Monday, 24th January, 2023, 11:30 AM
ACT receives an urgent message with a video of a dog close to drowning, stuck in a deep and dirty drain. The water looks like factory run-off, and it’s about knee-deep in the section where the dog is. The only way the dog could have ended up here was by falling in from the feed drain. But the 1.5 meter wall she is now trapped inside is too tall to climb out, and in desperation she pokes her head through a small hole to give a weak bark in the hope that someone might save her. But it’s not going to be an easy rescue.
Barely Keeping Her Nose Above Water
The second and third clips reveal the dog has moved away from the hole and into the middle of the drain, where she is barely able to keep from going under the water. She is very cold and weak now, and her barking has stopped. It’s been two and a half hours since she was first spotted, but we have no idea how long she’s been there, struggling to stop herself drowning in the filthy run-off and sludge that’s up to her muzzle. What we do know is that she looks like she is close to giving up. Our nearest rescuer is 40 minutes away but pulls out all the stops to get there in time.
(Video below includes the clip above).
Why People Here Don’t Just ‘Jump In’
Very often, when we post videos sent to us of dogs or cats in dire need of rescue, many commenters are incredulous that the person filming didn’t just go up and save the animal themselves instead of filming. It’s a very good question. Here’s the explanation:
Firstly, ACT always asks people never to attempt a rescue themselves unless we can see that it’s going to be very easy. In those situations, it’s just a matter of throwing a slip leash over the head of a friendly dog and holding onto them until we arrive. In almost every other situation, we strongly advise against anyone trying to save a dog or cat themselves, because there is a danger the person can get hurt or the animal could get spooked and run away—and now be more wary of anyone else trying to rescue them.
Secondly, the strays in Taiwan are mostly semi-feral and will not let people approach them, let alone try to grab them. It took our rescuers many years of painful and bloody lessons to learn how to handle an unfriendly dog the right way to keep both canine and human safe—and make the rescue happen sooner rather than a lot later. The dog in the clips above is deemed a large dog in Taiwan, and 99.9 percent of people simply won’t chance grabbing them for fear of getting bitten, but also because they don’t want to make matters worse.
Documenting for Reporting
Lastly, we ask people to send us photos or preferably videos of the animal they’re reporting to us so that we can determine if a rescue is really necessary and, if so, what kind of situation we’re dealing with. It’s important to know what specialist equipment we might need to bring, for example bulky drop nets or lengths of rope. So it makes sense and helps the caller be useful by asking them to document what they see. Very often, the rescuer will start heading towards the location anyway, but sometimes the dispatcher will call off the rescue a few minutes later because of a false alarm—for example, when a cat is only resting in a short tree and not really stuck, or a thin or disabled dog who appears to be stray is actually known to us and has a loving owner who is already taking care of their needs.
We’ll post updates about this dog tomorrow. You can read about them here or on the ACT Facebook page.
You Can Join the ACT Rescue Team
Please, please, please—this is our busiest time of year for rescues, and our rescue team are out at all hours of night and day, seven days a week, doing what they can to save lives; 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. And we have been rescuing animals in Taiwan nonstop since 1999. By donating, you are playing a vital role in ensuring these rescues happen.
Your donation—big or small, one-time or monthly—truly makes a difference. Please join us in transforming the lives of Taiwan’s suffering strays—and giving stricken dogs like this girl the best chance possible of being saved in their direst need.
p.s.
More updates soon, so be sure to subscribe to our blog. In the meantime: What shall we name her? Leave a comment below.
