What’s been happening at the Shelter this week?

It’s been a busy week at the Shelter. New arrivals, animals in need, meetings about the registration, and two volunteers to help!

Albert

Tysan spotted this pup (kindly named Albert by one of our supporters) at our gates. He was in such a horrible condition we had to take him in. He was skeleton thin, extremely dirty, full of fleas with a bloated tummy, very malnourished and dehydrated. He was desperate for some food, had a bath, and we treated him for fleas and worms. There was a bald patch around his neck where his hair had worn away, suggesting he had been tied up with a collar on. Terrified of the other dogs, even the young pups, he screamed and cowered in fear. However he soon learnt he could relax, and has really grown in confidence, and started making new friends. He has a dip in his back, so we will be taking him to the vets for x-rays once he has settled.

Georgia

Someone must have dumped a little female dog near the shelter because 2 minutes earlier we drove past the same spot and there was no sign of her then. She was frozen with fear. As Tony approached her she looked as if to run away so he knelt down and she crawled over on her tummy, but never made eye contact. Tony could not leave her because she was trembling with fear. She has been named Georgia by our volunteer, Jess. She is still very timid but wants to trust us so much. We are sure we will see a big improvement over the next few days.

Smoky

Yesterday Tony was on his way back to the Shelter when he saw a dog carrying something in its mouth. He thought it was a rabbit, but he stopped and saw that it was a cat, so went running after the dog until it dropped the cat. Tony grabbed the cat, but the dog tried to attack again so he had to defend the both of them. Tony was shaking and shocked after the chase, and brought the cat – who was covered in blood and in bad shape – back to the Shelter. Diane named him Smoky, cleaned the horrible wound on his neck, and gave him anti-biotics and painkillers. We are taking Smoky to the vet in Plovdiv today.

Diane with the pups

A feral forest dog gave birth underneath a house at the edge of the forest. She seemed to have stopped going back to the pups, and they started to wander and get themselves into trouble so we needed to step in.

Our volunteers Leanne and Jess, who are with us at the Shelter this week, helped with the pup rescue. They have also been spending time with the other dogs and cats. If you would like to volunteer at the Shelter please visit http://www.streetdogrescue.com/volunteeratdogshelter.htm

We continue to work towards our Shelter registration. Signs in Bulgarian were created for our vehicle to say we are transporting live animals. We also received the magnetic signs for the car with the RSDR name and logo. We are still waiting for a decision from Sofia on the vehicle application, and hopefully will know more next week. On Friday we were in Plovdiv all day, and sorted out the contract for medical waste. We are hoping quotations from the new builders will come through next week.

We still have a long way to go with our fundraising to keep the Shelter open. If you can help with a donation, no matter how small, please visit http://www.youcaring.com/saveourshelter.

Thank you from everyone at RSDR.