Well, I am back! The reason for my long silence is because I was caught up in another joy...that of minding dogs, taking them out for walks, grooming and caressing them with love...yes, I became a volunteer at the Hong Kong Dog Rescue Centre in Tai Po! I started in October last year and have since found myself waking up each morning with a new purpose, going everyday from Monday to Friday except for the intermittent short periods when I went back to Singapore.
The Hong Kong Dog Rescue (HKDR) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to the rescuing, rehabilitation and re-homing of unwanted or abandoned dogs and puppies. It was founded by a very compassionate animal lover called Sally Anderson, who has spent her whole life caring for the abandoned and helpless stray dogs in Hong Kong and saving them from being put down by the AFCD (Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department). Apart from Tai Po which has about 400+ resident dogs of multi breed, she also has another homing centre in Ap Lei Chau which houses the smaller breeds.
The reason I started writing is because I am grounded...from a painful left knee. Despite several visits to the doctors, it was an MRI that finally showed a torn meniscus which needed surgical intervention. I am recuperating at home, mindful of the doctors's advice that it will take 8 weeks.... all in the hope of regaining the same agility to walk as before, so I can continue to take the dogs out for their daily walks. How I miss the dogs in Tai Po, many of whom I know by name, and would come to me when I call them. They are intelligent, sweet-natured and adorable dogs and they clearly love human touch and affection. Alas, they are always passed over in favour of the 'pedigree' breeds.
However, not all are in vain...Sally holds an adoption drive every Sunday at Whiskers and Paws, while the Tai Po Kennel is open everyday for potential adopters to come and view the dogs. Apart from the love of dogs, it is hope and prayers that sustain me to go everyday...and since Oct, when I started, I have seen many of these dogs found their forever homes and loving families they can call their own. Yes, I miss Tamara, Mac, Elsie, Pie, Tessie, Cyril, Portia, Naya, Horizon, Bridget, Waterlily, Sadie, Rhea, Adam, Brazilia, Reno and Heidi to name a few. They will be forever in my thoughts and in my heart. Although the volunteers and I share the same mixed feelings of joy and sadness when these dogs are adopted, we are nevertheless, very happy and grateful knowing that they now enjoy the love and comfort of a home they deserve.
They are the few lucky ones, but to me, the real luck goes to the adopters. They have done a good deed by saving a life; and soon they will discover the immeasurable joy, the fun, laughter, companionship and family bonding that the dog can bring into their lives. Talk to anyone with a pet dog and he will tell you of their dogs' unconditional love, their unwavering loyalty as they sit at the front door everyday, waiting for them to come home from work, the exuberance they exhibit on seeing them, and the patience they show waiting for them to prepare their food, or to take them out for walks.
Everyone should know that taking in a dog is a life-long commitment. It becomes a member of the family and it is our duty to care for it, to feed it, clean it, take it out for daily walks and nurse it back to health when it is sick. In the process, we learn to be selfless and responsible and we gain invaluable lessons in service, sacrifice and love. Wouldn't these be values we would like to pass on to our children? A pet I was told, brings out the best in a person, and for the love we give them, they return it a thousand-fold...teaching us to enjoy the moment, to take time to play,... teaching us life's lessons on patience, loyalty, forgiveness and simplicity.
Adopt a dog and save a life
-HKDR-
Dogs help us to appreciate the world around us. They smell the ground so
Intensely. They look at trees as though they are seeing them for the first
time. It helps us to remember the wonders that we take for granted.
- Cesar Milan-
Note: This blog was written in August 2014, but was not posted until now (Feb 2015)! Since then, many dogs I came to love in HKDR have found their forever homes...and I would like to remember them here: they are Daphne, Dougal & Amos (adopted together), Aliz, Boosh, Scrabble, Gibbon, Edie, Copper, Le Roy, Archie, Lucius, Marco, Tiptoe, Meredith, Fred (a Rottweiler), Wilson (adopted to New York), Clementine (adopted to Vancouver), Maple (a Husky), Muffin and Puffin (2 cute puppies abandoned in a box outside the Tai Po Homing Centre), Ethan, Dalphine, Putty, Spec, Guinness and last but not least, Desiree and Diva (two beautiful Dobermans, sadly abandoned but perhaps a blessing in disguise as they now found families who adore them).
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