- Thread starter malko
- Start date
Who to turn to for help with a dog
Longer version.
At first we thought a car had hit him.
Turns out somebody had tied him to the side of the road. Some coward, obviously. Didn't want to deal with it.
Not uncommon, city folk will regularly dump their dogs on the side of the road. Recently on one of my run-walk-run-walk ( yeah, yeah, i am getting old 😖😖), we untied a BAG with a dog in it. Bloody thing tried to bite us when we let it out 😆😆😆😆 .
I say city folk, cos a dog can just live off the land in the campo, so no need to tie him in a bag and dump him on the side of the road.
Dogs like the one we got out of the bag will just roam and live off scraps until they settle on somebody's front porch at night time. Not the greatest of lives, but its something.
Anyway, the bin people told us they had untied him, thats how we knew he was abandoned.
We have been feeding him for about a week, and he eats just fine.
We also have to go about cleaning him, as he cant get up to do his " buisness".
I imagined he would have died quickly ( i still thought at that time that a car had hit him ).
We had set him up under banana trees, for the shade. But ants were a problem. So we went regularly to take them off him.
Of course, it never rains, it pours, and now a cacata has bit his balls---of all places.
So we also now have to disinfect the wound regularly.
We have set him up elsewhere, an old guy can keep an eye on him. But he wont help him, not how it works here, sadly .
All this is a bit too much for us, if I am being honest.
My wife wants to bring him to our house, I am against it.
#1 I have other dogs. Different type of dogs, guard dogs. It will be a hassle to keep them apart. And since I cant see the dog ever walking again, it would have to be a permanent solution.
#2 He needs more care than we can provide. He needs a real vet, that we dont have access to here in the campo.
#3. Selfishly, and yes I am ashamed, I dont want him giving ticks, fleas and whatnot to my dogs. Yes, I have started " treatment " on him, but it will be a long time before he is clean clean.
He would also need to be vaccinated.
#4 Not to get into my financial situation, I do realize we are very well off by DR standards.
However we have had non-budgeted stuff recently ( we bought some land to help someone, we had tiles that were "pushing up", etc ....), and I dont know if we can assume those costs w/o cutting back on our regular lifestyle. And even though my wife is " europe-inased " , if I may say so, I dont think she realizes that to REALLY help him, I imagine it will be well over 100k pesos.
My wife thinks I am being cold hearted, whereas I think I am just being realistic.
Am I being The as.shole here ?
Again, any institution that comes to mind that could take care of him ?
Forget Salud Publico.
At first we thought a car had hit him.
Turns out somebody had tied him to the side of the road. Some coward, obviously. Didn't want to deal with it.
Not uncommon, city folk will regularly dump their dogs on the side of the road. Recently on one of my run-walk-run-walk ( yeah, yeah, i am getting old 😖😖), we untied a BAG with a dog in it. Bloody thing tried to bite us when we let it out 😆😆😆😆 .
I say city folk, cos a dog can just live off the land in the campo, so no need to tie him in a bag and dump him on the side of the road.
Dogs like the one we got out of the bag will just roam and live off scraps until they settle on somebody's front porch at night time. Not the greatest of lives, but its something.
Anyway, the bin people told us they had untied him, thats how we knew he was abandoned.
We have been feeding him for about a week, and he eats just fine.
We also have to go about cleaning him, as he cant get up to do his " buisness".
I imagined he would have died quickly ( i still thought at that time that a car had hit him ).
We had set him up under banana trees, for the shade. But ants were a problem. So we went regularly to take them off him.
Of course, it never rains, it pours, and now a cacata has bit his balls---of all places.
So we also now have to disinfect the wound regularly.
We have set him up elsewhere, an old guy can keep an eye on him. But he wont help him, not how it works here, sadly .
All this is a bit too much for us, if I am being honest.
My wife wants to bring him to our house, I am against it.
#1 I have other dogs. Different type of dogs, guard dogs. It will be a hassle to keep them apart. And since I cant see the dog ever walking again, it would have to be a permanent solution.
#2 He needs more care than we can provide. He needs a real vet, that we dont have access to here in the campo.
#3. Selfishly, and yes I am ashamed, I dont want him giving ticks, fleas and whatnot to my dogs. Yes, I have started " treatment " on him, but it will be a long time before he is clean clean.
He would also need to be vaccinated.
#4 Not to get into my financial situation, I do realize we are very well off by DR standards.
However we have had non-budgeted stuff recently ( we bought some land to help someone, we had tiles that were "pushing up", etc ....), and I dont know if we can assume those costs w/o cutting back on our regular lifestyle. And even though my wife is " europe-inased " , if I may say so, I dont think she realizes that to REALLY help him, I imagine it will be well over 100k pesos.
My wife thinks I am being cold hearted, whereas I think I am just being realistic.
Am I being The as.shole here ?
Again, any institution that comes to mind that could take care of him ?
Forget Salud Publico.
Where are you located?
There’s this:
Dogs and Cats of the Dominican Republic
in Cabarete but they also have a chapter in Punta Cana. You can find the Punta Cana DCDR group on Facebook.
There’s this:
Dogs and Cats of the Dominican Republic
in Cabarete but they also have a chapter in Punta Cana. You can find the Punta Cana DCDR group on Facebook.
You mention you think he has a broken back. Is he unable to walk? Any guess as to age?
Malko you are definitely NTA. You did more for this dog than most people would. A friend of ours has a collection jar in her store for rescue animals here. We contribute regularly as do several tourists.
As sad as it is the dog needs to be euthanized. I hope you can find a vet in your area.
As sad as it is the dog needs to be euthanized. I hope you can find a vet in your area.
Yes, unable to walk or even get up.
Front legs are fine, head movement is fine. But the back half is " dead". All floppy when we carried him around.
He is not in any apparent pain, which is why I guessed a broken back.
Hard to tell his age, he probably wasnt that well cared for before he broke his back and was abandoned. If i had to guess, i would say middle age.
Not going to happen, sadly. I have lost some of my own dogs over the years, sadly.
And even throwing money at the " vets" we have access to will not get them to help dogs.
I lost Rex, a rottie, from old age last year, and had to do everything myself 😤😤😤. When it was clear he was dying, I wanted him put down, well the vet sold me the necessary, but would not do it. ( in the end, I didnt need it, Rex died naturally in my arms ).
You're probably right about his back. What Melphis said above is where I was going, but you've already answered it. You have gone way above and beyond, and for that I admire you. In the end, I think you will do what's best no matter what it is.
I truly wish the best for you and the dog. It is very inspiring to know that there are people out there with your compassion for innocent animals.
After our last dog got cancer we decided that we would not have anymore pets. Since then we have pet sat for friends, family and new acquaintances in several countries. We are currently house and pet sitting 3 dogs in the Bavaro area. We still get to enjoy the companionship of dogs without the heart break of letting them go.
Again I wish you and the dog nothing but the best.
Problem is, he is now quite alert and lively---- well as much as one can be with a broken back.
Which makes it all the harder.
I proposed to " euthanize" him myself....... which was met with horror 😱😱😱.
Let me see if I can post some pics, to give you a better idea.
Thats exactly what my wife wants ...... no way I am showing her this. Shame on me !!!!
A quick question ....why would you not get the '' WHEELCHAIR " for the dog ?
If its because of the cost ....i will gladly pay for it
If its because of the cost ....i will gladly pay for it
Thanks, cost is not really the issue--- though I didnt look at the price of the wheelchair lol.
It would be a logistic nightmare keeping my dogs away from him.
My dogs have free roam of garden+conuco, he would have to be under constant surveillance for a couple of weeks, maybe months---- my dogs are not really the easy going type. I would hate for him to be attacked .
Also my house is in the hills, so you walk in the front door, but have to go down 20 odd steps/stairs or so to go out the back door. .. if you see what I mean.
The patio/garden also reflects that. Steps there , steps there, steps all over. Not ideal.
As of tonight he is in front of the shack of an old guy who lives across the way---- literally a shack, another story, sigh.
We are in the process of de-worming/anti parasite process.
He eats like a horse ! 😆😆😆.
My wife solved the ant problem by putting powder/poison down----- not to worry she gave it a wide wide berth.
Being near the old guy also solves the problem of other viralatas pestering him. Though we do make sure to take the food away when he's finished eating..... no point on tempting them.
I " contracted " the old guy to keep a look out, and also to dispose of waste.
We have him on a bunch of bags ( a bit like rice bags, not too sure what to call them) and cardboard on top of that.
So we, or the old guy can change the cardboard sheet when it gets soiled, a couple of times a day, in order to keep him relatively clean----- no easy task i must say.
I hope the cacata bite gets better.
We have being spraying it with antiseptic, and putting antibiotics in his water.
The only good thing is that he cant feel it 😭.