Uncategorized – Page 3 – Little Ria the Survivor

Ria’s First Adoption Drive

I sometimes volunteer with MDDB (Malaysian Dogs Deserve Better), helping out at adoption drives, and one of my own dogs, Penny, is a foster fail from them. After hearing Ria’s story, they offered her a place in their home for disabled dogs, which was a huge relief since at least I’d know she’d have a safe place to go if I couldn’t keep caring for her or get her adopted. I got her her first vaccination, and my friend suggested I bring her to MDDB’s adoption drive, not officially up for adoption yet, but just to get out and get accustomed to people.

Ria had a new friend, a short-term foster puppy Duncan, who got along well with all the dogs. Poor Duncan had a traumatic story too, the only survivor after his siblings were beaten to death at a construction site, but he never lost his happy smile. He was excited to go to the drive. Ria was not so excited at first.

Ria staying as close to the house as possible once outside the door!

Once at the mall, however, Ria started to relax, especially after she was given her own place in a comfy wagon! She spent the whole day there, either sitting up and smiling or napping. Not many people came near her as they were more interested in the smaller puppies in the playpens. But there was one lady who spent some time with her whose name was coincidentally also Ria (Rhea?)! Too bad she lived in a place that didn’t allow dogs.

Overall, it was a good experience for Ria. Even though she wasn’t completely comfortable with strangers, she seemed to enjoy herself. She was worn out when she got home that night.

Ria’s Road to Recovery

With proper pain medication and the tick fever treatment, Ria’s personality began to shine. She wagged her tail enthusiastically whenever she saw me, and she was happy for Patches, my cat who passionately loves all dogs, to playfully bat at her and cuddle up next to the playpen.

I still kept her in the playpen most of the time because while my dogs are very friendly, they can be a bit over-enthusiastic. She was active even the playpen, and about a week post-surgery, I noticed she was developing a bulge near her incision. Thanks to Tripawds again, I recognized it was probably a seroma. I contacted my vet and sent them photos, and they said it did look like a seroma, and to just monitor it and put hot compresses on it 2-3 times a day. Within a week, it had gotten back to normal.

After two weeks, she managed to climb out of the playpen herself, so I decided it was fine for her to be out and only go in for feedings and to sleep at night. My dogs got along well with her and were gentle for the most part.

Around this time, I had another surprise guest, a dog who looked like a pet followed me home from a run, went right into the house and made herself at home (turn out to be abandoned and has since been adopted)! I was worried about Ria since this dog was not so friendly with my dogs, but Ria and the walk-in were okay.

At three weeks post-surgery, Ria had another blood test which was normal, and she had her stitches removed! Of course, I’d said I would only foster her for 2-3 weeks, but her rescuers didn’t seem to be too interested in her, and I wanted to be sure she was safe. Keeping her permanently isn’t an option, but at least I wanted her to have her best chance at a good life.