Two 5 week old female puppies were left in a box by the shelter gate this morning. This brings the current PPS total to 99 dogs and cats in need of food, medication and love!

Our current dog & cat food bill is $75 u.s. a day – $525 per week – and food is just one of the basic necessities. The shelter needs a minimum $3,500u.s. per month in order for all the animals to survive.

Hattie needs extra food. She has suffered a life of starvation and deprivation. Although emaciated, she has fed 7 puppies and has been a wonderful mother, but it has left her drained and exhausted. Now the puppies are weaned, we need to bring Hattie back up to full health and strength. Her daily kibble ration is not enough and she continues to lose weight, however, with so many mouths to feed, there are no available funds for additonal food.

Houston is unwell. He is suffering from Ehrlichiosis and another blood related illness, which he is thought to have had for some months prior to his arrival at the shelter. Fortunately, the drugs needed to treat his condition have been donated along with many others by kind U.S. and Canadian vets.

Houston was previously involved in a road traffic accident and suffered a broken pelvis. A lot of care has gone into his rehabilitation and we are so pleased and proud that not only is he now able to walk again, but he can run and play too! His blood problems however, have caused him to fail to put on weight, so he too is in urgent need of extra nourishment.

Although new medication has helped, Pippa continues to be weak and frail. She is unable to weight bear and so at this time is almost completely disabled. We are hand feeding her, cleaning her, keeping her circulation active and her limbs mobile to prevent further muscle wastage. This needs to be done every couple of hours throughout the day and night. This is completely exhausting, but worthwhile if it ensures her recovery. Pippa is not actively ’suffering’, but if she continues to make no improvement, we will need to assess her future quality of life. Our lives are dedicated to helping these beautiful creatures to survive. It is just so heartbreaking when love and dedication are simply not enough…..

Oscar continues to do well. Look out for a very special Oscar update coming soon!

I am pleased to report that Pippa, although still very frail, has regained some strength over the past 24 hours, which is really encouraging. She is now eating small amounts on her own and no longer requires syringe feeding. Pippa spends most of her day in her bed sleeping, but she is very addicted to her ‘Daddy cuddles’ with Andy and if she knows that he is home, she will squeal loudly and persistently until he picks her up! Although the improvement in her condition is slight, she no longer appears to be fading, which is great news. At the end of last week, we seriously felt that she would live for no more than a few more days. Please continue to keep her in your thoughts and send out those positive vibes – I feel sure it has made a difference!

Sadly, the little brown puppy from last week’s litter didn’t make it. His hookworm damage was so great and he required such strong medication that we knew there was a chance that either the hookworm or the medicine would prove too much for his tiny body. Sometimes the medicines are too harsh for such small bodies but without being treated, the hookworm will prove fatal anyway. Definitely a case of being caught between a rock and a hard place! Happily, both his brothers are doing well.

Vets tell us that given the conditions under which street dog puppies here are born, as well as the generations of malnutrition in their background, a 20% litter survival rate should be considered a success. While we should therefore be pleased that 50% of this litter has survived, we cannot help but feel so sad for the loss of the two beautiful pups who didn’t make it. We are however, thrilled that the litter of 7 beautiful pups born to poor emaciated little Hattie have all survived and are growing and flourishing! Well done Hattie for being such a wonderful mother against all odds!

There were adoptions this weekend to wonderful families: 3 month old kitten ‘Faith’

Little ‘Chorizo’, the dog that was recently rescued from the local government pound

‘Delilah’, who has been with us since 2008. She and the rest of her litter were just 12 weeks old when they arrived, so we are thrilled that Delilah finally has a new home of her very own! Delilah has always been a very shy dog and the shelter is the only home she has ever known. We anticipate therefore, that it will take some time for her to adapt to her new surroundings and way of life, but we are confident that Paul and Rachel are just the right people to make it happen!

Rachel, Paul & Delilah

Two new pups and one new young dog arrived this weekend. Both puppies were individually found at the side of the road, one by Oscar (the kind gentleman who Oscar the pitbull is named for) and one by Andy. The puppy found by Oscar has now been adopted by his brother’s family!

The puppy found by Andy is a 9 week old female ‘Una’

Una

7 month old ‘Tanya’ has been living on the street since birth. A kind family have been feeding Tanya and her sister. Both young dogs are very nervous and unused to human contact. The family managed to catch Tanya but were unable to catch her sister. We too tried but were unable to get near her. The family are going to carry on feeding her and trying to catch her as she is in an environment where food is not readily available and her presence is unwanted by the people in the neighborhood.

Tanya

The recent story about beautiful Bailey the little handicapped Pomeranian has led me to write about my own ‘challenged’ little dog.

Her name is Sugarmouse and she is 10 months old. She came to us just a few months ago. Dirty, bedraggled, very, very frightened and suffering from distemper. Fortunately her symptoms were mild and she recovered quickly. While she was extremely fortunate to survive, this truly horrific disease left it’s mark as she sustained damage to her central nervous system. Her limbs jerk and twitch constantly. Her head nods and when she sleeps she wheezes as the muscle contractions force the breath from her little body. For the majority of dogs in this condition, it is often kinder to euthanize. Sugarmouse however, loves life. She plays, she wrestles and she runs up and down the stairs at hyper speed. Because her body is in constant motion with never a moment of rest, I don’t quite understand why she isn’t tired all the time. She is, however a bundle of energy. She is very wary of strangers and for the moment her love is restricted to her immediate family – myself, Andy and Adam – and puppies, she LOVES puppies!

As her condition and her selective affection were obviously going to make it hard to re-home her, I made the decision to adopt her for myself. Our love is mutual and when I am home she is never far from my side.

Her condition may shorten her life and she may not be with me for very long but for now we are happy just to be in each others company.

Many thanks to everyone for your kind words and thoughts with regard to Pippa. She is now thought to be suffering from a serious viral infection. She has been put on a new course of drugs. If she can survive the next 10 days then it is hopeful that she will pull through. I will keep you posted.

This is Pippa. She is 8 months old and has been with us since just one week after she was born. Her mother is a Jack Russell/Chihuahua mix and her father is also a very small dog. Pippa was one of a litter of 6 very tiny puppies, 5 of which grew to be small, beautiful, wonderful pets. Pippa was no smaller than the rest of the puppies but at around 4 months of age she ceased to grow and develop. She is just 10 inches tall, with long spindly legs and she weighs next to nothing.

Now she is fading…..fast. Our vet can find nothing wrong with her, she is just not thriving. Day by day she grows weaker. This time last week she could run up and down the stairs and would run to greet us when we came home. Today she can barely walk to the food and water bowls. She is so frail. She is not sick or in pain. Euthanasia is not an option here right now except for animals that are truly suffering due to controlled drug related issues.

This little dog holds a very special place in our hearts and we will be devastated by her passing. It is so hard to watch her weaken and be powerless to help.

We would be grateful for any advice, ideas or suggestions.

The story of Oscar, the sad little pit bull has touched the hearts of many people around the world. It gives us great joy to know that in these troubled times, the light of warmth , kindness and generosity burns brightly in the souls of so many. We at PPS, Oscar and our other beautiful, amazing creatures are so very grateful to each and every one of you for giving us the opportunity to bask in the wondrous glow of your gracious spirits.

One of our PPS Board members (Ciaron Lewis) has been campaigning tirelessly for the release of the two Brampton dogs, torn from the arms of their loving owners and condemned to death. (Click here for more info)

Why must they die?

Their ‘crime’ is that they ‘look’ as if there is pit bull blood somewhere in their genetic makeup.
Are these dangerous dogs? Have they attacked, mauled or bitten anyone…..ever? Have they shown such signs of aggression as to make any one single person in their presence feel unsafe?

No.

Why have we saved Oscar? He is not a mix he is a pit bull through and through. Should he die because of this? Clearly some would think so.

Thousands upon thousands of people have lost their lives due to views such as this.

We now extend these views to encompass our animals.

Is this progress?

If you had lived a life of ill-treatment, hardship, neglect, abuse, mutilation…..if you had been kicked, beaten, attacked with a machete, been scarred and maimed for life…..how would you view the race that had been the cause of your ills? Would you be sweet, gentle, playful and loving?

Oscar is. Oz is. Aurelia is. Max is. Thor is. Pogo is. Biscuit is…..and far too many more to mention.

Life. Love. Dignity. Respect.

For all.

Is that too much to ask?

Oscar, a 'dangerous' dog

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Love and blessings to you all for your ongoing help and support!