It’s depressing how many hundreds of podencos are abandoned and dumped in perreras every week – as with the galgos, there is now no let up during the summer months after hunting ends..,Podenco facebook pages are full of gorgeous podencos needing forever homes…I simply can’t post them all here!
One new development in the past 18 months which does concern me is that, with photos circulating on Facebook of podencos in perreras, some people who live outside of Spain are trying to organise rescuing them and putting them in kennels, sometimes with negative results. Unfortunately this can give podencos a bad name and it’s not good for the dogs themselves.
These people don’t see the dogs apart from in photos, they rely on perrera and kennel staff to assess their characters and suitability for a family/home, which isn’t easy when surrounded by dozens of other dogs. Traumatised dogs need to be in foster homes to rehabilitate them, help them adjust to being in a house, toilet trained, different noises, different language.
One example is of a podenco being sedated for transport to another country. On arrival and ‘coming round’, it bit someone – no doubt out of fright. The people involved had no back-up and so an experienced association had to step in to take the podenco.
A second example is again of a podenco being rescued from a perrera into kennels and then transported out of Spain. On arrival, it was obviously ill, diagnosis was distemper and the dog had to be pts because, again, there was nowhere isolated for it to go.
Another example is the story of Alaska, now safe with Podenco Friends in Murcia. Again, well-intentioned people outside of Spain were trying to organise to rescue the dog. How would they have dealt with the resultant medical surgery and ongoing care, without a local association stepping in to take over?
Many perreras have a ‘no kill’ policy and work with local volunteers to ensure that dogs have a chance of being adopted. The actions of some of these well-intentioned people outside of Spain have also, in some cases, caused problems for these local volunteers with perrera staff.
It’s several years now since I created my blogs to publicise the plight of the galgos and podencos; I know only too well how heartbreaking it is to see injured dogs, abandoned starving dogs on the streets, dogs in perreras on death row.
But trying to rescue them from afar is not the best way to go about it. The best way is for people outside of Spain to join a rescue association in Spain or their own country, and work with them to raise funds to save the dogs, pay vet fees, kennelling, find forever homes. Work with the people who actually see the dogs and can assess their characters.
Don’t go in there ‘blind’. It’s not necessarily the best way to help a dog.
Comments
6 responses to “Best way to help podencos? Join an existing rescue association”
Alaska would be dead now if so many of us hadn’t agitated and fundraised to save her as NO association was going to help her. The funds were raised for her release and initial medical care at least, with ongoing fundraising to cover her costs, and she had a home to go to and temporary foster in spain to undergo vet care and prep for travel. To say only certain associations can do all this is simply patronising and arrogant. Alaska is in the best place right now for the help she needs, but only due to outsiders making huge efforts to save her. And it is this very ‘You must do this, not that’ divisive attitude, which you yourself, Beryl, slammed in From Heaven to Hell, that prevents a concerted effort to get something done about the appalling situation. It isn’t only people who live in spain who have brains, experience and understanding of dogs. I admire your work tremendously and have followed your blog for years now, but in this case of Alaska in particular, and some others whose rescue I have followed, I must disagree. The Spanish associations by their own admissions are overwhelmed, they should be welcoming additional help and working constructively to overcome the problems which have certainly arisen, but are not incapable of being overcome.
I might add that it is a myth to suggest that only the dogs rescued by these ‘amateur’ non -resident individuals arrive in their uk homes and cause problems. As a behaviourist I have been asked to assess and advise on a number of dogs which came through recognised and long-established Spanish associations, and I am aware that several of my COAPE colleagues are now involved in similar cases.
Cooperation and sharing ideas and knowledge is the key, if it is the dogs themselves that really are at the heart of all these efforts. Anyway, Alaska has brought about so much hassle and strive that I am now out of rescue efforts of any kind. Life is too short and miserable to go seeking out problems to sap one’s energy and well being.
I wrote the article after comments I received from associations and volunteers in Spain, and have received thanks for so doing. Animal rescue is full of well-intentioned people, not all refuges are good ones. It takes strong people to work in animal rescue and sadly at least a couple of those spring to mind in associations who are on their own personal ego trip and don’t always do the best for the dogs – a case of ‘let’s get the dogs homed as soon as possible so we can claim we’ve homed 1,000 dogs this year’! So I guess there are one or two of these who may have come into your excellent care, Fiona. Also there is now ‘poaching’ occurring when an individual using a ‘nom de plume’ is trying to poach potential adoptants from other associations. I advocate joining recognised rescue associations – yes they are overwhelmed especially in the shelters and refuges – so that’s all I’m saying – join one or more of the associations and help from your home base outside Spain – it doesn’t stop people raising funds in the association name to save a dog.
Just to add that I’ve received more positive feedback on my article from those in Spain working for the dogs, protectoras, volunteers, presidents of associations…and others concerned about they are now seeing whose UK rehomings have been unsuccessful when there is no backup. I really fail to see why people won’t join a registered association/protectora…?
There are clearly many skilled and intelligent people in the UK and elsewhere who can contribute so much to help the fight for these poor animals. I understand how frustrating and upsetting it is to see a picture of a dog on social media etc especially if no other rescue appears to be showing an interest in that particular dog. That inevitably prompts people to raise a rescue bid themselves which may or may not succeed. However, sadly we lost our rescue dog recently and I will forever have to live with the guilt that instead of saving that dog I was a contributory factor in her death. This is why I would advocate using an established rescue organisation. They have the systems in place to deal with the many issues which could arise and are very experienced in their field. This should not be about reputations or personalities but about the DOGS and I hope we can all find a way together to assist the many homeless desperate dogs here and abroad.
thank you, Scott, for commenting and confirming from an adoptants viewpoint what so many of the volunteers in Spain in both rescue associations/protectoras and perreras are all saying. And please, do not feel guilt about your own situation – remember that you, being a caring person, helped a rescued dog. I am sorry your experience had a sad close. Thank you for caring.