Collies, Collies and more Collies!

This week has definitely been a collie week! We have seen three being adopted and others arriving to take their place and even more waiting for kennel places. One very thin, middle-aged collie female was found dodging traffic near Caernarfon, she may be a difficult dog to rehome as she seems temperamental but time will tell. We are used to nervous, frightened farm dogs here but there seems to be something else at play with this dog. Most of the collies we admit may be shy and timid and even neglected and fearful ,but generally speaking, they usually have wonderful natures . We know from our high adoption success rate that once they lose their fear of people, they will become loving family pets so their initial behaviour is something we know will soon change. Even the house training issue is rarely such a problem that the dog in question is returned. In the fifteen years, we have been in North wales, I seem to remember that only two have ever been returned for that reason. Bearing in mind we have placed hundreds of ex-working sheepdogs into domestic situations that is an amazing result. These working dogs have never been inside a home prior to arriving at the shelter but Collies are so intelligent they seem to adapt quickly to new routines, so if you know someone who is put off having an ex-working dog, please tell them these facts and perhaps they will change their minds.They make fantastic companions in the right (active) home. We don’t admit many small dogs at this shelter unless they are working types like Jack Russells but this week we took in a Pomeranian cross called Max and we were happy to find him a loving home shortly after his arrival. He was a real sweetheart and we knew he would not be with us for very long. Of course, the smaller ones are so much easier to rehome. When we advertise the little ones, we are usually inundated with offers of homes, the youngish collies,too, are popular.Where we struggle is with the older lurchers, hyperactive dogs like Springer Spaniels and anything which is not good with other dogs. The poor Staffordshire bull terriers are also very hard to home unless they are 100 percent with other dogs.Sadly many have been in the wrong hands since very young and have not been socialised with other canines which, although it is not their fault, affects their adoptability. Too many irresponsible staffy and other bull breed people are breeding from their pets and there are far too many being offered for sale or free on internet sites. These people are the bane of my life.

My lovely lurcher Meg is doing much better now she is on treatment and has even had a (very)short gallop round the field.Prior to receiving treatment, she could barely make it out into the yard so it is a great improvement.

A dog with a serious food obsession:- Whisky the old cross mastiff/staff has once again raided my freezer and wolfed down several packets of frozen veg, a vegan pizza(damn him)a packet of vegan sausages (expensive) and a tub of my favourite Swedish Glace chocolate ice cream(devastated). I have tried child locks but he breaks them. Anybody have any other ideas? The greedy so and so is costing me a fortune and it happens at least once a week .I can’t lock him out the room because he and his 2 pals live in the kitchen and need to have access to the freezer room in order to have access to the garden.His weight is also a worry to me as he is getting way too fat on his stolen goodies. It’s just as well I love the old man but this cannot carry on or he will explode, I will starve and my bank account will be empty!

I spent three days back on Merseyside visiting old friends but could have done with more time to get around to see everyone . Next time hopefully. Whilst I was in Liverpool, I popped into the Freshfields shelter and was lucky to see recovering fox Victoria who should soon be able to be released after suffering severely from mange and an eye infection. Of course like all the other fox rescue cases, Victoria is a wild animal and as such, it is important not to interact with her because soon she will be living in the wild again and most humans will not be her friends.Thank you, Paul, for allowing me to have that very special peak at her.Paul does a fantastic job with the sick foxes of the North West and I hope the beautiful Victoria will go back to her old hunting grounds very soon.I also visited the Wildlife unit and was updated by Chelsea on the work they are doing there. When I think of how my ex-partner Steve started this side of Fresh fields work, he would have been so pleased to see how it has developed and become the busy little hospital it is now. It is a fitting memorial to him. Thanks, Chelsea, Laura and Paul and receptionist Fiona for making me feel welcome back at my old home.That meant a lot to me.

Today I have been asked to rehome a 10 months old Nanny Goat who was an abandoned mountain goat kid not long after birth and she has been hand reared and become a real pet. Unfortunately, the people caring for her are shortly to move from their smallholding and they need a home for her as soon as possible. So now we are needing homes for this youngster, Matilda the potbellied pig and three elderly female sheep. We find it very hard to find homes for farm animals so if any readers know anyone who might be interested please let them know about these animals who may not have much longer in their current homes.It must be stressed that we are very careful where farm animals are homed and they are to be pets only. It looks as though our recently admitted horse Duke may have been found a home already.Pending a successful home check to be done this week, he could soon be sharing a home with two other Equines.Fingers crossed for him.

Terrible tragedies in Orlando Florida. First, the nightclub shootings where 100 people were either killed or seriously injured.I imagine that most of you, like me loathe guns. They are weapons of violence and should never be freely available for people to purchase but with America being a land of Hunters , the laws are never likely to change drastically.One of my FB friends lives in Orlando and Vet Randall tells me that there are at least two shootings/murders every day- how terrifying. Then that poor toddler taken by the Alligator. Unspeakable tragedy although I fail to understand the lack of security. The waters in Florida are where alligators have lived since time immemorial, they have been known to take dogs so everybody who lives there understands the dangers.6 of the animals found in the Lagoon were killed in the search for the child and whereby I understand the reason, this could have been avoided. If humans live alongside predators (and let’s not forget humans are the biggest predators of all) the security measures have to be in place at all locations where these creatures make their home.An awful week for those involved in both these tragedies and my heart goes out to all of them.

PS: Dukes home check has passed and collie Meg seems to be behaving more normally which is excellent news. Brilliant.