Love and Survival

[streetcar]

A street dog has been a resident in our neighborhood for at least a few years.  We've watched her drink street water and dine on chicken scraps from the butcher up the street.   We regularly put out bowls of table left overs, kibble  and the occasional doggie num num.  She eats pretty well.  We've watched her get soaked in the rainy season and dusty in the dry.  We've watched as she's had at least two litters of pups sired by whichever wandering minstrel happened by.   

We and our band of merry compatriots dubbed her Blanca.  She's feral having lived on the street for too many years, afraid of everything and everyone.  Try as we might, we could never get Blanca into the yard or be allowed any physical contact.  She is a survivor.

Only in the past month or so has she come to trust us enough to take homemade treats from outstretched fingers which was remarkable given her 3 meter comfort zone.  It was during one of these encounters that we noticed she was pregnant again.  We upped the street feeding to twice a day with higher protein foods but the 3 meter buffer had to be respected.

We've been agonizing this past week about the birth we expected any day.  Should we try to get Blanca and her pups out of the over grown vacant lot up the street? will the pups survive? will Blanca have enough to eat and so on and so forth.

After an unusual two day feeding absence we rightly concluded the pups had arrived.  This morning, food dish in hand, we found the pup nest amongst the weeds and grass.  Eight little balls of bawling fur had arrived.  We returned with the little fur faces but Blanca kept her distance following in spite of her fear.  Maternal instincts won out thankfully as she came into the bodega to be with her now well swaddled litter.

So now we have 8 tiny pups , four boys and four girls, and one very wary street dog as new tenants.  We're busy preparing food, water, bedding and slowly but surely gaining the trust of Blanca.   It's hard to say what the next few days and weeks will hold but I do know that we will be safe and very well treated.  Tuesday, November 22 is their birthday.

Still reliant on momma for 8-10 weeks, we're inviting forever parents to stop by and pick the puppy of your choice.  We'll make sure they're healthy with necessary vet care and you're welcome to cuddle and spoil your puppy as often as you like.  They come to you innocently with no bad habits and await your kind training and instruction.  There is a nominal fee to offset our basic expenses, all we want is good forever parents to one of these sweet little balls of fur.  We will post pictures of the beautiful babies in the coming weeks.  Watch for your pup.  You will have a forever friend providing security, love and comfort.

[RVGRINGO]

Good story and a very good advertisement for puppies. Well done!

[MarkWebles]

Yeah, super story. 8 more dogs no one wants. Did it never occur to you, not even once, to have her spayed? Have you ever considered just how many litters these street dogs have in their lifetimes? Do you realize that the animal rescue organizations lakeside usually struggle at capacity with unwanted dogs and cats? Do you know how many dogs get dumped every year, and do you know that the volume jumps every Spring when the snowbirds leave (How does someone just dispose of a pet when it becomes inconvenient)?

You want to paint yourself the hero? Do the right thing and have her spayed when she's recovered. ...and try not to profit too much.

 

 

[streetcar]

Thank you very much for your concern Mark.  We've tried catching her with nets, tranquillized her twice and even asked the vet to use a dart gun.  Nothing worked although the vet offered to "fix" her as soon as she's caught.   She's far too street wise and unfortunately we've been unsuccessful in every attempt.  Now that she's in our immediate care you may sleep easy tonight knowing she will be spayed when the pups are weened.  And yes, we do know about the alarming number of street dogs but couldn't bring ourselves to abandon the innocent. 

[Wookie]

Streetcar, thanks so much for your time and effort in making a home for these pups.  It is fantastic that you all were able to finally have an incentive for the feral Mom to come into the fold as well.  Hopefully over the next few weeks she will become comfortable enough to be able to be checked out by a Vet as well.  If you decide you are able and want to participate in having her spayed, we will be happy to help with the expense.  Wish we could take one of the puppies but our quota has been met?.  Thanks again for feeding this Mom and taking care of her as much as she would allow.

 

[streetcar]

By the way ... a fee is solely to deter those who may not have the best interest of the dogs in mind.  I'm disappointed you think our motive is financial.

[streetcar]

16 minutes ago, Wookie said:

Streetcar, thanks so much for your time and effort in making a home for these pups.  It is fantastic that you all were able to finally have an incentive for the feral Mom to come into the fold as well.  Hopefully over the next few weeks she will become comfortable enough to be able to be checked out by a Vet as well.  If you decide you are able and want to participate in having her spayed, we will be happy to help with the expense.  Wish we could take one of the puppies but our quota has been met?.  Thanks again for feeding this Mom and taking care of her as much as she would allow.

 

Thanks Wookie, your kind and generous offer for vet expenses is appreciated.  Our Vet has offered to spay, deworm and render whatever other treatment momma may need - all pro bono.  He's a good man.

[suegarn]

2 hours ago, MarkWebles said:

Yeah, super story. 8 more dogs no one wants. Did it never occur to you, not even once, to have her spayed? Have you ever considered just how many litters these street dogs have in their lifetimes? Do you realize that the animal rescue organizations lakeside usually struggle at capacity with unwanted dogs and cats? Do you know how many dogs get dumped every year, and do you know that the volume jumps every Spring when the snowbirds leave (How does someone just dispose of a pet when it becomes inconvenient)?

You want to paint yourself the hero? Do the right thing and have her spayed when she's recovered. ...and try not to profit too much.

 

 

MarkWebles, if you had actually taken the time to read streetcar's original post, you'll see that the dog was very nervous, and didn't want to get too close to humans.  After a lot of patience and care, they were finally able to gain the trust of the dog.  So, how do you propose that they could have gotten her spayed before, if she wouldn't let them near her?

I think you were too quick to judge and very rude with your last comment.

[Newjersey expat]

I agree street dogs /cats can be very ski-dish. Long story short we had 2 street ( really lake dogs) living below us for several years. Fortunately Dr. Ladron spayed them. One was killed and the other was so lonely and grieving, she hardly ever came out of a makeshift leanto ( 4years old and never washed) I would bring her food several times a week. Well one day she came up to my door for food so I let her in and fed her and she would leave ( went on for several months)One day she decided not to leave. She layed on hr back and just would not go.She wants so much petting and attention now that she trusts me. So she slept out side on some old towels.  It took several weeks before she would put her paw over the door way and several weeks before she actually came into the house. Not sure she ever saw a house inside. So now she sleeps on a sofa on the veranda. We had her groomed and all the shots since we have 2 other dogs.  They pretty much ignore her and she seems to be accepting who is the alpha dog.   If I had not been feeding her for months, I think the process would have been much slower.

[MtnMama]

Streetcar

Thank you so much for taking responsibility for these puppies. Too many people just dump them off in a box at one of the local shelters when they are 4 or 5 weeks old. Anita's just got a dozen dropped off a few days ago.and The Ranch has puppies galore. I haven't talked to Lucky Dog but I expect they have their share as well. Take photos when they are about 5 weeks old and post them here, on TOB and on Facebook. Best of luck with finding homes.

[camillenparadise]

Bless you, NewJersey Expat!

[HarryB]

&BTW bless you!!!!

 

[bdlngton]

On 11/27/2016 at 5:43 PM, streetcar said:

A street dog has been a resident in our neighborhood for at least a few years.  We've watched her drink street water and dine on chicken scraps from the butcher up the street.   We regularly put out bowls of table left overs, kibble  and the occasional doggie num num.  She eats pretty well.  We've watched her get soaked in the rainy season and dusty in the dry.  We've watched as she's had at least two litters of pups sired by whichever wandering minstrel happened by.   

We and our band of merry compatriots dubbed her Blanca.  She's feral having lived on the street for too many years, afraid of everything and everyone.  Try as we might, we could never get Blanca into the yard or be allowed any physical contact.  She is a survivor.

Only in the past month or so has she come to trust us enough to take homemade treats from outstretched fingers which was remarkable given her 3 meter comfort zone.  It was during one of these encounters that we noticed she was pregnant again.  We upped the street feeding to twice a day with higher protein foods but the 3 meter buffer had to be respected.

We've been agonizing this past week about the birth we expected any day.  Should we try to get Blanca and her pups out of the over grown vacant lot up the street? will the pups survive? will Blanca have enough to eat and so on and so forth.

After an unusual two day feeding absence we rightly concluded the pups had arrived.  This morning, food dish in hand, we found the pup nest amongst the weeds and grass.  Eight little balls of bawling fur had arrived.  We returned with the little fur faces but Blanca kept her distance following in spite of her fear.  Maternal instincts won out thankfully as she came into the bodega to be with her now well swaddled litter.

So now we have 8 tiny pups , four boys and four girls, and one very wary street dog as new tenants.  We're busy preparing food, water, bedding and slowly but surely gaining the trust of Blanca.   It's hard to say what the next few days and weeks will hold but I do know that we will be safe and very well treated.  Tuesday, November 22 is their birthday.

Still reliant on momma for 8-10 weeks, we're inviting forever parents to stop by and pick the puppy of your choice.  We'll make sure they're healthy with necessary vet care and you're welcome to cuddle and spoil your puppy as often as you like.  They come to you innocently with no bad habits and await your kind training and instruction.  There is a nominal fee to offset our basic expenses, all we want is good forever parents to one of these sweet little balls of fur.  We will post pictures of the beautiful babies in the coming weeks.  Watch for your pup.  You will have a forever friend providing security, love and comfort.

What area is this?  It sounds like the dog I called  Guera in upper Riberas.  She would never let me near her but had at least two litters I knew of.  Glad you found and are caring for the pups.  Ignore posters who obviously can't read.

[luvsdawgs]

Ignore the ignorant and rude posters who have trouble reading the simplest sentence. You are doing a fantastic service, both to the mother, the pups and the community. If there were more people like you and fewer such as the pompous and arrogant Mark Webles the world would be a much, much better place. Thank you for all you are doing.

w