Help us to save Spanish dogs and cats waiting for their death sentence

Good day, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Before we actually tell you, what lies at our hearts, we would like to introduce ourselves. We are a non-profit organization, registered society Greyhound Adoption Czech Republic, based in Ústí nad Labem and you can find our members all over Czech Republic. As the name is telling, our key activity is greyhound re-homing, we are namely working with retired racing greyhounds from Ireland or Galgos (Spanish greyhounds), which are in Spain waiting for their forever homes and for the people, which finally show them the hand could be gentle and that life with us, the two-legged beings, could be also full of respect and love. This is what these beautiful creatures did not experience before.

We could widely discuss the racing or greyhound problems, but this is not why we are here today. If you are interested in greyhound adoption, you are welcome to look at our website. Today we want to appeal with a very special and concrete request concerning not only greyhounds or sight hounds. This request is our response to horrible news we have received yesterday night from our German partners on the situation in Spain.

Since the situation is urgent, we have decided to give you the information as is and we are trying to get more details.

For these animals the hours are really beating, this is why we do not want to delay in making this information public and we will update you on the new information in our discussions forum.

You know perhaps, they have so-called perreras there in Spain, which in English mean of dog and cat pounds, but the direct translation is: death stations, where are the stray dogs and cats placed. They stay in there for about 2 weeks (in some places just 10 days, elsewhere 20), and wait, whether someone would come in and take them (but nobody would) and after that they are put to sleep. Perrera IS NOT an animal rescue shelter and if for example a wounded or ill animal ends in there, nobody cares and it is just left there to its destiny.

There are some animal lovers and protectors organizations in Spain (pity there is so few of them), which succeeded in gaining some of the perreras under their management (normally the city is managing the perreras or a company paid by city) and these organizations dropped then this cruel rule “two weeks are enough.” Perreras managed by these organizations are operating as animal shelter providing to the animals the basic care (all is limited by lack of financial sources and volunteers) and they are undertaking all the possible activities to put these animals in adoption or adoption programs – mainly in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Netherlands etc.

La Voz Animal is one of them. The organization is managed by Beatriz Menchén and her partner, Maria Garcia Ramirez, and they work in two districts of Madrid. But now animals are in one of the districts, namely in Getafe, threatened by death. Beginning the September 1^st, 2009, this perrera goes back under the city and again a firm paid by city will overtake the management. All the things Beatriz and her friends build up for 11 years are lost and there will be ordinary perrera again, which means step back to the liquidating rules. Starting September, there will be no one to help to these poor animals. Even protests sent by representatives of other foreign organizations (there were more than 100 protests sent out!) did not help. The decision was already made and the next changes related to this pound are put aside for another year. But these animals have not that much time…

And the animals actually in questions, have barely any time. The shelter in Getafe is full of dogs and cats, which are waiting for their death. If they will not be adopted this month, they will be killed early in September, without any exception.

The dogs are all different breeds, also cross-breeds and several sight hounds as well (Spanish galgo and podenco, some greyhounds), various ages, appearance, health conditions, and some of them are ill. But now it is not the time to differentiate.

We feel we should help, because this is an emergency case. We do also know that there other abandoned pets everywhere abandoned in the world; unfortunately, we can’t help all of them. But we are happy for every animal that we were able to help already.

And that is why we are speaking to all of you. Please think about ways you can help. If you cannot give a home to one of them (which would be the best solution), you can help to spread this information around. Or you can help in another way.

Any help or idea is appreciated.

In case you would like to ask us any question, please, do so in the discussion forum HERE.

We can also answer to you in English (or German).

Your questions and our answers may be interesting also to other readers.

We are trying to get more information and are updating the forum several times per day.

If you are interested – please see GO TO THIS WEBSITE, where you can learn about a shelter that is managed by Bea and her friends (the text is in German).

Address of the spanish organization:
La Voz Animal
Beatriz Menchén
Apdo. de Correos 249
28983 Parla (Madrid)
Spain

Address of the German organization, we are normally cooperating regarding to Spanish sight hounds:
Tierschutzförderverein
A.S.P.A. friends Germany e.V.
Andrea Schräg
Mullstrasse 21
27729 Hambergen
Německo

Thank you so much for everything you can do for these animals in need.

Greyhound Adoption Czech Republic, o.s.
Moskevská 9
Ústí n. Labem
Česká republika
http://www.adopcechrtuforum.cz

***

Prosba o pomoc pro španělské psy i kočky, kterým jde o život

Dobrý den, vážené dámy a pánové,

než se rozepíšeme o tom, co máme na srdci, rádi bychom se Vám představili. Jsme občanské sdružení Greyhound Adoption Czech Republic, sídlíme v Ústí nad Labem a naše členy najdete napříč Českou republikou. Jak název napovídá, podstatou naší činnosti je adopce chrtů, a to zejména vysloužilých dostihových greyhoundů z Irska anebo španělských chrtů galgů, kteří v útulcích ve Španělsku čekají na “své lidi”, kteří jim konečně vysvětlí, že ruka umí také hladit, že život s námi dvounožci může být také o respektu a lásce, kterou tato nádherná stvoření dříve nepoznala.

Mohli bychom se široce rozepsat o problematice dostihových chrtů nebo loveckých chrtů, ale proto tady dnes nejsme. Pokud vás toto téma zajímá, budeme rádi, když si projdete naše stránky. Dnes se na vás chceme obrátit se zcela speciální a konkrétní prosbou, která se zdaleka netýká jen chrtů, a kterou reagujeme na katastrofické zprávy o situaci ve Španělsku. Ty jsme od našich německých partnerů obdrželi včera v noci.

Protože situace je urgentní, rozhodli jsme se o ní informovat tak, jak nám byla skutečnost podána, s tím, že se pokoušíme zjistit další podrobnosti.

Ale protože těmto zvířatům doslova tikají hodiny, nechceme se zveřejněním informací otálet a to, co se dozvíme, budeme postupně doplňovat na našem diskuzním fóru.

Možná víte, že ve Španělsku existují tzv. perrery, česky řečeno odchytové stanice, přesněji: stanice smrti, kde jsou umisťováni pejskové a kočičky odchycení na ulici. Zde zůstávají přibližně 2 týdny (někde 10 dní, jinde 20), čeká se, zda se o ně někdo nepřihlásí (jako že nepřihlásí) a potom jsou bez diskuzí utraceni. Perrera NENÍ útulek a pokud se sem dostane zvíře, které je třeba zraněné, nemocné, nikdo se tím nezabývá a je ponecháno svému osudu.

Několika organizacím tvořenými nadšenci a ochranáři zvířat (kterých je ve Španělsku bohužel žalostně málo) se podařilo některé takové perrery dostat pod svou správu (standardně je spravuje město, potažmo jím placená firma) a zrušit kruté pravidlo “dva týdny a dost”. Perrery, o které se tyto organizace starají, fungují jako útulky, kde se zvířatům poskytne alespoň nejnutnější péče (vše je limitováno nedostatkem peněz i dobrovolníků na práci) a jsou podnikány nejrůznější aktivity vedoucí k tomu, aby byla zvířata umisťována do adopce – většinou v Německu, Rakousku, Švýcarsku, Holandsku a pod.

La Voz Animal je právě taková organizace působící pod vedením Beatriz Menchén a jejího partnera, Maria Garcii Ramireze, ve dvou okrscích Madridu. Nyní ovšem zvířatům jednoho z těchto útulků, konkrétně v okrsku Getafe, hrozí smrt. Od 1. září totiž z rozhodnutí města přechází tento útulek zpět pod jeho správu a chod bude zajišťovat firma najatá městem. Z toho, co Beatriz a její přátelé 11 let budovali, se brzy stane opět klasická perrera s návratem k likvidačním pravidlům, takže od září už nebude, kdo by mohl nešťastným zvířatům pomoci. Nepomohly protesty, které posílali i zástupci zahraničních organizací (bylo jich více než sto!), je rozhodnuto, s tím, že o tom, jak to bude s tímto útulkem dál, se bude jednat zase za rok. Tolik času ale ta zvířata nemají…

A zvířata, o které momentálně jde, mají času ukrutně málo. Útulek v Getafe je plný psů i kočiček, které – pokud se je nepodaří v průběhu tohoto měsíce umístit – čeká na začátku září smrt, a to bez diskuzí.

Pejskové jsou různých ras, mezi nimi i míšenci a také řada chrtů (španělský galgo a podenko), jsou různého věku, vzhledu, zdraví i nemocní. Nyní ale není čas na diferenciaci.

Cítíme, že je třeba pomoci, protože toto je stav nouze. Víme, že všude na světě existují opuštěná zvířata, bohužel neumíme pomoci všem. Radujeme se ovšem s každým jedním, kterému jsme pomoci dokázali.

A proto se obracíme na vás všechny. Přemýšlejte, jak můžete pomoci. Pokud si nemůžete vzít domů zvířátko – což by bylo pochopitelně nejlepším řešením, můžete pomoci tím, že tuto informaci rozšíříte dále. Anebo třeba jinak.

Jakákoli myslitelná pomoc či tip jsou vítány.

Pokud se nás chcete na něco zeptat, prosíme ptejte v našem diskuzním fóru: http://www.adopcechrtuforum.cz/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=376

Vaše dotazy a naše odpovědi mohou zajímat i ostatní.

Pokoušíme se získat další informace.

Pro zájemce je zde odkaz na jeden z útulků, o které se stará Beatriz a její přátelé (text je německy): http://www.ein-herz-fuer-windhunde.de/41675.html

Adresa španělské organizace:
La Voz Animal
Beatriz Menchén
Apdo. de Correos 249
28983 Parla (Madrid)
Španělsko

Adresa německé organizace, se kterou spolupracujeme v souvislosti s adopcemi španělských chrtů:
Tierschutzförderverein
A.S.P.A. friends Germany e.V.
Andrea Schräg
Mullstrasse 21
27729 Hambergen
Německo

Za všechno, co se pro tato zvířata v nouzi rozhodnete udělat, Vám patří náš srdečný dík.

Greyhound Adoption Czech Republic, o.s.
Moskevská 9
Ústí n. Labem
Česká republika
http://www.adopcechrtuforum.cz/

Last week, just when I was ready to leave our house, I found a puppy on our street. It was a female dog about one year old and did not have a tag on her collar. She was very dirty but looked healthy. I did not want to introduce her to our dogs since I was not sure if she was aggressive or sick, but certain circumstances forced me to do so. I checked her thoroughly to make sure she was healthy, I gave her a bath since she had fleas all over her coat but I put her in our house separate from my dogs since I was not sure how well she could socialize with other dogs.

I also printed flyers with my phone number and I placed them on every post in my neighborhood. The next day I finally received a phone call from the dog’s owner. I told the owner that I could drop off her dog after 5 PM but she asked me if we could postpone it till 7 PM since she planned a birthday dinner for her husband. That really surprised me because I would not be able to enjoy my birthday if my dog would be missing. What do you think?

The following day I received another phone call from somebody else. I was surprised since I had removed all flyers the day before. This time it was a young teenager that was looking for a male dog. I told him that I found a different dog and asked him when he lost his dog. The boy answered: “I lost him two weeks ago.” I felt sorry for the boy but then I found out that he had never intended to look for him – he did not post flyers and he did not look in local shelters after his dog was missing. Why did he call then?

These things really bother me because I don’t understand why people get pets in the first place and then they don’t care for them. The dog I found was not well trained and just did her own thing the whole time she was here. Luckily she only chewed up our ant trap and not our furniture or our dogs. I could tell she was locked in a backyard in a dirt run and received the minimum of human attention.

Please, think twice before you get your own pet. They need lots of your attention as puppies but also as adults. If you don’t know if you are the right pet owner, you can volunteer at a local shelter or as a foster parent to see if you can become a pet owner.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

YPL

 
Microchips are about the size of a grain of rice. They are tiny radio-frequency devices inserted into a small glass cylinder. Each microchip contains a unique ID number that is linked to the microchip manufacturer’s database. Once you microchip your dog and register with the microchip company, your information will be stored under the ID number your dog has in the microchip. The ID information from the microchip is only activated with the microchip scanner. Don’t worry; your dog won’t be transmitting any radio waves.

You should always accompany your pooch with a collar and ID tag. If your dog is found by somebody in your neighborhood, he or she does not have to go to a shelter or veterinary hospital to have the pet scanned for a microchip. Besides, the ID tag and microchip ID information usually match.

Since microchips are inert and enclosed in a bio-compatible material, you don’t have to worry about an allergic reaction. The insertion procedure is safe and is not more painful than an injection with a needle. Microchips usually stay in the area of insertion but they may move a little bit.

The only problem is that every chip manufacturer uses their own frequencies; thus, not all scanners can read all microchips. Other countries use a standardized set of radio frequencies that conform to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). This will change here, in the United States, too because major manufacturers invested in production of universal scanners.

Here are my suggestions:

• Before you pick a microchip, make sure it is widely compatible with other microchip readers
• Microchip your dog as soon as possible
• Get a collar and ID tag for quick retrievals
• Keep your dogs on leash in unknown areas and let them off the leash only if you are certain there is no harm to your pets or anybody else
• Check the ID tag on regular basis to make sure your phone number is readable (I don’t put names of my pets on ID tags to protect them from being adopted by strangers)
• Walk your dogs in your neighborhood to make them familiar with the area outside your house
• Check your fence for holes or lose screws/nails
• If your dog is too small, use a chicken wire with iron fences

 – Search the web for parks near to you. Pick the best park for your dog’s age and temperament. Does it have water? Is the park clean? How is it fenced? Most of parks have separate areas for small and large dogs. If your dog is old, don’t put him in a playground with many young dogs. The playfulness of puppies can be irritating.

– Grab a couple of plastic bags. Most parks provide plastic bags but you never know and maybe your dog will have to go before you get to the park.

– Grab plenty of water.

– Bring a towel to clean your pet or your muddy shoes.

– Keep toys and treats at home to avoid fights.

– Have a safety pet tote in your car. You don’t want to hurt your pooch while driving. I use a fabric pet crate with a metal frame and I strap it in the middle seat behind the driver seat. Whatever you use, make sure you dog is a safe passenger like everybody else.

– On very hot days, make sure the air conditioning in your car works to avoid heat stroke.

– Always have your pooch on his leash. You should enter and exit the park with your dog on the leash.

– Watch your dog closely during your visits to the dog park to avoid injuries or pack behavior.

– Don’t feed your dog right before playing.

– Watch for aggressive dogs off the leash for your and your dog’s safety.

Did I forget something? Please, let me know.

YPL

Fleas are insects and are actually related to ants, beetles, and even butterflies. Their developmental cycle is most like that of butterflies and moths. Adult fleas feed on your pets’ blood, then mate and produce eggs that fall from the pets’ hair coat into the environment.

Flea females are dependent on food availability. If there is no food, female fleas won’t reproduce and die. If food is present, a flea can lay about 20 eggs at a time. Flea eggs can be found anywhere in your house because they are very smooth and slide off of the host. You can probably find them in your carpet, blankets and even floor cracks.

Maggot-like larvae emerge from eggs and shed their outer skin twice. They are about 1.5 millimeters long and look like white worms. They hide in dark areas, where they remain for their development. They feed on blood particles excreted by adult fleas (flea feces), skin and other debris. These particles and debris are dislodged from a pet’s hair coat and fall into the environment during scratching and movement. Eventually, the last larval stage develops into an adult flea inside a resting cocoon. A flea can stay in its cocoon for up to a year!

When t is stimulated by movement, pressure, heat, or carbon dioxide provided by your pets, the adult flea emerges, jumps on the pet, and begins to feed. All of this takes place in as little as two weeks. However, if conditions are not just right, the life cycle can be prolonged for weeks or months. The best conditions for flea development are at 70 degrees Fahrenheit and 80 percent humidity.

Adult fleas on the pet compromise only 5% of the total flea population. The remaining 95% of fleas are developing in the environment or are waiting as adults in cocoons. Because of this, complete flea control may take several months. Make sure you use insecticides frequently because they usually kill adult fleas but not eggs, thus, new set of fleas can emerge again. 

References:

Byron L. Blagburn. Summertime Blues. Healthy Pet, Summer 2008.

http://animals.howstuffworks.com/insects/flea2.htm

Any person can get this disease but it is mostly common in children and adolescents. It is because they tend to play with cats more than adults. The disease cannot be transmitted from person to person, though.

First, a blister or sore appears on the skin in the area of infection. Then, within two weeks, the lymph nodes nearby become swollen and tender and the skin around them may become warm and red. In adults, the symptoms can be milder and can include low fever, headache, loss of appetite and tiredness. A small portion of infected individuals also develop irreversible retinitis (inflammation of the retina) or encephalitis (inflammation of the brain).

Infected individuals usually recover within three weeks. Depending on severity of the disease, it can be treated with antibiotics or just by putting warm pads on the sore area. You should also consult your veterinarian if you know your cat is transmitting the disease. Don’t worry about your pets; your cats won’t be put to sleep.

You can prevent yourself and family by avoiding stray or unfamiliar cats and by following a strict flea control on your pets.

For the most part, reverse sneezing is a safe reaction to an irritation of throat, pharynx or laryngeal area. This soft palate, which is a fleshy tissue extension of the hard palate, then spasms and causes this scary behavior where your dog turns elbows outward and gasps inwards with a snorting sound.

Some dog breeds are more prone to reverse sneezing than others. It can also be seen in cats but very rarely. Some people say that it is due to collapsing trachea or respiratory infection but it is only a short reaction to throat irritation. The reaction occurs for only a few minutes and your dog recovers back to normal again. Moreover, the episodes may reoccur many times during your dog’s life.

My dogs have these episodes all the time. They usually happen when I come home and wake them up. Sometimes they reverse sneeze after eating or playing outside. I usually sit next to them and calm them down by rubbing their back but my husband prefers massaging the throat. Veterinary handbooks recommend closing dogs’ nostrils and forcing the dogs to breathe through their mouths. You can also try blowing in dog’s face or force it to swallow.

Reverse sneezing is usually nothing to worry about but in some chronic cases antihistamines or steroids may be used as alternative treatments. Click HERE to watch a video or read more by clicking the links below.

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp
http://vetmedicine.about.com/od/diseasesconditionsfaqs/f/FAQ_revsneeze.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inspiratory_paroxysmal_respiration

YPL

https://lovepets4ever.com/cute-pictures/

• Fresh ‘n Clean, Oxy-Strength with Arm & Hammer Deodorizers – to remove the stain and smell
• Boundary – Indoor/Outdoor Dog Repellent Pump Spray – to protect from future soiling

Both products above keep my house fresh.

The cleaner smells very nice. It contains hydrogen peroxide, therefore, wear gloves to protect your hands. It does no harm to upholstery fabric or carpet.

I use the dog repellent frequently to remind my dogs not to mark their territory anymore. It has a little smell but it disappears when it is dry. The trick behind this product is that you have to use it every day to break the habit of re-soiling. If you skip a day or two, your dog may come to that favorite spot and pee again. I recommend spraying for a month to break the habit and then once a while re-spraying. Be careful with your furniture. Our stained chest wasn’t finished and the cleaner bleached it.

YPL

“Why does a dog wag its tail? Because a dog is smarter than its tail. If the tail was smarter, it would wag the dog.” You would think that dogs don’t control their tail and that is why they chase it from time to time. However, they actually use it to communicate with others along with the rest of their body language. 

People believe that a very high tail that barely wags or only at its tip indicates the dog is ready to attack. On the other hand, a wide and horizontal wag is understood as happiness and friendliness. These are very good presumptions but they can sometimes be misleading. Along with watching dogs’ tails, you also should observe the whole body language to interpret what your dogs are trying to say.

Playful: A playful dog invites others with a play bow or pawing the air. It may grin and wag its tail and run around in circles or roll over. The ears are flattened or directed forward, the teeth are covered with the lips and the bark is higher-pitched.

Confident: A confident dog is standing tall with tail up wagging in a lower sweep. The ears are pricked up or relaxed. The look is direct and pupils are smaller.

Fearful: A frightened dog has a lowered stance. The tail is hanging low or can be tucked under. Its head is down with ears laid back. The dog usually looks away and pupils are dilated. To keep a distance from others, it usually barks out of fear and can become a fear-biter.

Aggressive: An aggressive dog has stiff legs and body. It usually growls or shows its teeth. The ears are pinned back close to the head and pupils are dilated. The tail is straight up, stiff or slightly waging.

Friendly: A friendly or curious dog has its tail down and waging it in wide sweeps. The ears are down as well and the fur along its shoulders is smooth and back. The dog would sniff you first before looking up directly in your eyes.

Dominant: A dominant dog stands over another dog, standing tall hooking its chin or paw over another dog’s shoulders. The tail is standing up. The dog would calmly accept other dogs licking at its lips.

Submissive: A submissive dog lowers the head and body, lies on its belly or rolls on back. The tail is down or between the legs. The ears are flattened and fur is smooth along its back.

Stressed: A stressed dog is usually shaking, whining and his ears are pulled back. It can also be panting with corner of its mouth pulled back. The tail is down, body is lowered and its pupils are dilated giving a “glassy eye” look.

Calming: A dog is reducing stress through calming that includes yawning, looking away, lip-licking, moving slowly, sniffing the ground, sitting or lying down. The tail is down and slightly waging.

It is important to distinguish each of the states described above. You dogs can’t talk to you directly, thus, observing their body will help you to understand them better.

Related books:

Canine Body Language, A Photographic Guide by Brenda Aloff

City Dog by Patricia Curtis