Yesterday one of the ‘13 in 2 hours‘ pups now living in a separate enclosure all to themselves, developed a deadly symptom of parvo-virus, bloody poo.

We rushed her to the vet and after the virus was confirmed to be present and also very strong (from the speed the test kit reacted!) she was given anti – everything and put on a drip to replace her fluids and in a perky but slightly wobbly condition she returned to the shelter and went into our quarantine area with a heat lamp, a drip (nothing to do with the fact it hasn’t stopped raining for several days) and a comfortable bed for the night.

Well today she was first to be seen by the vet on the Monday vet run.

When I picked her up, curled in a ball, alone in her clinical enclosure to visit the vet, my heart leaped to my throat. “Is she dead”, was my first thought but her pupils responded to light and her rib cage moved but very slightly with each shallow breath. Death was close.

Angel, as I had named her, was admitted immediately and kept warm & comfortable with the drip closely monitored.

Sadly a couple of hours later we received a call to say she had passed away.

He poor little body had not been quite strong enough for the virulent virus that kills so many youngsters that firstly have low immunity as they have been snatched away from their mother & her health providing milk and secondly if the youngsters are not vaccinated against these killers.

4 weeks ago, after these little pups were dumped at the shelter gate, they were inducted to the shelter with the usual de – worm, flea, tick treatments and also received their first vaccinations. They were just about to receive their second round of shots and …. well the rest your know already.

Rest in Peace little Angel, your suffering is over.

Her siblings are no also in quarantine, individually housed to identify if any others develop bloody poo.

Also along on the trip today were Sheena, Toe, Ice Cream & a village dog called Fon.

Fon came along for an assessment on a growth in her groin area. Turns out she has a mammary tumor and will possibly have it removed in a weeks time if the owner agrees.

Toe, who suffered from Distemper 3 months ago, just hasn’t stopped coughing and the vet today said his lungs were very rattly and he needs stronger antibiotics to help him overcome pneumonia.

Sheena was next to be seen and I must tell you, it always a great pleasure to be in her company and after 3 years of seeing this doggy in & out of the shelter, we seem to talk a lot and get on as friends.

This week she has developed a bloody vaginal discharge and male dogs are taking an interest in her rear end. This to any doggy person will suggest that she is on heat. Well she was sterilised 3 years ago and therefore it is impossible for her to be on heat.

But after her recent treatment of cancer of the Lymph system, she has just been taken off of medication and the vet suggests that this symptom may be indicative of an Ovarian Cyst.

So we shall monitor her condition for another couple of weeks and then possibly look at an xray / ultrasound to assess further.

Last up today was Ice Cream, a young puppy who 3 months ago was examined by the vet to assess why she had a lump on her hip / thigh. It transpired she had deformed bones, possibly from not getting enough of her mothers milk… ring any bells ?

Ice Cream’s left femur was shorter than the right and there was lots of calcification around the head of the bone.

This morning it was clear that she had a larger lump than last time and was limping badly. The new xray revealed it all. The head of the femur, at the lower (knee) end, had completely broken away from the femur.

The vet said all we could do was to confine her in a small area, make her rest and give her pain killer and calcium to support her recovery.

The vet said that no operation was possible and it could not be splinted or pinned.

Poor little girl.

Just as we were leaving the vet clinic, I met 2 very important folks, Kh Padee & Kh Pajan, who do so much for dogs in Chiang Mai. Visiting temples, finding dogs in need and trying to help as many as possible, today they brought a dog from Wat Phra Sing who had stopped eating.

Turns out that Parvo-virus is going to cause trouble at this temple for some of the +20 inhabitants.

A big problem, how to keep dumped dogs at temples in quarantine? With over 130 dogs now at the shelter and 11 in our quarantine unit, Care for Dogs already had it’s hands full.