Dumaguete Animal Sanctuary

Every Life Matters

Dog Update

Izzy

Izzy

On July 29 2021, we rescued a young female dog and her puppy from extreme neglect. She and the puppy were tied up with no food, shelter or water, and must have been like that for a long time.  The owner signed them over to us.

They were both full of worms and other parasites, and were dangerously underweight.  She weighed just 4.6 kilos, which is around the weight a four-month old puppy should be.  Izzy's blood tests showed her to be in a critical state and we began preparations for a blood transfusion.  

Ozzy when rescued

We put her on an IV, and bought her into the clinic, but sadly she gave up the fight around 10am on Sunday 1 August 2021.  Ozzy lives on, but without a mother.  We are so sorry Izzy, and words can't properly express our profound sadness and bewilderment as to how an animal can be left to die in this manner.

Izzy after rescue

Puppies in the Great Outdoors

Puppies in the Great Outdoors

When rescued puppies get a bit bigger, it's the best time to get them used to a collar or harness and leash or lead, and leave the comfort of the Sanctuary and explore THE GREAT OUTDOORS for the first time!

Dean out for a walk

Seeing these young dogs grow in confidence with each exploration is very rewarding, and we hope that their familiarity with the concept of "going for a walk" prepares them for life with an active family. Here are Sara, Dean, Juno and Gretal checking out life outside the Sanctuary.  If you want to know more about Adopting one of these lovelies, visit our Adoptions page.

Red

Red

On July 18 2021, we rescued a young female dog with a broken front leg. We named her after the reporters Facebook name, Red.
She was a sweet little girl but is suffering from mange and malnutrition.

On 24 July, she died during surgery for amputation of her leg. The surgery actually went very well but just as the vets were closing her surgery wound she started going into respiratory distress. We put her on oxygen immediately, but she then had a cardiac arrest. Despite our best efforts to resuscitate her, she died.
Some dogs for various reasons can't handle the anaesthesia.  We are so sorry Red.

Red when rescued

Despite our best efforts to resuscitate her, she died.
Some dogs for various reasons can't handle the anaesthesia.  We are so sorry Red.

Rabies – The Truth

The Truth About Rabies

We are seeing an increasing number of Rabies cases in our rescues - two having been at the Sanctuary for a number of days - Nebula and Scarjo.   There are a number of misconceptions about Rabies so here are some true facts.

True Rabies Facts

  • Dogs are NOT born with Rabies - they only get infected from the saliva of an infected animal
  • Rabies is 100 percent fatal for both humans and animals
  • Dogs are only infectious and therefore dangerous when they are showing clinical signs - as the virus needs to have traveled through the brain to the salivary glands before it can be passed on
  • The only way to protect yourself and your pets is to get vaccinated
  • The Rabies vaccination is one of THE most effective vaccines there is

From time to time we are able to offer FREE rabies vaccinations for dogs and cats at the Sanctuary.  
Please get in touch with us to find out more.

Scarjo

Scarjo

On July 13 2021, we received reports of a dog hacked with some sort of knife, which split open her face and damaged her eye beyond repair.
Doc Pierre had to remove her eye unfortunately.

The surgery was successful, and Scarjo was seemingly making a recovery. She has been very placid and friendly the whole time she has been here until she suddenly started growling and trying to bite the staff.

Scarjoe after surgery

Within the next couple of hours she started to rapidly get worse, showing all the symptoms of Rabies (find out more about Rabies here).
We put her inside the clinic for the night.  In the morning she was able to still sit up but by lunchtime she was unable to.  She exhibited all the signs that indicate her brain is being destroyed by the virus.

What's alarming is the number of Rabies cases we are seeing recently.
There is no possibility that Nebula and Scarjo got it at the shelter. If a dog has Rabies it is only contagious in the very final stages when the virus has traveled through the brain and reached the salivary glands, which usually takes a minimum of 10 days, and often more than 50 days after the initial infection.  Signs of rabies are very obvious at this time.
Our only option sadly was to put her to sleep. We are so sorry Scarjo.