They aren’t purebred
And…? Unless you’re a breeder or are looking for a professional show dog, mixed breed dogs are a much better choice. They are generally free of genetic or behavioral problems that are typical of some pure breeds, like hip dysplasia in German shepherds or incessant digging by terriers.
Mixed breed dogs are also just much more interesting looking, since they don’t follow the strict standards required for purebreds. Finally, if you live in an area with breed specific laws (BSL) that ban certain dogs, like pit bulls or Rottweilers, having that other identifiable breed in the mix can avoid issues with your dog being outlawed.
5. They’re too old
Adopting a puppy can be an attractive idea — you get to start out with a four-legged blank slate, and raise it to adulthood. However, people often focus on the “cute” part and forget the reality of raising a puppy: It can be just as intense and difficult as raising a child, and it’s also a full time job.
Sure, it only takes about a year and a half to raise a puppy, as opposed to eighteen (or more) for children, but that can be a year and a half of having things chewed up or peed on, having your rules constantly tested, and having a growing ball of energy rushing around the house.
You can also never be absolutely sure with a puppy what you’ll wind up with as an adult. You may want a medium size dog and the shelter thought that the puppy you've adopted was mostly beagle. What happens, then, when the other part turns out to be a St. Bernard or Great Dane and the dog you expected to weigh 30 pounds tops out at 150?
Particularly if you don’t have a lot of time to spend on training, an adult dog around 1 or 2 years old can be ideal. They usually come with all the useful features pre-installed: Housebroken, they know some tricks, they’re used to people. If they do have any behavioral issues, they will be much easier to fix at this point — assuming that they show up at all, which they may not if you do things the right way.
And don’t discount senior dogs, which are those aged 7 years or more. Senior dogs can be ideal for lower-energy households, or in situations where you don’t want to commit for ten or fifteen whole years but still want a loving companion.
So, next time you want to add a dog to your family or your pack, adopt don’t shop — you’ll save a life and find a faithful friend at the same time.
What is your favorite dog rescue organization in your area and why?
There are three things you should always keep in mind if you see a stray dog: the safety of the dog, your own safety, and the safety of others. When we see a dog in trouble—loose near traffic, for instance—it’s easy to panic and with the best of intentions, create an even more dangerous situation.
If you are driving and see a loose dog, react as calmly as possible
Slamming on the brakes could get you in an accident or scare the dog into running away or into traffic. If you are not in a situation where you can safely pull over near the animal, take note (or have a passenger take note) of where you saw the animal and either come back around and pull over safely or call animal control and give them as much detail as possible about where you spotted the animal.
Whether on foot or in the car, the danger might not be in the situation, but the state of the animal itself. The dog may be scared, injured, or even rabid. If the animal appears to pose any threat of biting or attacking, do not approach it. Note its location and contact animal control. If possible, stay at the scene where you can observe the animal until help arrives, so you can assist them in locating the stray.
You have the stray or lost dog—now what?
If the animal is safely approachable and friendly and you feel you can safely take her with you, entice her to come to your car with friendly commands or the promise of a treat. At this point, you can decide whether to take her to the local animal shelter or home with you. If you decide to take her home, we still recommend swinging by the shelter first. If the dog is collarless or tagless, the shelter can scan her for an embedded microchip with the owners’ contact info. You can also ask there if anyone has reported the dog lost. Most shelters will also keep a picture of the dog and your contact info in the event you take her home, in case the owners turn up looking for their pet.
Don’t assume that just because you found the dog wandering the streets that she was abandoned or unwanted. As any of us who own dogs can attest, it’s very easy for the most beloved pets to go astray. You know you’d want whoever found your dog to make every effort to find you, so return the favor, even if it feels like love at first sight or fate that you found this new friend. Going the extra mile to help the stray or lost dog
If the shelter has released the animal into your care, you can follow some of the tips we outlined in
Dogs may be man’s best friend, but they sometimes need to rely on the kindness of strangers. Today, you can be the one who helps them out in their time of need and tomorrow, hopefully their owners will pay it forward, so that someday if your pet ever needs a helping hand, someone will be there for them. Has your dog ever gone missing? What happened? Tell us in the comments. Original cesarsway.com to donate https://gogetfunding.com/campaign_funds/?pre=5139776
If a dog has been injured, the first thing you must do is secure the mouth. This can be done with a strip of gauze tied in a large loop, with knotted side under the jaw. The ends of the gauze are pulled to gently close the muzzle, then the ends are either secured at the back of the neck looped through the collar or if none is worn, behind the ears. You can also do this by using a leash attached to the collar, brought forward and wrapped twice around the jaws, then held while grasping the dog by the back of the neck/scruff. Likewise, you would want to hold the end of the guaze muzzle to keep it from slipping off.
You then lift the dog by the nape, using your other hand to gently support the ribcage so that your hands are basically facing each other, leaving the rest of the dog to dangle. The reason for this life saving lift is that organs and spine often can be allowed to hang in a more natural alignment until the dog can be lain along a stretcher and secured flat, laterally (face forward, on the dog's side).
Any attempt at lifting the dog in the usual way--the Lamb Lift or the Belly Lift--can permanently injure the spine or internal organs.
“RIP BEAUTIFUL BOY! The little dog we rescued yesterday had to sadly be put to sleep,” the post read.
“Someone had cut off his tongue that's why he could not eat and had ended up this way.
“We hope nothing but the same or even worse off life to the subhuman who did this to him. Now you are safe in the arms of your maker and in an eternity of nothing but the love you deserve.” ‘He was skeletal’
The dog was found by Surie Pillay, The Mercury reported, who immediately took the him to a vet in Umhlanga.
On Phoenix’s Facebook post, Pillay wrote that when she asked residents about his owners, everyone said he could be a stray and that he had been wandering around for days.
"When I spotted him, he collapsed on the ground and had no energy to wake up. He was skeletal.”
One of the group’s representatives, Neeri Naidoo, told The Mercury that the dog was malnourished, hungry and thirsty.
Due to his mutilation he could not eat or drink.
A volunteer in the group, Dianne Bester and other animal rights activists launched a campaign to find the person responsible.
To report known animal abuse in your area, please call your nearest SPCA branch. Report 2016 News 24
