When we moved to Yilan County (Taiwan) about a year ago, I started feeding any stray dogs (or cats) I came across. There is an area near our home I always drive past on the way to the store and I always stop and leave food and water for the dogs. It isn't a good area, though. I've heard of cases of the dogs being poisoned or killed in some other way and over time a few of them have just disappeared. My greatest hope is that they were saved by kind people. The reality is probably not quite as pleasant. A while ago, one of the young dogs (who was less than a year old herself) had two puppies. They were born with mange and so I tried not to touch them, but I always came by to feed them. One day there was only one puppy and a few weeks later the mother had disappeared as well. In the end there were only two older male dogs and this one three-month-old puppy left.
I work from home and had just finished a major project, so as soon as I was done I told the kids to get their things and we went to the beach to relax for a bit. We didn't stay all that long and on the way back we stopped to feed the dogs around the corner. I knew immediately that something was wrong when I saw the puppy. It was lying down and it never does that when I drive up. To be honest, I thought it had been poisoned, but then it stood up and I saw that its leg was hurt. I couldn't tell for sure because I couldn't get close enough, but the leg looked absolutely raw and there was blood dripping from it. I couldn't get too close to it, though. Even before when it was fine, it didn't let you get too close. I felt so sad and didn't know what to do. I sent my friend a message and then I called my husband, Greg. He had just got out of the water (surfer) and he said that he would come to me. In the meantime I left some food for it and it sort of got up and hobbled on three legs. An older Taiwanese lady come up as well and she had some water in a bottle and poured it into their water bowl. In Chinese she said, "It's dying," and she was shaking her head and looked sad as well. I couldn't understand everything she said, but she did tell me that she thought it had been hit by a car and that she had tried to call it, but it was too scared and she couldn't get close to it and that she felt so sorry for it as well. Even though the situation was grim, it gave me some comfort to know that this stranger felt sad for it as well. We went home then as it was getting dark and the kids were complaining and we were all getting eaten alive by the mosquitoes. Then Greg called and said that he had spoken to my friend and she had a contact with a vet and that he was actually coming through the next morning and that if we managed to catch the dog, I could bring it to her place then for treatment. So once my husband got back we took phones and flashlights and went off to where I usually feed them. I didn't hold out that much hope, to be honest. I knew that even if the dog was there that it would be hard to catch. A hurt dog can often lash out and Greg and I definitely aren't animal rescue experts. I had a big plastic container with me in case , but we couldn't find it at all and we weren't about to go crashing through the bushes. It was probably hiding away.
The next morning the kids and I set out to try and catch it. We went at around 9am and although I managed to get quite close, it ran away after a while and disappeared into the jungle. It was so horrible, though, because the leg was raw and still dripping blood. The kids and I went twice that morning. The second time we went I actually went right into the jungle and found a tiny place where it had been hiding. I had to sort of lie down to reach it and then I would stretch out my hand and give it some food. It was very nervous, though, and after a while it scurried away and was gone.
Then, once Greg was back from work at around midday he came to help me and although we found it, we just couldn't catch it. I tried to grab it at one point and then Greg tried as well, but it was too quick and darted away. Usually I would be terrified to walk around in the jungle, but I didn't even think of that. I just said a prayer that there would be no snakes and forged ahead. Even now I get the shudders thinking back, but I was so desperate to find that little dog. After a while we had no choice but to give up and then I came again later and the puppy had been out because I saw the blood spatters everywhere. Oh, my heart! I told my friend that we had tried our best and sent her some photos of the dog and she showed the vet and he prescribed some antibiotics. The kids and I went to her house and got the medicine and then later on that night he took his first dose and then from Tuesday I went twice a day to give it good food and make sure it took the medicine. Sometimes he was out in the open, but mostly I'd find him in the jungle and have to go right in to feed him. I hated doing it (going into the jungle) because I'm scared of snakes and bugs, but I just took a deep breath, said a little prayer, and did it. He was usually with two other dogs that are older and they are very scared and get up and leave as soon as they see me, but the puppy would just sit up and wait and then I'd go to it and get on my haunches and feed it. I bought that expensive food in the mini packs because he needed to eat good food and I needed to make sure he took his medicine. At first when the vet gave my friend the medicine, he said that the puppy needed to take it once a day, but the next day I sent a video, which she passed on to him, and he said that he hadn't realized the dog was that big (it was only 3 months old at that time, but I guess the first picture I took made it seem younger and smaller) and so he said I needed to give it two pills a day. They were antibiotics and I just made sure I put the nice food over it and had his next mouthful ready and he took it quite easily.
I couldn't really tell if it was helping, though. On that first day I saw him he was still dripping blood all over the place and it was the most awful, heart wrenching thing to see, but then after a while the bleeding stopped (and then started again later). It looked so disgusting, though, and the leaves and sticks would stick to it and he must have been in terrible pain, although I only heard him cry on the Monday. On the Wednesday I was quite upset. Right after I had fed it and given some food to the other dogs as well, this old man on a bicycle rode up, stopped his bike and picked up this big stick. Honestly, I wasn't sure if he was coming to hit me. He was waving it around and shouting something or other. The dogs all took off. Then, from what I could make out, he said that he wanted to hit the dogs and he told me that they bite and that he throws rocks at them. That made me feel so upset and I don't really believe it. Those dogs are so scared that they run away from everyone. The only reason they would want to bite was if you did something threatening to them. I told my friend about it and she said that some locals are like that because they don't understand dogs and are scared and think that if they throw rocks or carry a stick and scare the dogs that they will be safe. Anyway, I was feeling quite upset, but then I ran into the same lady I had seen on the first day. She had come to bring the dogs some leftover chicken and refill the water bowl. I showed her the photos I had taken up close. She was amazed because she couldn't get close to it at all, but it ate right out of my hand. She said she felt so sorry for it. I showed her the medication I was giving it and she was really happy to hear I was managing to feed it and give it medicine because she was worried that it was in too much pain to eat. Meanwhile, it wasn't eating that much because it was probably full from the food I had given it. She said that many people care about the dogs, but that many hate them as well (I told her about the man).
The pills were set to run out on Saturday, but on Friday my friend said that the vet was coming through again and would bring more pills. However, that night she called me and said that she felt terrible but she had forgotten about it and the vet had left without giving them to her. She asked if I could go into Yilan City the next day and get some, but I was meeting someone the next day in Taipei and Greg was going to be somewhere else further north. I told her that I would look for a vet in Taipei. She had to work that day and her job is also in Taipei and she also said that she would try and find a vet. I wasn't able to find one. The area I was in was very fancy and built up with tons of high rises and I didn't even see one dog, never mind a veterinarian. That night when I got home I wanted to go to the local vet, but then my friend called and said she was outside a vet in Taipei and wanted to know if I'd been successful. I told her that I had not been successful and she said that I mustn't go to the vet, that she would go. However, later on after I had already gone and fed the puppy (with Greg and the kids because it was dark and I didn't want to go alone) she called and was quite upset because the vet had refused to give any medicine to her. I told her that I had been to a pharmacy earlier and the pharmacist was very kind and when I showed him the photos of the dog he said that he could sell me amoxicillin, but the pills were too big and I knew there was no way the puppy would take them. I told her that if push came to shove, I would buy those pills and use some empty capsule shells I had to halve them. The pharmacist told me that I needed to wrap the puppy's leg, but I told him that I really couldn't get near to the leg. It barely trusted me enough to take food from me, there was no way I could ever have wrapped the leg up. I felt so sad that night and told Greg that I really wanted to contact people on Facebook and ask them what to do because that is one thing about Facebook that I miss (I no longer have an account) - the people who loved animals really did rally around each other in these kinds of circumstances. I said that I didn't know what else to do, that I felt like the puppy was in pain and suffering and that I wasn't doing enough. Greg still has a Facebook account and he said that there must surely be other groups that care. He started searching on Facebook and although we could find none in our area, there were a few in Taipei. I don't know what made him click on the one he did, but he showed me that you could send them a message and that there was even a number to call for emergencies. It was a registered UK charity called "ACT - Animal Care Trust" and their motto is "Rescue, Transform, Love for life". I wrote a message (via FB) and just made it sound like it was Greg writing on my behalf. I also chose 4 photos that showed the puppy and the wound. I cannot describe the feeling and how my heart soared when not even 10 minutes later there was a message saying, "I can come through tomorrow. What time do you usually feed it?" Someone was willing to help me!!!! I said that I usually fed it at 11am and he said it would be better if the puppy was hungry. I said that I could get close enough to feed it, but that it was very scared and I couldn't get closer than that or make any sudden moves. He replied and said not to worry, that they had humane traps and nets and would catch it easily enough.
So the next morning I woke up quite early. Once the kids were up, we went to the place where I usually feed the dog to try and find it. I was so worried that for some reason it wouldn't be there and that the guy would come all this way for nothing. I couldn't find it at first and even went right into the jungle calling and trying to spot it. Nothing. So then I walked along the outside to get to the back section and couldn't find it there either. We were about to give up and go home when I said I wanted to take one last look and there it was.
I didn't feed it as the guy had said not to, but I was very relieved that it was there. Then we came back home and I got the stuff ready and I told the kids I'd take them to McDonald's for breakfast and then we could get some nuggets for the dog. We did that and while we were there Greg joined us and then he got a message from the guy who said that he was very sorry, but that he had started out a bit late and that the traffic was terrible and so he would be late. I told him not to worry. Good grief! That he was willing to come all that way for this puppy was amazing to me (it ended up being over a 2-hour drive in that traffic). After a while, I felt the urge to get to the area. I really hoped to catch a glimpse of it just to know it was nearby, but I couldn't find it at all. The guy told me that he was nearby and told me not to scare the dog, just to wait for him. I didn't think that I would scare it, but I think I was just so worried he'd come all this way for nothing. It turns out that I needn't have worried. If we hadn't caught the dog that day, he said he would have left the trap with us and come back for the dog when we had it. Anyway, it wasn't long before a car pulled up. The guy's name was Sean and he was lovely and you could immediately tell how much he loved animals. It turns out that he comes to Yilan County quite a bit. He said there was quite a lot of poaching in the area and people set up illegal snares and that often dogs got caught in them and they would come out to rescue them. He said that they have cameras up now to try and catch the poachers, so he said that while he was here he would go and check that area for illegal traps as well. I told him that I hadn't seen the puppy since that morning and he said not to worry, that judging by how close it got to me, that it would definitely be around. He took out this big cage and we carried it right into the jungle and he left a trail of nugget pieces to entice the dog into the cage. There is a trigger inside it near the food and when the dog steps on it the door closes and it is trapped. I asked him what we would do if the wrong dog went in and he said we must let it out and sort of shout a little to scare it off and then he showed us how to set it up again. At around that time it started raining and then we went back to the main area near the empty building and chatted for a bit. Then both he and Greg had to head out and I said that I would hang out for a little bit with the kids and then go home for a short time to get my external charger (my phone was dying) and then come back again and check the trap, but honestly about 1 minute after they had both left and I was just sitting with the kids under cover, the little guy poked his head out and came walking towards me. I immediately called Sean on the phone and told him that the puppy had made an appearance and that I was busy feeding it tiny pieces of nugget (we hadn't used all of it in the trap) and he said he would turn around immediately. I suggested he park on the other side and come from the back and he said he would do so and asked that I just calmly keep doing what I was doing and to tell the kids to just focus on the phone they were watching on and not look up at him at all. Honestly, it felt touch-and-go because the puppy was nervous and kept walking away a bit and then I would have to coax it back with the food. I told the kids to just look at the phone and not look up and I focused on the puppy and feeding it and letting it smell it and eat out of my hand. Not even three minutes later, I noticed Sean out of the corner of my eye. It was pouring with rain and he was coming up slowly with the net. Very suddenly, it slammed down around the dog and it really panicked at first, but there was nowhere to go. At first the puppy cried and was freaking out and the kids were a bit upset by it, but Sean just explained that the dog was scared and that it would be fine and that we needed to do this to help it.
Once it was in the net, he got the car and then took out the crate and we unwound the net and he managed to get a leash on the puppy while it was still in the net and then he looped it through the cage and I held it and he pushed it and it really didn't have anywhere to go, but into the crate. Then he closed it and it was done. In the end, you could tell it was scared, but had calmed down. Sean was very chuffed and said that he wished all rescues were so quick and easy. He said that I had done an excellent job and had been completely natural and hadn't looked up at him at all and so it had worked like a charm. Then we went and got the cage (humane trap) and folded it up and left the chicken for the other two dogs and put the cage in the car and then loaded in the puppy. He said that he would head straight to the vet and that he really hoped that they could save the leg.
He said, "You saved its life!" which made me feel so good. He also told me that if I ever saw anything like that again, that I must contact him right away and he will come through as soon as he can to help. That is so amazing and I feel so grateful. Later in the evening I needed to go shopping and stopped at the older dogs to feed them. The granny that does the recycling and always feeds the dogs rode past and then stopped when I called to her. She started jabbering away about the puppy and was upset that it was missing. Then I told her what had happened (in my terribly broken Chinese) and she got all tearful and clapped her hands and gave me the thumbs up. She was so happy to hear that the puppy was safe and being taken care of.
I heard from Sean the next day and he said the puppy was doing well. His name is Rocky (my kids got to pick the name) and the vet said that it was most likely from a scooter accident and that they would be able to save the leg. Rocky was placed on antibiotics and pain medication and once he is well enough, he will be vaccinated, microchipped and become available for adoption. How I wish we could take him, but we already have two rescues and our landlord thinks we have one. Oops....
I contacted Sean again recently. It has been about a month now since Rocky was rescued. Sean said that Rocky is doing so well. He runs and plays and jumps and the wound is so much smaller. They plan to take him to a good vet to see whether there is anything else they can do for him as the foot is slightly deformed, but I'm still so amazed and grateful. I don't think he would be alive today if not for ACT and Sean.
