Posted on 04/01/2020 8:42:45 PM PDT by nickcarraway
A one-eyed dog saved from the meat trade in China is now supporting her disabled owner through a gruelling 12 weeks of coronavirus isolation.
Mary Garland, 50, who lives in Maida Vale, North London is severely disabled and confined to a wheelchair. She takes immunosuppressant medication and is classed in the 'high-risk' category.
Normally Mary has a busy social life and fills her days seeing friends and attending events in support of the No To Dog Meat charity, which rescued Annabel, her beloved chow-chow.
A constant companion
Annabel was found in a terrible state - partially skinned and had an eye missing. But the charity's actions, and Mary's love and care, now mean that Annabel can lead a normal happy life.
And it seems that Annabel is keen to repay the favour now that Mary is in need, and the pair have become each other's constant companion since the lockdown began last week.
Mary said, "It has been hard not being able to go to charity events, see friends or take out the dogs, but Annabel is a great company.
"She is so calm and helps calm anxiety at this stressful time, I am a qualified psychotherapist so I understand how to manage anxiety, but it is very hard sometimes even with those skills, and Annabel has been a godsend.
"She has been through so much in her own life, and now she is helping me through this challenging time, she comes and cuddles me all the time and touching her soft fur is really comforting in my wobbly moments."
Plans for the future While in isolation, Mary is busy making plans for her future life with Annabel. The pair recently attended Crufts, where Annabel was No To Dog Meat's ambassador dog, wowing the crowd at the NEC in Birmingham. Mary is keen to get back to doing that good work.
She said, "Annabel is such a loving girl with her own disability so we are in it together. She is giving so much love and joy keeps me going when I can not see family and friends.
"All disabled dogs deserve a chance and all pets who are rescued make a wonderful companion.
"I can’t wait until things pass and we can attend events again, and Annabel is the best ambassador No To Dog Meat can have and I am grateful to play my part, dogs really do save lives."
What is No To Dog Meat?
No To Dog Meat is a UK based charity set up by animal rights advocate Julia de Cadenet, which supports Chinese dog shelters in carrying out daring rescues from meat markets and slaughterhouses in the country. Some of the dogs are then brought to the UK to be pampered by owners like Mary.
The charity has suffered serious problems during the coronavirus crisis, in getting food to dogs in need, and also with rumours in some regions that pets help to spread the virus, which is not true.
Some of the rescue dogs have had to be taken into hiding, and others have been unable to travel to the loving homes the charity had found for them.
The charity's long-term success is all too evident though, simply by witnessing the close bond that Mary and Annabel share.
In fact, prior to the coronavirus crisis, the charity was planning to put forward some of the rescue dogs to become Pets As Therapy dogs, due to their calm and empathetic natures after the adversity, they have faced.
You can find out more about No To Dog Meat and donate by going to www.notodogmeat.com
Some guys in a pub were ribbing another guy about how bad his eyesight was. The guy says, "I can see every bit as good as you blokes. I can even see that one-eyed dog walking in the door." "Well, there you have it, "said one of his friends, "That dog is walking OUT of the door!"
Great story! A dog like that you don’t eat all at once.
Heartbreaking for the dogs. I adopted a dog from a shelter here in Chicago, and she was near being put down; a few days away. CACC is filled with pit mixes, which Greta is, and she’s just the sweetest thing. Our groomer says it every time, and our local Bentley’s has adopted her as an unofficial treat-tester and publicity dog.
I can’t imagine seeing what those dogs in China go through. Honestly, the population are barbarians; at least the ones who will eat anything. Personally, if I can see that an animal is capable of sensitivity and showing emotion, which dogs are, I’d have a hard time eating it. I even have a hard time with pork, because pigs are intelligent animals capable of emotion. Ask anyone who has one as a pet, and I don’t mean on a farm for slaughter.
Chinese savages
LOST: One eyed, three legged dog. Missing tail and one ear. Answers to “Lucky”.
The one by her side...or the one in her lap?
The problem is that these “meat dogs” have already brought in diseases and parasites to American dogs.
A new distemper, dog rabies is back, a dog flu and the Asian tick all came from these dogs.
My local shelter imports them and one group had to be put down for rabies shortly after arriving.
This last bunch of purebred Jindos [not a dog for casual owners] was “quarantined” for a whole 2 days before being put up for adoption [at hefty prices] while the native dogs still languished in their cells, unwanted and “plain”.
Many of the real meat dogs [not the ones the savvy Asians are now backyard breeding for bleeding hearts] and are so feral and unsocialized that they wind up put down for aggression.
Packs of pure Golden Retrievers, French Bulldogs and other obviously not-meat dogs are being bred to supply the “rescues”.
As much as you know I love all dogs, importing foreign dogs is a very bad thing.
There are thousands upon thousands of “common American dogs” being euthanized because people want these new Virtue Signalling Dogs.
They are also FAR more profitable for these “rescues” which are in reality, quite often “flippers”.
Beyond the heart-tugging commercials is a hidden dark side to these “rescued dogs”, which endangers every dog born here.
Just taking your dog to a pet store where they have tramped exposes them to the new health threats.
It’s not bad enough Asia keeps infecting us, now they’re infecting our dogs, too.
And yes, they are barbaric, sadistic, soulless heathens who torture and slaughter animals brutally and wantonly.
Bless YOU for saving a native dog in need.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/canada-rescue-dogs-import-canines-disease-1.3757656
Good points
I’ve never forgiven them the melamine in the pet food. Evil bastards.
You should be aware that many “big name” brand dog foods are still importing Menadione sodium bisulfite from China, and feeding it to your dog every single day of its life.
It is in ALL Purina dry dog foods, Rachel Ray Nutrish, Nature’s Recipe and many other dog foods.
http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=menadione
https://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/choosing-dog-food/menadione-in-dog-food/
https://www.foodsweeteners.com/vitamin-k3-msb/
https://www.made-in-china.com/manufacturers/sodium-bisulfite.html
People have vowed to NEVER buy another China-made dog food after those deaths but they still are, because some additives are imported from China but not required to be labeled as such.
It’s a cheap, penny pinching synthetic Vit K supplement.
Avoid it.
Please.
The blowback from their last “import” of “meat dogs” was so vocal and vicious, that they deleted every mention of the dogs on their FB page.
People who know what’s going on, really, were livid.
*Rarely* do I take my dogs to pet stores anymore because there are dozens of these potential plague dogs in the area, now.
*All* dogs were adopted in a matter of a couple of days.
Yet the “plain” dogs were still on the shelter page for weeks...until they were “gone”.
Having lost so wonderful dogs to cancer in the last decade makes me kind of angry. Athena was just 7 years old.
I’m so sorry for your devastating loss.
I have become so proactive, to the point of angry paranoia about dog food ingredients.
So many companies are slipping crap through under the guise of lack of origin labels, and just bad practice that it’s obscene.
We have PetValu stores here and they mark down their foods way before their “expiration”, which is silly anyway as the dry foods last for years, and I stalk those stores, getting really good, human grade kibbles for 50-80% off all the time.
I have a huge, nonworking freezer full of excellent dog food.
*We* may eat like beggars but the dogs never do.
:)
Thanks.
.
God bless you and damn the chicos
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.