Building Better Dogs

14/10/2024

Please read this and take note.

07/08/2024

21/07/2024

New boy Bobby that’s with us certainly needs a lot of help. Not just emotionally and behaviourally but physically as well. Rescued from a terrible hoarding situation he’s got a lot of work ahead of him. Lucky for him he’s with an amazing, reputable rescue, Shar Pei United QLD. Between us we’ll make him the very best version of himself and able to live life to the fullest

13/07/2024

Happy Sunday Morning from Beautiful Katniss, who is on her way to do some early morning offsite training.
Little Legs Dog & Cat Rescue Qld Ince

09/07/2024

Gorgeous boy Dunkin, loving life, learning to be the best version of himself while he waits patiently for a home. Hear No Evil, Australian Deaf Dog Rescue.

21/06/2024

Beautiful Katniss.

Katniss

This is her story.

It’s a long story so grab yourself a cuppa. It might pay to grab a couple of tissues also while you’re up. It’s quite a sad story.

We were first called to go and see Katniss many years ago. What we saw saddened and angered us. The girl we met was skinny, had bad skin and chunks missing off her body from where she had been “socialised” with other dogs. (In other words beaten up by other dogs) The very person that was supposed to care for her didn’t have a single nice thing to say about her. Katniss was living a life of solitary confinement out the back of a property with food thrown out occasionally for her. No human contact at all.

Lucky for Katniss as soon as the the team at LL’s heard about her plight , they immediately sprung into action and made arrangements for her to go into a rehab centre to get the help she so desperately needed.

The day of her arrival, Katniss came to us tightly muzzled, eyes bulging in her head and screaming from fear. This girl was so terrified she lost control of both her bladder and bowels.

It was a long hard journey for Katniss but she did well. Many months later a perfect family came along and adopted her. The adult son in the family loved her and promised to care for her forever.

Sadly sometimes life happens and things just don’t go as planned. The adult son moved on and once again Katniss found herself in a situation where she was banished out the back of a property with very little human contact. Katniss got plenty of toys and food but what she really needed though was human contact and loving. Katniss lived with a bark collar on her 24/7 so even the option of verbal communication was denied to her.

One day a gate was left open. Katniss saw an opportunity and bolted away looking for the contact she so desperately craved. Along the way she encountered a small fluffy dog barking at her and wanting to fight her. This brought flooding back all those memories from when she had been hurt so badly by other dogs. She grabbed this little dog but to her credit didn’t hurt him. This understandably scared the little dog and its owner and she was reported to council. Council arrived and carted her off to the pound. She stayed in the pound while they decided her fate. Thankfully after thorough assessments the council decided to let her live but said she would have to live life as a “declared dog”. This meant Katniss would have to be in a secure enclosure, wear a muzzle when out and wear a special identifying council collar. This was all a bit too much for the family so Katniss was surrendered back to her rescue.

Once again Katniss found herself back at a training facility due to the terrible state she was in.

Katniss was vet checked and unbelievably she was found to be Heart Worm Positive. This is a serious condition that can result in severe lung disease, heart failure, other organ damage and death in dogs. Katniss’s family didn’t even care enough to give her a simple preventer either monthly or yearly to keep her safe.

Not to be deterred, LL’s just got on with what they needed to do and started treatment for Katniss. The treatment takes 6 months, it’s often painful and is expensive. It was crucial during this treatment period that Katniss was kept quiet and had minimal exercise. Katniss struggled during that time. For a smart, energetic girl that just wanted to get on with life, for Katniss it was tough but she made it through.

Once she was well enough her rehab started again. Katniss was never the same dog though that she used to be all those years ago when we first met her. She had lost a bit of that spark for life that she used to have and understandably so. We started teaching Katniss to be the very best version of herself. We taught her once again that it’s okay to trust other dogs and to have fun with them. She even made a couple of good dog friends that she enjoyed playing with. Katniss started enjoying trips to the park, the produce store, walking around the shops and visiting people. She was getting her confidence back and loving life again.

Fate hadn’t finished with Katniss yet. One day on a trip to the park, an off lead dog decided to attack her. In accordance with her council regulations Katniss was wearing her muzzle and was unable to defend herself. It was a terrifying experience for her. This understandably set her back again. To her credit she’s working hard to get through this but she has once again got quite a distrust of all dogs.

The reality for Katniss today, is that she is still living in a kennel environment and has been for a very long time now. We know statistically the effect of long term kennelling on a dog. It’s not pretty. They become institutionalised. There is an over stimulation of the visual, olfactory and auditory senses. It really does take its toll on a dog.

Katniss is a beautiful dog that needs and deserves a loving home. She is so smart. She loves with all of her heart. The high lite of my day is going in to see Katniss each morning and watching her explode with excitement just at the very sight of me. She gets her teddy that she sleeps with every night and throws it at me. She loves nothing more than when I pick it up and give it back to her. She’s cheeky and sassy. She gives the best “high fives”. She always comes when she’s called at top speed full of enthusiasm. Each day she races up to my car and waits for the back to be opened so she can hop in and go for a ride somewhere nice. Even if we don’t go anywhere, she’s happy just to sit in there anyway.
At the end of the day she gets her PJ’s on and her bed gets made up for her. She’s got the biggest softest bed a dog could ever hope for. Her teddy goes in there ready for her. She goes into her bed with an acceptance of this is how it is.

Katniss deserves better.

She deserves someone to give her a chance. She deserves someone that is going to love and protect her for ever and not banish her out the back like some discarded rubbish.

If you think you can be that person then please contact us before it gets too late for Katniss to be integrated back into society out of kennel life.

❤️ Can You Help?? SAVE KATNISS! We are looking for a very, very special foster to adopt person, someone who can help be our girls forever saviour! Please share this post far and wide, Katniss needs everyone to make it their mission to find her special human . If you can help please email [email protected] to discuss further or complete our foster or adoption application on our website www.llsqld.com.au

09/06/2024

A couple of the boys working on their social skills. Learning to enjoy each others company.

26/05/2024

We recently got to spend time with this pair of little Cuties. Mother and son Powderpuff Chinese Crested’s. Such sweet little dogs that are both looking for homes (separately)

11/05/2024

Some of our happy, smiley dogs looking cute in their jackets. All these dogs are amazing and well behaved. They just need a home.

05/05/2024

Thank you Jack and Eve for being so amazing. Our dogs not only appreciate all the gifts you bring them but love all the pats they get from you also.

27/04/2024

Check out this little cutie!

Missy suffered a bit of trauma to her brain as a tiny puppy. She was with us to do a quick assessment of her trainabilty. We’re happy to say she nailed every challenge.

Now Missy just needs to find a forever home.

21/04/2024

Off site training with some of our dogs. It’s important so they don’t just habituate to our environment. So much fun and I’m so lucky this is my job.

16/04/2024

Edit…Now adopted and living his very best life.

Handsome boy Patches, once a community dog roaming the streets. Now a happy boy that loves people and other dogs just waiting patiently for a home.