Wetnose Animal Aid

News Archive
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This page shows all the news features shown previously on the 'Latest News' page for a further 12 months.

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A BIG Thank You from Ella

This is Ella, a lovely Parsons type Jack Russell terrier saved from being put to sleep in a pound by Doris Banham Dog Rescue. We think she may have been used as a bait dog by badger hunters and this is how she lost her nose. She does struggle with her breathing at times, so now the days are getting damp and cold it has been decided that kennels aren't the best place for her and she has gone into a foster home.
Ella has only been in foster a few days, but there has been a real change in her, she possibly has one of the most endearing personalities seen in a dog. What she lacks in looks she makes up for big time in her love of people!

Ella has seen the Vet about her breathing problems and they seem to think they can help. It will mean x-rays, ultrasound and a big operation, but as she is only around 2 years old we have to do what is needed to improve her quality of life.

Update : 22/10/12

Well, thanks to all you who have donated, we can now announce that you have raised the £1000 to pay for the medical help that Ella needs. Thank you all so very much.

Update : 24/10/12

Ella was at the vets last Wednesday. She had x-rays taken and a tooth taken out. The x-ray showed that the bone that goes along the top of her nose has been broken and reset itself at an angle. This means that her airway is severely restricted. There is no damage to the airway itself which is good news. It was also found that she has several loose teeth that need to be removed to prevent her needing future treatment.

She is booked in tomorrow to have her operation. They are going to drill a couple of holes in the bone, sew the inside to the outside and basically make her two new "breathing holes" then remove the teeth that need taking out. We did ask about having her spayed at the same time, but the vet said it would be too much.

I have asked the fosterer to take some photos of Ella and will send them over to you. Fingers crossed tomorrow will go well and I will keep you informed. I can't thank you enough for helping in such a large way to make this possible for Ella. We will be thanking everyone tomorrow and giving Wetnose a very special mention for the enormous part they have played.

Trudie James - Trustee and Founder
Doris Banham Dog Rescue.

Update : 13/11/12

Just to let you know that I have just had message from fosterer that the op went well but took longer to do her nose than expected so they didn't get her teeth done. They are keeping her in overnight at least, maybe longer, so that they can make sure that everything is nice and clean. Fosterer has been in to see her and she looks happy and breathing much better. She is ringing tomorrow to see how she is.

Andrea - Wetnose Animal Aid

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Wetnose Visit The Greek Island of Samos

Well after 3 long years Gav and Andrea from Wetnose Animal Aid decided to have 1 week's holiday to try and chill out and re-charge our worn out batteries. The Greek island of Samos near Turkey is lovely, the people are really friendly, the weather perfect, what more could you ask for…..well to visit a Rescue Centre of course!

So off we trotted, we had heard of one place in Thassos which is allegedly not very well run, so we went to *Animal Care Samos* run by Tom & Ingrid who are Dutch. The Centre is high up in the mountains right next door to a waste site which smells in the heat. No heating or electricity and water has to be pumped from a well by an old generator but the shelter is open from 10.00am till 12.00 noon everyday and looked very clean and tidy. While we were there someone had tied up a dog down the road by the waste site and just left it in the sun, poor thing was getting all stressed and scared, a visitor came back and said help this dog, so we all ran down the road and Ingrid cut it lose and carried it back to the centre and vaccinated it straight away.

Many of the locals now give their unwanted dogs to the army camps on the Island as they know they will be fed, then after a few days the army bring in 3 or 4 dogs in to the Centre but sometimes the dogs are not in the best of health and should have been brought in sooner, but it's better than leaving them on the streets.
It is unlikely that the situation will change much as long as the attitude of many Greeks stays the way it is. However, progress can be seen, more and more people take care of their dog and have it spayed. At the same time, kids learn in school that it is not funny to beat, kick or otherwise tease dogs.
Some Greeks are now walking their dogs on leads instead of letting them wonder all over the place, so slowly things are changing. But there are still plenty of horror stories!
Cats well that's totally different, there are hundreds everywhere and nobody seems to care at all, they are nearly all feral, but Animal Care Samos do catch neuter and release which is the perfect answer. I love cats and just had to say hello to the friendly ones.

Greece has got such a bad reputation when it comes to animal welfare, but education is still the key thing, shepherds in the mountains cut off the ears of adult dogs as they say it helps them to hear better……yeh right!!
After many years of campaigning and helping these animals from Organisations such as Greek Animal Rescue and shelters like Animal Care Samos, things are slowly getting better, my only concern is the collapse of the Euro or lack of tourists in 2012 could make things very bad for animals again!

Gav from Wetnose meets Tom from Animal Care Samos

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ALL DOGS MATTER DAY

Saturday 7th July 2012

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