We’re Back . . . But She’s Not
Our rescue team returned to the spot where the badly maimed brown-and-white dog was last spotted fifteen hours earlier. The friendly black three-legged dog was still there, but we met his owner, who kindly put him on a chain while we were trying to rescue his friend. But there was no sign of her at all.
In the past, our rescuers would just have to sit and wait, or (worse) go looking for the injured animal—worse because more often than not you’ll just be slowly chasing them away. Best practice in situations like this is to know where the dog is likely to be and get everything ready to catch them when they reappear. In this case, we decided to have our nets ready, just in case we could get close enough, but it seemed like a humane cage trap, baited with something tasty and smelly, would be perfect for this situation.
First, though, we had to know where the dog would most likely go—and even if she was still around; the people who lived at the site where we saw her said she doesn’t live there and had only recently shown up.
You Take Flight? Then So Do We!
One of our favourite additions to our range of rescue equipment in a very long time is our new search-and-rescue drone. Equipped with 56x zoom and a high-quality thermal-imaging camera, it enables us to quickly and effectively scan a large area to spot where a dog like this might be hiding.
So up it went . . . and, within just a few minutes, the infra-red camera picked up a dog-shaped silhouette in a field across the road from the other dogs. When we zoomed in, it was clearly the girl we were after. So we grabbed our nets, and attempted to quietly approach her from opposite sides—one rescuer to get her attention and make the wary stray run away from him and straight to the other rescuer with a big net. But she was smart and ran right between them, straight back to the spot where we saw her last night, seeking the comfort and safety of the little pack there.
Patience, Patience, Patience
Our rescue team chose a spot between the two locations where the dog was now known to hang out, but very close to the site where we first saw her, as she clearly preferred being there when she needed to feel safe. With the trap set up on level ground, baited with pieces of hot dog, and tested to ensure it was in good working order, we retreated to allow the dog to feel less nervous and thus more likely to go in.
And it worked—but unfortunately for the wrong dog. Of the three other dogs there, one was not chained up that day, and so she decided to take advantage of the free treats we had seemingly left behind. We returned to find her inside the now locked cage trap, looking very sheepish. Our rescuers decided to put the friendly old dog in a crate in the rescue vehicle so that only the maimed dog would now be free to come take the bait.
And then we waited. And waited. And waited.
The rescue team checked the trap every hour or so, which is how we found the old dog had gone in. But, after we got her out, nothing happened until late afternoon: When we crept up to check on the trap, as we turned the corner, there she was, standing looking at it, wondering if it was a good idea to satiate herself on the trail leading into what was to her a strange-looking device. She saw us, but we quickly turned and walked away, hoping that we hadn’t now spooked her into staying away from probably the only thing that can help her.
Alerted
Finally, just after dark, as one of our rescuers was sitting in the rescue vehicle a little distance away and hidden from the trap, we heard a yelp followed by loud barking from the pack. Could this be it? Had she taken the bait?
Watch the video and see (the beginning includes footage from the last video):
In Good Hands
From there, it was a two-hour drive to get Stella to one of the vet hospitals that we use. We prefer manned 24-hour hospitals for cases like this, as we want our rescues to be observed around the clock when very sick or after undergoing major surgery. She was very well behaved, but looked so bewildered and a little scared not knowing what was going to happen to her. We wish we could somehow let her know that she’s surrounded by good people now who all just want to help her. It was a comfort to see the poor girl be made to sleep so that she wouldn’t have to worry any more for a while.
She underwent surgery to amputate the remains of her leg within 30 minutes of arriving at the vet.
Stella is now being fostered by our founders, Sean and Judy, at their home, as they want to be able to keep an eye on her at all hours while she’s recovering from the operation and the shock of everything that’s happened to her. We’ll post another update about this beautiful dog very soon, but—spoiler alert—she’s doing so much better than we imagined for such a nervous, badly hurt stray dog. Look out for that update video and blog post later this week (rescues permitting)!
Please become an ACT donor today—and transform the life of a suffering Taiwan stray like Stella
Please, please, please—we are just coming out of our busiest time of year for rescues, but our team are still out at all hours of night and day, seven days a week, driving all over the island, doing what they can to save the lives of dogs like Stella. If you’re thinking of donating to an animal charity any time soon, please consider ACT. We have no large salaries and our admin costs are at the low end of the perfect range for animal charities. We really are a great animal charity to donate to.
Donating is quick, easy, and secure. Our donation form below accepts debit card, credit card, PayPal, Venmo, Google Pay or Apple Pay. Please consider becoming a monthly donor—not only does it help ensure these lifesaving 24-hour animal rescues can continue, it helps us plan better and spend less time fundraising and more time saving lives. Many of our donors decide to reduce their intended single donation and turn it into many smaller ones instead; for example, instead of donating £30 today, they sign up to give £10 per month. Maybe you would like to do the same.
Your kind donation—whether it’s big or small, single or monthly—truly makes a difference. We receive no government support and these maimed dogs rely on the kindness of people like you to help ensure their rescue, treatment, and lifelong care. Please join us in transforming the lives of Taiwan’s suffering strays—and giving dogs like Stella the best chance possible of a brighter, happier future.
Whatever and however you give, please know that we and the sick and injured strays of Taiwan are very grateful for your kindness. Thank you.
More updates about Stella very soon.
