Kikku/Mabel (Adopted!)

* * * UPDATE * * *

April 2013

Kikku (AKA Mabel) has been adopted by a loving family in Wisconsin, USA! 
She said goodbye to her foster mom, Patarin, and journeyed to Chicago this past week, arriving here on Wednesday, April 17. 

 

Mabel was welcomed to the United States by Dawn, myself, and Ayize at O'Hare Airport - a very happy day, despite the historical deluge of rain flooding our region. 
She quickly overcame her shyness at her intimidating surroundings (we received them in a cargo area amid large machinery and lots of noise) and bravely ventured out to greet us and her old pal Sasha. 

 She enjoyed being cuddled, kissed, and held - and even willingly accompanied us out into soaking rain, thunder, and lightning to do her business. 

After a quick check up by the vet, the girls stayed two nights with Dawn before setting off on a grand adventure to be united with their forever families.

Mabel fit right into her new home as if she had always lived there! 

The first thing she did was happily wag a big hello to her new mom and dad, Katrina and Chris - then she gave kisses to her new human sister, Hayden - and after that, she immediately befriended her new doggie brother, Charlie. 

The two never stopped happily playing the entire time Dawn was with them, and mom reports the love affair continues to this day.

We're so thrilled for Mabel - truly a match made in heaven!

Thank you to all who made this possible, from Patarin and the Magic 10 Club for pulling, transporting, vetting, and fostering Kikku/Mabel; to kind-hearted international supporters who generously donated to help cover her costs; to Mabel's adoring new family who welcomed her with open arms.

* * * * *

My name is Kikku.

It's hard to fathom how anyone could look at me and see a beefy soup, or a hunk of meat on a dinner plate. I thank my stars every day that fate had other plans in store for me.

As a matter of fact - fate stepped in for me not once, not twice - but three times. 
First, I was on a smuggling truck that was stopped by the Thai government. Most of my peers are not so lucky. I am very grateful that I was saved and brought to Khemmarat livestock center. However, for most of us, it's a dead-end "rescue" as there are not enough homes for us all. 
That's when fate stepped in again. Somehow, I managed to catch the eye of a kind lady who chose me and my new friends to be the lucky members of the Magic 10 Club. Before I knew it, I was in a roomy kennel of my own - something I never even knew existed! - and on my way to Bangkok.

Once there, I spent some time at a veterinary clinic where I was bathed, groomed, and treated with love and kindness, as they prepared me and my friends to go into foster care at Patarin's house.



At Pat's house, I've been living it up! Clothes, food, friends, love. What more could a girl ask for? I thought this was the end of my happy tale.

But it wasn't! Unbelievably, a third amazing twist of fate has presented itself, for Patarin tells me that I am going to America, to live with a home and family of my very own! 
I am sad to say goodbye to Pat, and to my pals Sasha and Mona (that's us playing above), and to my home country - but I need to be someplace where I can be safe and secure forever. And I'm so very excited to meet my forever people! I didn't even know such a thing existed...
My life has been short and filled with hardship. Who knew there was such a thing as a real paradise on earth?

Not long now. America, here I come! 
I can't wait...

I am a victim of the dog meat trade.

I grew up on the streets of Thailand, in a "survival of the fittest" climate, where I had to fend for food and avoid many dangers. 

One day, some mean men approached me and tossed a wire lasso over my head. They threw me in a small cage with many other dogs. It was cramped and I thought I would suffocate, as it was so overcrowded. The truck sat in the jungle for a couple of days before they made a run for the Vietnam border. During this time, I was not given food or water, and suffered in my cramped quarters. Again, I feared for my life - many dogs around me perished. 

Then - to my surprise - I was rescued by some caring individuals and government officials. I was taken from my cage and herded into a large dog kennel at the government-run Khemmarat livestock shelter. Although my life was marginally better once I was freed from that wire cage, we suffered from widespread disease and massive overcrowding. Food was scarce, we were practically one on top of the other, dog fights were frequent, and there was no medical attention available. Once again, I was surrounded by terrible suffering and watched as my fellow dogs died around me at a rapid rate. 

Luck once more intervened, when Patarin removed me from the shelter and took me to a veterinarian in Bangkok for medical care. After that, she took me under her wing and has been fostering me in her own home, where I finally get to eat proper food, and enjoy affection and cuddles, something I've hardly known in my difficult life. 

For the first time, I see there might be a light at the end of the tunnel. In my foster home with Patarin, I've been shown kindness and affection. It has been a glimpse into a life I never knew existed: one with a home and family to call my own, where I will never know fear again. 

It's a life I so desperately want now…but one which will be brand-new to me and often confusing.

 I have so much to learn about life as a pet dog. I know I can do it - I've made it this far already! - but please, won't you gently show me the ropes, and have patience with me when I make missteps sometimes, as I surely will? In return, I will repay you a thousandfold. 

I just need a fair chance at a life I could only dream of when I was that frightened dog, crammed into a crate, baking alive in the tropical heat, who had given up all hope.

Toni/Isaac (Adopted!)

* * * UPDATE * * *

April 2013

Toni (now Isaac) has been adopted by Rebecca and Randall Ashworth of Canada, who provide a safe haven for many needy dogs rescued from around the world. 
Isaac is thriving in his new environment - the farm life suits him! He is a pleasure to play with, love, and look after, and the Ashworths report that Isaac is amazing with the whole family - dog, human, and young grandkids alike!

Isaac's journey was a long one. After being rescued from the illegal southeast Asian dog meat trade, he traveled to the USA in April of 2013 alongside pal Kahlua, to an adoptive home that sadly, did not work out.

Arrangements were hastily made for another international move for this young man - quite the jet setter! - and in May of 2013, Isaac arrived into the arms of his forever family.

Rural life with Ashworths is where it seems Isaac was always destined to be. He settled in beautifully from the first, and is truly enjoying being one of many pampered princes in a loving palace.

Hooray for this happiest of endings!

Thank you to all who made this possible, from Patarin and the Magic 10 Club for pulling, transporting, and vetting Toni/Isaac; to sweet Soot, his foster mommy in Bangkok; to kind-hearted international supporters for helping to cover Toni/Isaac's medical costs and flight funding, to the Ashworth family, for welcoming Isaac into their hearts and home with open arms, and for adoring this deserving little boy.

* * * * *

My name is Toni.

Once upon a time, I was just a tangled mess covering a depressed little guy with a heart devoid of all hope. Who knew that underneath all that shaggy, matted fur, a gorgeous, happy doggie was hiding??

Boy, am I adorable now! 

I've just been to the beauty parlor for the first time in my life, and although the other dogs are teasing me, I think secretly, they're just jealous. 
I know I look dapper now - all 28 pounds of me. Magic 10 Club members often point out my radar ears and big gorgeous eyes, and they call me 'Furby' when they think I'm not listening. Obviously, this Furby fellow is someone very famous.

But don't worry, my new hairdo won't go to my head! 
I am a mellow fellow, longing for some loving people to call my own, who will show me that the big wide world is a wonderful place after all.

I've been doing GREAT with Soot, my new foster mommy, and am enjoying life at her house. I love her so much! And I'm pretty sure she loves me, too...

 I especially love to run and play with all the other doggies. I've never known such fun and freedom - and who knew that in "real life", you don't have to spend 99.9% of your time scrounging for food, driven by hunger, and dreaming of crumbs?? We eat on a regular schedule around here, and it's pretty mind-blowing. 



Life is good - and it's about to get even better. 
Soot and Marjon (a really nice lady who visited me all the way from across an ocean) just whispered in my ear and told me I'm being adopted to the USA. 
I don't know where that is exactly...but if it's got lots more nice people there like Marjon, than although I'll be sad to say goodbye to Soot, I'll be happy to meet my new nation!

I am a victim of the dog meat trade.


I grew up on the streets of Thailand, in a "survival of the fittest" climate, where I had to fend for food and avoid many dangers. 

One day, some men approached me while I slept and tossed a wire lasso over my head. As I awoke, struggling and snapping with fear, they used a long stick with crude pincers attached to the end of it to lift me and then dump me into a truck.

Lots of other terrified dogs were in the truck alongside me. We were driven into a dense jungle-like area, away from main roads and towns. Tropical trees provided cover as the same horrid men used the wire lassos and pincers on us again, this time to grab us and drop us into a pit. We fell through the air for a terrifying moment, then landed on a hard concrete floor. Some of us were injured in the fall; all of us were terrorized.

The pit cover was replaced once we were all inside it, and hardly any light penetrated from above. There was no food or water in our hot, dark, claustrophobic jail, and nowhere to escape. But we didn't fight one another or really do much of anything other than freeze with fear - we were all too traumatized.

Over the next couple of days, the pit cover opened a few times, light blinded us from above, and more dogs were dropped in amongst us until the men apparently decided that had enough of us to satisfy their greed and justify an legal smuggling run across the border.

 There was the sound of the pit cover opening again, and as we all blinked, blinded once again by the light, expecting more dogs to drop down amongst us, the long pincer stick returned instead. We were grabbed around the neck once more, and then shoved into a new form of torture - a compact "crush cage" - with many other dogs. 

The cages were set on end and we were dropped in and shoved and packed like sardines until limbs and tails emerged from between the wire bars and we were nearly suffocating from such close quarters. None of us could move more than literally one inch in any direction. 

Then our crush cages were piled high onto the flatbed of a truck, with more and more cages on top of, and around the sides of, ours. Many of us lost limbs and tails in crushing injuries as the staggering weight stacked higher and higher.

In order to conceal us - live contraband intended for smuggling cross-country and over two border crossings - a heavy, non-breathable tarp was thrown over the entire truck's cargo, cutting off even our access to fresh air - the last resource we had.

We sat on that truck for a long time. I was so dazed and disoriented that it could have been hours or it could have been days - I really can't say for sure. I guess they were waiting for an all clear signal from they boss. They drank water noisily from bottles as they laughed and joked near our truck and we watched them with desperate eyes because of course, during this time, we had been under terrible stress and had not had food or water for a dangerously-long period of time. 

I was certain that the end must be near - I was sure I would suffocate from the heat, from this extreme overcrowding, and from the long stretch of time that slowly ticked by. Indeed, many dogs around me perished.

It was evening, as dusk fell, when our truck finally rumbled to life and attempted to make a run northward for the border. The smugglers were headed for Vietnam, by way of Laos. But near the river's edge which separated Thailand from Laos, where we would have once again been thrown about like so much live garbage - this time into overcrowded smuggling boats - new sounds reached deep into our desolate quarters, inspiring fresh apprehension to those of us still alive and still conscious.

Voices - angry and commanding - fell upon our ears. We were frightened, but not for long. Much to my surprise, we were rescued that day, and I owe my life to the caring individuals and government officials who came together to save us all from yet more suffering in an extended transport, and eventual slow torture and death, to be someone's adrenaline-infused meal (which some cultures consider good for one's health and virility). 

I am forever grateful to our saviors. A few of the Royal Police even cracked open water bottles and tried their best to proffer sips to those of us in cages with access to bars facing them. But there was too little water and too many dogs. And anyway, it would be a long while before we could even be released from our terrifying confines.

We were slowly transported another long distance, still in those horrible crush cages, still packed like sardines - it seemed to take forever. I was in so much pain and filled with claustrophobic terror - what next??

We ended up at the Khemmarat government-run shelter, one of several large livestock centers in the Thai nation. There, our cages were unloaded with the use of cranes, hoists and manpower. One by one, our cage wires were cut and we literally had to be unpacked and unfolded from the positions we had been held prisoner in for so many long and torturous days.

Next, those of us who could stand and move still were herded into a large dog kennel. To be able to move freely again, and to have access to large vats of water and a long trough with food, was nothing short of miraculous, after all I had endured.

But although my life was marginally-improved now that I'd been "saved", we all still suffered - this time from widespread disease and massive overcrowding. Food was scarce; we lived practically one on top of the other; dog fights were frequent and often vicious; and there was little to no medical attention available. Once again, I was surrounded by terrible suffering and watched as many fellow dogs died around me at a rapid rate.

A long, frightening, sad period of my life passed here. I wondered if my whole life would play out behind these bars, and I shivered with fear to imagine such a fate.

But somehow, through some magical stroke of fate, Lady Luck intervened on my behalf. Someone, somewhere, saw my photo, looked into my eyes, and knew that they could not leave me behind.

For the first time in my strife-filled life, I am seeing the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. In my foster home in Bangkok, I am being shown kindness and affection; I am learning confidence, and polishing my manners; and I am discovering the meaning of family, and the meaning of love. It has been a glimpse into a life I never even knew existed: lives where doggies have homes and families to call their very own, lives where they will never know fear again. 

It's a life I so desperately want now…but one which will be brand-new to me and often confusing. I have so much to learn about life as a pet dog. I know I can do it - I've made it this far already! - but please, won't you gently show me the ropes, and have patience with me when I make missteps sometimes, as I surely will? In return, I will repay you a thousandfold.

I just need a fair chance at a life I could only dream of when I was that terrified dog, crammed into a crate, baking alive in the tropical heat, who had given up all hope.

Thanks for reading my story.

Love, Toni

Heart (Adopted!)

* * * UPDATE * * *

March 2013
Heart has been adopted by wonderful Laura in Canada! 
Here he was, about to board an airplane to cross the ocean...

...and here he is, just after arrival, being driven to his new home. He was enjoying cuddles in the lap of one of his loving new family members!

 

Mom reports that all continues to go beautifully. 
Heart is happy, well-adjusted, and affectionate - and he loves his new kitty sister, too. Music to our ears!



Welcome to your new life, Heart!

Thank you to all who have made this possible, from Patarin, who secured veterinary care for Heart and who fostered him when he was on the road to healing; to Dawn at ISDF who facilitated his adoption with his forever people; to kind-hearted international supporters who generously donated to help cover his costs; to Heart's adoring new family who welcomed him home with open arms.

....................

My name is Heart.

My tale is a sad one...but it has a happy ending. 

One day, when I was still very small, some cruel humans 

affixed a rubber band tightly around my muzzle 

and left me to suffer slowly and die.

I was so little - around five months old, really just a baby - that I can't 
even remember what I did to upset them so much. Maybe it was my puppy 
yips that annoyed them - but I only cried because I was hungry, scared, 
and lonesome. Or maybe it was because I was so small, naive, and trusting - 
an easy target for those bent on inflicting cruelty upon the innocent.

I only know that as the days passed, and my pain grew, I suffered silently. 
I could hardly open my mouth to eat or drink anything, and I grew thin quickly. 
I could not pant and suffered terribly in the heat. It was the height of my life's 
growth spurt, so as my body quickly changed and grew, and as my muzzle 
continued to swell, the rubber band ate deeper and deeper into 
my pain-ridden flesh. 

A few months ago, just when I had given up all hope, some kind 
people took pity on me and brought me to the attention of my angel on earth, 
Patarin Phadungpisuth. 

She brought me to a veterinary clinic, and at long last, I was freed from that 
awful elastic band that had held me in its vise grip for so long. The pain was 
still unimaginable, but with time, love, and excellent veterinary care, my muzzle 
has slowly begun to mend. 

I am learning to trust again, and to believe that not all humans are as 
cruel as the ones I encountered, once upon a time, when I was just an 
innocent, happy puppy.

I am finally on the road to complete healing...not just that of my flesh - -

 - - but also of my heart. 

Thank you for reading my story. 
A special thank you to all who have taken part in writing my happy ending.

Love,
HEART

Bailey (Adopted!)

* * * UPDATE * * *

April 2013

GREAT NEWS!!! Bailey has been adopted by Thanvarat, sister of Magic 10 Club's Patarin, in Bangkok, Thailand!

 Bailey's best friend in Pat's home was fellow Magic 10 Club member, puppy Ten Ten, so they will remain close "cousins" now - lovely for both doggies. Bailey has been home for one week already, and is doing great with his new family, including with his doggie brother. Thanvarat reports that Bailey likes nothing better than to lay on the floor of the kitchen, dreaming of his next yummy meal, as he enjoys his air-conditioned home and favorite Thai pop star's music! 

Ha ha - clever, funny boy. He knows that he is a very lucky doggie, indeed! 

Thank you to all who made this possible, from Patarin and the Magic 10 Club for pulling, transporting, vetting, and fostering Bailey; to Thanvarat for opening her heart and home to this wonderful little boy; to kind-hearted international supporters who generously donated to help cover his costs. 

There could be no happier ending to this fairy tale!

....................

My name is Bailey.

My mommy raised me up right, to be polite and quiet, and to always mind my manners.

I was so polite, in fact, that I was easily captured to be someone's dinner, which is how I ended up as part of a government seizure (lucky me) and was brought here to the government livestock shelter (not so lucky me).

I was so quiet and polite, in fact, that it would have been easy for me to be passed over on the day an angel named Patarin arrived at Khemmarat Shelter to choose a handful of lucky doggies to be re-homed.

I stared at her with my handsome hopeful eyes, gave her my most appealing glances, and wagged my tail in a pleading way. 

Oh, how I hoped I would be picked!

And I was! I was! 

I was!

 I am one of the happiest and luckiest dogs on this planet (Izumi says, also one of the most handsome! * blush *) because I am now in Bangkok - where I was brushed and bathed, saw a doggie doctor, and have gone into foster care with loving, kind-hearted Pat.

I'm still awaiting a happy forever home of my very own.

Do you think you might be the one waiting at the end of this very long road I have traveled?

I am a victim of the dog meat trade.

I grew up on the streets of Thailand, in a "survival of the fittest" climate, where I had to fend for food and avoid many dangers. 

One day, some men approached me and tossed a wire lasso over my head. They threw me in a small cage with many other dogs. It was cramped and I thought I would suffocate, as it was so overcrowded. The truck sat in the jungle for a couple of days before they made a run for the Vietnam border. During this time, I was not given food or water, and suffered in my cramped quarters. Again, I feared for my life - many dogs around me perished. 

Then - to my surprise - I was rescued by some caring individuals and government officials. I was taken from my cage and herded into a large dog kennel at the government-run Khemmarat livestock shelter. 

Although my life was marginally-better once I was freed from that wire cage, we suffered from widespread disease and massive overcrowding. Food was scarce, we were practically one on top of the other, dog fights were frequent, and there was no medical attention available. Once again, I was surrounded by terrible suffering and watched as my fellow dogs died around me at a rapid rate. 

Luck once more intervened, and kind Patarin removed me from the shelter and brought me to Bangkok, where I was given proper food, a grooming, and saw a veterinarian for medical care. For the first time, I saw there might be a light at the end of the tunnel. 

In my foster home in Bangkok with Pat, I was shown kindness and affection. It has been a glimpse into a life I never knew existed: one with a home and family to call my own, where I will never know fear again. 

It's a life I so desperately want now…but one which will be brand-new to me and often confusing.

 I have so much to learn about life as a pet dog. I know I can do it - I've made it this far already! - but please, won't you gently show me the ropes, and have patience with me when I make missteps sometimes, as I surely will? In return, I will repay you a thousandfold. 

I just need a fair chance at a life I could only dream of when I was that frightened dog, crammed into a crate, baking alive in the tropical heat, who had given up all hope.

Kahlua (Adopted!)

* * * UPDATE * * *

April 2013

Kahlua and Toni arrived in the Boston area a few weeks ago, and were lovingly received at the airport by Give a Dog a Bone's Marjon Tondravi and hubby Joe, and by Tamara, adopter of Toni. 



Kahlua was fostered by Marjon's kind groomer, Ashley Elderkin, and her family. Thank you so much for opening your home to this dear boy!

Give a Dog a Bone has since found the perfect adoptive family for Kahlua in Massachusetts, and he is now living the dream with his mom, Jenn, and human sister, Grace!

Thanks to all who have made this possible! A special thank you to Soot Liang Woo, foster mom of Kahlua in Bangkok, and Marjon Tondravi at Give a Dog a Bone for finding Kahlua his wonderful forever family. 

* * * * *

My name is Kahlua.

Clearly, I'm quite the looker! 

I'm just a little boy - 22 pounds - but I possess a big heart and a very forgiving nature. 

I'm friendly and affectionate, despite all that I've endured in my short life. 

Fate has not been kind to me until now, but I always hoped that one day my luck would change - and now it has, thanks to the Magic 10 Club! 

I hope my good fortune continues, and leads me one day to a loving home with a forever family to call my very own.

I am a victim of the dog meat trade.

That's me, at right, just after I was saved on the way to becoming someone's meal.

I grew up on the streets of Thailand, in a "survival of the fittest" climate, where I had to fend for food and avoid many dangers. One day, some men approached me and tossed a wire lasso over my head. They threw me in a small cage with many other dogs. It was so packed that none of us could move more than an inch in any direction. 

Then the crate was thrown high into the flatbed of a truck, and more and more cages began to be piled upon the top of, and around the sides of, ours. In order to conceal us - the live contraband being smuggled - a huge, heavy, plastic tarp was thrown over the entire truck's cargo, cutting off even our access to fresh air - the last resource we had.

We sat on that truck for several days. Of course, during this time, we were given no food or water. I felt that the end must be near - I was sure I would suffocate from the heat, from this extreme overcrowding, and from the long stretch of time that slowly ticked by. Indeed, many dogs around me perished. 

One evening, as dusk fell, the truck rumbled to life and attempted to make a run for the Vietnam border. But near the river's edge, where we would have been once again thrown about like so much live garbage, this time into overcrowded smuggling boats, new sounds reached deep into our desolate quarters, and gave hope to those of us still alive and still conscious.

Voices - angry and commanding - fell upon our ears. Much to my surprise, I was rescued that day, and owe my life to the caring individuals and government officials who came together to save us survivors from yet more suffering and eventual torture, before an unimaginably-horrific end. I will be forever grateful to them.

We were slowly transported another long distance to the ------government-run shelter, one of three large livestock centers in the nation. There, our cages were unloaded slowly with the use of cranes and hoists and manpower. Then, one by one, our cage wires were cut and we literally had to be unpacked and unfolded from the positions we had been held prisoner in for so many long and torturous days.

Next, those of us who could stand and move still were herded into a large dog kennel. To be able to move freely again, and to have access to large vats of water and a long trough with food, was nothing short of miraculous, after all I had endured.

But although my life was marginally-improved now that I'd been "saved", we all still suffered - this time from widespread disease and massive overcrowding. Food was scarce; we lived practically one on top of the other; dog fights were frequent and often vicious; and there was little to no medical attention available. Once again, I was surrounded by terrible suffering and watched as many fellow dogs died around me at a rapid rate. 

But somehow, through some magical stroke of fate, Lady Luck intervened on my behalf. Someone, somewhere, saw my photo, looked into my eyes, and knew that they could not leave me behind.

Patarin Phadungpisuth removed me from Khemmarat and had me transported to a veterinary clinic in Bangkok. There, I saw a veterinarian for medical attention, was groomed, and was given a well-padded, spacious cage of my very own, with unrestricted access to my own personal food and water bowls. 

As if this was not enough, in a week's time, my foster mom - Pat, again! - came to the vet clinic, and instead of her customary "Hello, how are you?" and loving pats, she collected me out of my cage, and into her arms. And then we walked outside to her car, and she drove me to her home, and…oh, if you could only know how my heart sang aloud when this happened to me!

 For the first time in my strife-filled life, I saw the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. 

In my foster home in Bangkok, I was shown kindness and affection; I learned confidence, and polished my manners; and I discovered the meaning of family, and the meaning of love. It was a glimpse into a life I never even knew existed: lives where doggies have homes and families to call their very own, lives where they will never know fear again. It's a life I so desperately want now…but one which will be brand-new to me and often confusing. 

I have so much to learn about life as a pet dog. 

I know I can do it - I've made it this far already! - but please, won't you gently show me the ropes, and have patience with me when I make missteps sometimes, as I surely will? In return, I will repay you a thousandfold. 

I just need a fair chance at a life I could only dream of when I was that terrified dog, crammed into a crate, baking alive in the tropical heat, who had given up all hope.