Pets in Italy

EMERGENCY - Can you help ROCKY? Donations needed urgently!!

Lucia Cavallo saved this poor dog’s life after he was hit by a car in Salento in the province of Lecce,  but after posting an appeal for funds on Facebook to help pay for his medical treatment no-one has responded at all. So I am posting this again in the hope that anyone living in Italy who knows how to do a bonifico (bank transfer) can help. If you live overseas you can send me funds and I will transfer them from here.

 Rocky’s good Samaritan is an animal lover and unemployed student. She came across the little dog lying in the middle of the road. He’d been hit by a car and no-one stopped except her. She scooped him up and took him straight to the vet where he it was discovered the head of his back femur was smashed. He needs an immediate operation and all this costs money.

Rocky is about 6 -7 months old and medium –large size, very gentle and suffering from extreme shock: Lucia needs help as she can’t afford to pay for his treatment – the x-rays, operation, analyses, post operative care and the cost of finding him a foster home or kennels. To put it bluntly he risks being put to sleep if she doesn’t get some funds asap.

CAN YOU HELP?

Lucia Cavallo cavlucy@libero.it        Cell. 338/8831011
To make a donation by bank transfer: cc 57928129 IBAN IT28P076 0116 0000 0005 7928 129 in the name of Lucia Cavallo.

UPDATE: Rocky has been operated on and is doing well but he still needs a good home.

Donations

A very kind American lady in Switzerland has just sent me a cheque to help four of the dogs featured on the dog adoption page. The people who are receiving the money are overwhelmed. Most are volunteers paying out of their own pockets so every little helps them. And of course, they are also very happy that someone cares enough to bother sending money.

It occurred to me that other people might also want to help so I have set up a donations page. I'm not a registered charity and so can't accept money online but I will make sure it gets to the right people. If you would like to help then click here for details.

Latest on the Long Limbed Loon

I thought I'd update you on how our internet rescue English Setter Gaspare (Gassie) is doing as we've had him three months now. It's difficult to remember life without him really.

He's had the latest set of bloodtests and his anaemia is now cured, which is a great relief as they weren't sure if this was something more sinister. He's put on more weight so is now almost 25 kilos, which is a hell of a lot better than the 18 kilos he weighed when he was found. I'd like to see him even heavier though as I don't like dogs to be too skinny, even thogh that is the trend in Italy. (I noticed recently that the feeding instructions on our imported dogfood had been altered in Italian to give the dog less than in the other languages!)

Gassie is very lively, especially in the early morning. He wakes me up by sitting on his haunches and putting both very long front paws on the bed. This wakes the other two dogs and so I have now taken to just giving in and getting up. I have been downstairs by six o'clock in the morning for the last week. I'm knackered! I like early mornings but that is a touch too early even for me.

He gambols around the garden like a demented foal chasing all manner of insects and things up trees, which can include birds and squirrels and butterflies and lizards. You can see him on  a lizard hunt in the photo. He pounces like a cat and I have never seen a dog do that!

Talking of cats, the war goes on against our little tribe of felines, although Jimmy the youngest has now started coming in at night and sleeping in the tower room, slipping out of the open bathroom window first thing. I suppose it's a start. Gas won't touch them when I am there, but I can't be everywhere!

He is big buddies with my other two dogs, although ZsaZsa does get fed up with him sometimes, but it's all good natured. He and Maia zoom around the garden chasing after balls. He can easily outrun her on his ten foot legs but he often slows down just so she can chase him properly.

This morning I sat down on the two seater sofa in the kitchen to try and read (ha!) and was followed by Zsa Zsa and Maia. That filled it up pretty much, but Gassie doesn't like to be left out so he proceeded to climb onto my knee and curl up with his head on Maia's back. I think you can safely say he has settled in OK and is now well and truly a (large) part of the family!

Setter SOS!

Rad is a five.year-old pedigree English setter and is probably going to be shot by his owner if the volunteers don't find a family for him in 15 days from the date of this post. Can you help?

Details here on the dogs needing adoption page.

If you read Italian, there is a very good blog called adottauncanedicaccia which is worth checking out regularly.

Another Day, Another Appeal

Well, it was all fun and games at the Casentino Canile today as three of the most fearful dogs - Baldo, Argo and Bebo - (all hounds) got out and we spent most of the morning trying to catch them! The kennels is set in a fenced wood and so they didn't get out completely, but trying to coax three petrified dogs out of woods is no easy task. Anyway, we managed it in the end, to great relief all round. (Baldo had been out for a week!) I suppose the positive side is that these dogs are normally only taken out on a harness and so at least they got a good run around!

I got another heartbreaking appeal this morning for a lovely little dog - seven-year-old  Agata - in a kennels in Arezzo with little hope of ever finding a home as she has leishmaniasis, although it is treatable. If you could find her a good home, or spread the word among your friends then maybe a miracle could happen for her. I've posted her details here.

Donkey Destined for Butcher - Can You Help?

FRANCIS is a donkey destined for the butcher’s.

Francis’ owner is in financial difficulty and can’t keep the little donkey any longer. He turned to the Italian horse rescue association alture.net for help because he can’t pay for the donkey’s upkeep any more and is soon going to have to take drastic measures. Francis is a medium size donkey with a lovely character although he is a bit nervous.

It will cost Euro 400 to save Francis from the butcher’s – that is the amount they will pay for him and if you would like to contribute then please give your donation via PayPal on this page. Scroll down and look at the menu on the right hand side and click on "fai una donazione". They have about two weeks to raise the money. Mention in the subject line or message box this is to help Francis.

UPDATE: They have now raised enough money to save Francis! Hooray! He is shortly to be transferred to his new home. Any extra money over the €400 will go towards helping their many other rescued horses and ponies.

If you want to pay by bank transfer in Italy here are the details:

Conto Corrente Bancario – Banca di Credito Cooperativo di
Cherasco Agenzia di Sommariva del Bosco: IBAN IT26F084874687000009010074

8 intestato ad Associazione ANPANA Cuneo.
specificare causale : riscatto Francis e inviare conferma a posta@anpana.tutelaequini.org

UPDATE: Francis has been adopted and is happily settled in his new home!