Dog Rescue Newcastle secures a permanent shelter location

BY JARROD MELMETH

Dog Rescue Newcastle have secured a permanent location for the construction of a shelter to assist in their re-homing efforts.

The site at Fullerton Cove, will provide a sanctuary for up to 40 dogs where they will be trained and rehabilitated until they are moved into foster care or adopted.

The organisation wants to make the Hunter a no-kill zone by working with dog owners and educating the community to reduce overall animal surrenders and abandonment. 

The shelter, once constructed will feature exercise yards, long-term accommodation, community pet pantry, event space, memorial garden, retail store and adoption office.

Jesse Reinhard from Dog Rescue Newcastle says the the new facility will give animals on death row a second chance.

"This will mean animals in death row pounds and on euthanasia lists, both locally and in regional that need more help can be saved.

"We also get a lot of private surrenders that are very urgent due to neglect, abuse or domestic violence. 

"One of the biggest issues of running a foster based program is that we need time to assess the dogs and place the dogs so we can have the right carers. This shelter will mean animals can be assessed faster and more families can be supported," Mr Reinhard said.

Over $70,000 has been raised so far which has gone towards the deposit for the mortgage of the property. The organisation says another $300,000 is needed to construct the shelters.

Mr Reinhard says the organisation will have to up the bar on donations in order to get the shelter up and running.

"If there's more dogs coming in, it will mean there is going to be more help needed. We will be reaching out with lots of new programs and campaigns to help get business and the community involved. 

"This will be a very inclusive shelter because we believe we can do it together, not just with money but with hands," Mr Reinhard said.

Anyone who would like to donate to the shelter can do so here. People interested in volunteering can apply on their website.

Image: Dog Rescue Newcastle

Pictured: Plans for the shelter at Fullerton Cove.
Image: Dog Rescue Newcastle

RSPCA invites Hunter residents to take part in the pet census

BY JARROD MELMETH

Have you ever wondered if your pampered pooch or cool cat were the only ones getting extravagant birthday parties or professional photoshoots? 

The RSPCA is calling on all animal lovers to take part in the NSW Animal Lovers Census which will provide a snapshot of all the furry, feathered, scaly, wooly and even hairless animals in our lives.

RSPCA General Manager, Animal Operations Kristy Blake says this census will ask all the important questions the other census failed to address.

"Animals are important members of our households and community and the Animal Lovers Census will help us to better understand more about the animals across NSW," Ms Blake said.

The RSPCA is offering everyone who completes the Animal Lovers Census by the end of August to go in the draw to win a Penthouse Pup voucher.

The census can be completed here.

Keep Cool, We're in for a Scorcher

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Today is set to be an absolute scorcher in the Hunter and we're being reminded to not only keep ourselves cool, but our pets as well.

With the mercury tipped to hit 42 degrees in Wallsend and about the same in Singleton, local vets are reminding us to make sure we leave plenty of water around, see to it that there's plenty of shade for our pets to hide under and not exercise our pets, particularly dogs, during the hottest parts of the day if at all.

Director of the Newcastle Animal Referral and Emergency Centre and 2NURFM pet vet Dr David Tabrett said dogs in particular pant to try and keep cool, which requires lots of water.

"And that requires a lot of moisture to be available so its always important to have a lot of cool, fresh water sources available just in case they kick one over, it's important to make sure they've got a couple."

"We don't appreciate how quickly they can get overheated and I've had that experience with my dog and I'm an experienced vet of 30 years, where I've mi-judged the timing and she became overheated very quickly. So just be ever aware of your dogs behaviour changes or if they get gastrointestinal problems that certainly would be a sign," said David.

Summer is one of the most deadly times of the year for our pets, and new stats show 39 per cent of Australians are unaware of the signs that their dogs are suffering from heat exhaustion or dehydration.

David said it really doesn't take much for your dog to overheat in the scorching temperatures we get throughout the Hunter region.

"And that can take a mild exercise or for instance dogs with pushed in faces they don't tolerate heat very well. So the symptoms we would see are gastro-intestinal problems first of all, breathing problems and in some cases it can progress to neurological disease such as coma, convulsions and death."

If your pet's behaviour does change, or you notice they are suffering from heat stroke, contact your vet immediately.

The hot conditions have prompted paramedics to remind us to stay out of the sun and drink plenty of water.

Intensive Care Paramedic Alan Morrison said if your not feeling well, just get out of the sun.

"If you notice yourself suffering from some heat stress, take steps to cool yourself down with some fanning, maybe a damp cloth and getting out of the sun and into the shade."

Port Stephens cracking down on dog barking

BY TYLER FARDELL

Port Stephens council is set to crack down on dog barking with a new policy that would give rangers more power to deal with complaints.

The new policy would remove barking in some situations from the 'nuisance order' category and treat it as an 'offensive noise'.

Some of the situations include barking before 7 am and after 8 pm, if barking ‘episodes’ occur more than 3 times a day, and barking that interrupts phone calls, T.V, study or conversation.

Residents who want to lodge complaints will be asked at the start of the process if they would appear as witnesses in court. They will then be asked to fill out a ‘barking dog diary’ and record examples of barking.

Rangers acting on these diaries would have the power to issue dog owners with a 28-day noise abatement order, which could be escalated to infringements and court attendance notices.

The proposed policy is on public exhibition until next month and is open to submissions.

Source; Pixabay

Keep your Furry Friend Safe this Christmas

While we can expect ourselves in indulge a little this Christmas, Hunter residents are being urged to ensure foods and other hazards harmful to cats and dogs are out of reach of their paws.

The Newcastle Animal Referral and Emergency Centre (NAREC) at Broadmeadow has recently discharged Max, a 1 year-old golden retriever after underwent surgery to remove to skewer sticks from his stomach after he got a hold of them in the chaos of a family get together.

NAREC CEO Wendy Fisher says chocolate is also rather toxic to dogs and "certainly the more pure the cocoa, dark chocolate is more toxic than milk chocolate".

"Another hazard is tinsel and particularly cats like to play with tinsel and swallow it and that can cause a nasty effect in the intestines and cause rupture of the intestines in severe cases".

Keep their paws off hazardous food and ornaments

"Grapes and raisins can cause kidney failure in dogs, we don't know the mechanism and the toxic dose is not known".

Pet owners are also urged to be wary of the dangers of leftover Christmas ham or turkey fat.

More details on other common hazards for pets over Christmas can be found on the NAREC website.