The All Important "Walk"

A recent activity we've started at Deonar is walking individual dogs. This serves a number of purposes. The ones confined in an enclosure for a prolonged length of time, seriously need some exercise. It is a good bonding activity and allows one to check how obedient any one of the dogs can be. We've started this with our abandoned lot and it is a training aid for their future in somebody's home. The dogs just love to be let out, even if it is on the end of a leash and the walker can make sure that this turns into an exercise period which includes some fun time, namely mingling with the resident dogs at the Centre and making more friends. Also it is one of our favourite volunteer activities. We have many volunteers and lots and lots of dogs to walk!! The very good-looking pom in the picture walks like a dream after only two or three practice sessions.

Introducing Buster

He's just one and a half months old and already a tough guy. He bullies any pup who is a little smaller than him, but takes care to run away and hide a bit when faced with another bully, bigger than him!
He came in with four siblings and his mum when she met with an accident and lost one of her eyes. His brother got adopted a few days ago and is now called Bang Bang. His two sisters became sick and didn't make it. They were just as good-looking as their bro. Buster is probably the strongest of the litter as these are the ones that usually survive.
His mother is doing well and is a real darling with a lovely nature. Hope Buster does well too and gets adopted as soon as possible. He's a great little pup.

Foster Kitties /Pups for Adoption

Looking at these beautiful kittens, all in wonderful health, one can understand why foster care is so important. Some kind people have taken it upon themselves to keep these young ones in their homes until someone else decides to adopt them. Any infant usually thrives under these conditions. Personal care, a roof over their heads and plenty of love and good food - this is what is provided by a foster parent.
What does this type of compassionate person get in return? Plenty. There's a wonderful feeling of accomplishment when a little one grows into an energetic youngster full of beans! Looking after a kitten is fun, full stop. Looking after two together is hilarious as they play, collapse for their instant naps and eat in complete unison. The best moment comes when the little one actually gets a home with a loving family.
The little fatties in the pictures following were not so lucky. They are both at our Deonar Centre with their injured moms. That's not a bad thing as they can still enjoy their mother's milk which helps to build up their immune system. But they are in real danger of becoming sick, just due to the presence of hundreds of other dogs who come in for the ABC operation. It's pups like these who are in need of foster care to give them a good chance at staying alive and well and getting a good home as soon as possible. So if you have the time, some patience and the inclination, go ahead and become a foster parent. It's for a short while and it's extremely important, rewarding work.

Cured of Paralysis at Deonar

This sweet little girl arrived at the Deonar Centre as a paralysis case. She used to drag her hind legs behind her with some difficulty. We've recently started treating our resident animals with homeopathic medicine, administering it to whoever is in need. It's proved to be very effective in a number of cases, one being this little pup. She's using both her hind legs in a normal fashion now. In fact, she plays boisterously, running up and down the puppy pen with the other active pups.
The other picture just shows her in another mood. Playing with her toy tiger inside her small cage. Only hope someone has the good sense to adopt her. She's a very friendly pup and her paralysis has been cured!

Baby Sitting is Fun At IDA Deonar

This has to be one of the most pleasurable activities or 'tasks' at IDA Deonar.
Bonding with one or two of these little ones is pure bliss. Do hope the little ones enjoy it as much as the baby-sitters seem to! But actually this is a really important
part of preparing each infant to trust and be happy in the company of humans. The more the merrier! Most of the babies in the pics have been adopted by now, but there is always a steady supply of pups and kittens you can help us with. Firstly by fostering one or two of them so that they are safe and sound in a real house, or if that is not possible, come and hold them a bit. Take them into the garden and let them play in the sun under your watchful eye. You can even help to bathe and feed them.
Lots and lots of enjoyable work available for which we need lots of help. Best thing is, it's fun!

Spectacular Kittens at Deonar

Couldn't access the blog for some time, so these little ones had to wait to be introduced to the admiring public. You can't see them very well, but each kitten is a work of art. The little white in the first picture has beautiful blue eyes and is very energetic. The grey also has very unusual eyes and a matching coat - black and dark grey stripes. The tiny black has light grey eyes and a jet black coat. In fact, they are so irresistable that the white and black have already been adopted. The grey is in foster care.

By the way, our mature cats just waiting for you at the Centre, are even more spectacular and waiting to be adopted. They are fat and healthy and extremely affectionate as they socialize so much with all of us. So if you are considering whether your animal companion should be a cat, look no further - we have some seriously good-looking felines in need of a comfortable home.

New IDA pup Mishti

This beautiful little girl is Mishti, our new addition to the puppy pen. Doesn't she look the picture of innocence? She's actually very energetic and naughty. Mishti's has a special skill. She can leap straight up like a lamb in Springtime! When we sit down in the puppy pen to play with all the youngsters, this is exactly what she does. Leaps straight up and into your lap! She's almost two months old and in perfect health that matches her lovely nature. Check her out on the IDA Adoption site. This one's a gem!

3rd October, Celebrations Continue

This was the afternoon session, which was literally all fun and games! Dumb Charades was hilarious and the Quiz made everyone think a bit. After a good lunch, we conducted a Foster Care Workshop and the participants were provided with some good material to help them through foster care problems. In the last picture, you can see Lulu and Daisy, both part of the demo on foster care and then so tired, that they collapsed among their toys! They are really laid back and sweet and had no problem relaxing in the middle of all of us.

The workshop was a success and one young lady immediately opted to foster a sickly little pup from the Centre and subsequently took good care of it for ten days. Just what that baby needed.

International Day of Prayer for Animals, 3rd October

This was a really special day for all of us at IDA Deonar. The world celebrates the feast of St. Francis of Assissi, a wonderful person who regarded all creatures as his brothers and sisters. On this day, we thought it most fitting for all our charges to be formally blessed. We prevailed upon Fr. Joe D'Souza to come and bless the Centre, all the IDA workers and supporters and last but not least, all of our dear animal friends. Father obliged, and came all the way from Jacob's Circle Parish to extend the blessing. After the general blessing, he went around blessing all our animals in the different enclosures and can be seen in front of one of the maggot wound dog enclosures, doing the needful.

We were also fortunate to have among us, two Homeopathic practitioners. One was Dr. Prakash Lulla from Chembur. A well-known doctor for humans who extends his skill to treating animals as well. Ms Suneeta Tol is another person who has treated stray animals with homeopathic medicine for almost a decade. She has had great success in the treatment of a number of ailments, being especially successful treating skin diseases. She demonstrated just how easy it is to administer this medicine by putting a few drops of liquid onto a biscuit, instantly consumed by an obliging "patient", Pinky, standing nearby.

IDA Celebrates World Wildlife Week

On Saturday, 2nd October, IDA organised an activity packed function for all our supporters who attended.

We started by showing a great wildlife movie called "Two Brothers", followed by a veggy lunch and a demo of vegan cooking by an expert we invited.

Ater this, we all pushed off to the Zoo. At the entrance we joined Zoo Education Officer Mr. Panranjpe in taking the pledge to see to the welfare of all biodiversity, witnessed a skit by a group of enthusiastic young men on how to treat confined zoo animals with respect and finally went to the Snake House.

This was our main destination as we are looking at ways to enrich the lives of the captive animals at Byculla Zoo and make their living conditions more bearable. They are after all simply prisoners, behind bars for the entertainment of the human public.

We had prepared an info sheet about Indian snakes and also taken along a young expert on snakes to give a small talk at this venue. In addition, we had prepared suggestions for enrichment of the snake enclosures. We handed this over to Mr. Paranjpe and Mr.Anjankar, Zoo Director. Some time ago, we had done the same thing for Shiva the lone rhino. We'll keep on visiting as this type of inspection might bring about some much-needed improvement in the way all the animals are housed and cared for.

Just one more wonderful footnote: As we all trooped over to say hello to Shiva, we noticed a crow frantically trying to stay afloat in his water pool. Of course, we all called for help, as even IDA members can't enter the rhino's enclosure - he is too dangerous and fast moving, even in his old age. Anyway, we all persisted in our efforts to get the crow rescued. First Shiva had to be lured out of his pool, poor chap! This was done by a helper, hiding inside his "room" and ringing the dinner bell. This was enough for Shiva to lumber out as he knew a treat or his meal awaited. Not until he was safely in his room with the door shut, could the rescuer go into the enclosure and see to the crow. He was scooped up soaking wet and safely deposited in the middle of some foliage to dry off. I'm pleased to say, that this helpless bird's life was saved because IDA was at the Zoo that day.

IDA Pups Sharmili and Masti

Brown and white Sharmili has the sweetest nature. Every time a smaller pup is brought into the puppy enclosure, she rushes to check it out, then gives it a good wash, gently licking the little face with her tongue. She has lovely velvet black eyes and a smiling face.
Masti lives up to his name! He's a devil in disguise and is up to mischief all the time. He was rescued at the height of the monsoon as a tiny pup. He had a maggot wound because he had been living in the open along with his mother and brother and getting wet all the time. He was fostered and bounced back to his present good health. That's all it took. A little love and care and plenty to eat! And now for the best news. Masti has just been adopted! That's all that we are waiting for - a good home for each of the wonderful animals that are presently in our care.

Foster Pups Lulu and Daisy

Hi! I'm Lulu, the one with the lovely black eyes and this is my sister Daisy. As you can see, we have both learned to 'Sit'. Don't we do it nicely? Our foster mom taught us this trick quite quickly because she uses small tasty biscuits as a reward which we like very much!
Daisy, my sister, is a little noisy when she's playing with me. I'm quite quiet even when I'm playing. We have real fun with all our toys but we like our old sock best! We really like to play and run around; it's fun, but after about ten minutes, we get very tired. Then we both decide to have a nap. We share a mattress which is very comfortable and sleep for a couple of hours. When we get up, we know it's time to eat again. We are always hungry! But as you can see, we have learnt to be "calm / submissive" before our meals as well. We are really good girls, even if I say so myself!!

Yes, We are all up for Adoption

In the first picture, you can see a lovely little female with a pleasant nature. She has a pretty coloured coat as well and is just the correct age to go to a new home.

All the other pups are three brothers and their little sister. She's really little! They are in such great shape because they came along with their mum to the Deonar Centre. They were about two weeks old when they came in and now they are about one and a half months old. Their mum has done a wonderful job and they are just bursting with health and energy. One has already been adopted. He's the little guy sitting higher up in the last picture. He has one large black spot on his back.

The alpha pup can be seen with his little sister and alone in another picture. He already reminds one of an old soul: looks so wise and centred. He will be a really wonderful companion for anyone lucky enough to choose him.

They are still in the care of their wonderful mother who has really done a great job taking care of them all on her own. We didn't interfere at all except to feed her well, and it worked.

She has brought up a set of very healthy and appealing pups.

We Got Adopted!!

Great news! The handsome little fellow in the first picture has gone to his new home. He was only with us for about five days. Thankfully news of his good looks and absolute appeal spread outside Deonar and he was much in demand. He has gone now to his new home and all of us at IDA and all our friends and supporters wish him well. He has such beautiful markings that we can't wait to see what he will look like as he grows into a big strong dog. The person who adopted him was very impressed too with his looks and personality.
The two kitties in the second picture are siblings, two months old and resemble miniature big cats with their spectacular colouring. They were taken into foster care on Saturday, but the foster family could ony enjoy their company for a few days. Both got adopted today! All of us at IDA couldn't be happier. One of our main goals is to get the general public to appreciate all animals as much as we do. Slowly but surely, maybe in a very small way, we are succeeding.

New Arrivals at IDA Deonar

All these four infants arrived practically on the same day, all four as beautiful and charming as can be. Both sets have lost their mothers and now they are at the greatest risk. They are not yet two months old - that is, the "safe" age, when the young pup or kitten can mostly make it. It's likely that they might fall ill and in the middle of hundreds of other animals, the going gets very tough.

That's why we are constantly on the look out for foster parents for these cute little types. Caring for them at home is pure pleasure. They have very simple wants - they eat, play and sleep a lot. Yes, they do mess a bit, but they are also very fastidious when it comes to 'going to the toilet' and learn very quickly with a little gentle guidance.

There are other pleasures in looking after young pups or kittens. They are such fun to watch when at play. A pair of kittens can get up to so much mischief that they can make you rock with laughter. One of the most endearing sights in the world is to watch two small pups at play. They run off with each others toys, engage in mock fights and tug-of-war with an old sock or anything that they are provided with. After play, the little ones get so exhausted that they will sleep for upto three hours at a stretch.

Yes, it is not at all difficult to keep a pair of little ones in foster care. And the wonderful thought is that you are giving them a chance of simply living a good long healthy life. Something that they probably will not experience, waiting at an animal shelter for someone to come and adopt them.