Galgo News

Category: Rehabilitation

  • All Rescue Dogs are Different

    Podenco in the mountains 400
    FROM Rebecca Hanlon – Canine Behaviour Practioner

    Adopting a dog is a wonderful feeling for us. Full of excitement and the idea of saving a life. But the experience is not the same for them.

    I often see posters stating the 3-3-3 rule. For the first 3 days they are totally overwhelmed but will then start feeling a little calmer. After 3wks they start to feel safer and more at home and then after 3months they have properly settled in.
    This idea, at least, makes people realise that moving to a new home is a massive, life changing event for dogs and that they need time to settle in.

    However, I find it a little too prescriptive and can set everyoneup for disappointment.

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  • Dealing with fear in rescued dogs

    Beryl David 400 03 04 2011
    Many years ago on one of my many trips into Spain with French association L’Europe des Levriers we were asked to take a fearful galga who had been in foster in Southern France and was not improving. So Carmela came into my life and home. At 4 years old she had found herself dumped in a perrera, rescued by the association’s vice president in Spain, passported and blood tested and into foster in France.

    At the time we had a French lurcher, 2 other galgos and a small podenca. So plenty of company for Carmela to give her confidence. She was fearful of my husband – not surprising as most Spanish rescued hunting dogs are fearful of men – whatever do the hunters inflict on them?! She would exit the farmhouse into the enclosed courtyard following the other dogs but coming back inside was a different matter. All the doors had to be open and we humans had to hide out of sight. Eventually she would rush in like a tornado. Frequent shaking if my husband appeared, even though he doesn’t look Spanish, only eating food if we were out of sight.

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  • SOS Galgos Barcelona – working with student osteopaths

    Many years ago I had the pleasure of visiting SOS Galgos in Barcelona. They are another long established galgo and podenco rescue association, working with the late Anne Finch to close down the Barcelona canododrome in 1996. Recently they were visited by student osteopaths to work on their rescued galgos.

    ‘Last week we had a special day at the Centre for our galgos. Students training to become osteopaths for animals, who are in their third year of training came and worked their magic on our needy galgos. At first they didnt know what to think of it but then they relaxed and you could tell they felt so relaxed and just let go and enjoyed their sessions.

    Thank you I.F.O.A. for making this happen and thanks to Javi who came to film the session to include in a video in the making which we share with you.

    https://sosgalgos.org/?fbclid=IwAR34bUQusHfzMnzgh0bnWPIPPyBv1viEZX8gm65K4scvVP1Z_Hkr3cvnwUo

  • Separation anxiety in dogs – what to do

    Rosie tout seule 400
    My recently adopted podenca Rosely (Rosie) is my shadow. Which is great to a certain extent, but not good when left. I’ve never had a dog with separation anxiety problem, probably because most of my dogs have had companions. However, when Rosie first arrived, she did not have a housemate, so we had the howling and door scratching when left at night. I’ve never allowed dogs in bedrooms but now we’re in a bungalow, I’ve given in and Rosie has a bed at the side of mine for overnight sleeps.

    I do a couple of mornings voluntary work with Riding for the Disabled and also an animal charity shop. On both occasions she showed serious signs of distress – luckily my other half was at home with her.

    Her new housemate blind Podenco Bo arrived a week later and so over the weeks during the 3 months she has now been with us, she has adjusted to being left with him, although my other half says she sits at the patio doors looking for me. The greeting I get on my return home is wonderful, I must say.

    So I’m slowly working on her separation anxiety but can now appreciate what a problem it must be for those people who are not able to have more than one dog.

    Here’s a link to an article by the Royal Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the UK based animal rescue charity.

  • Fundacion Benjamin Mehnert – never giving up on the galgos

    ‘A NEW MIRACLE CALLED RENEE. She was found half buried. As a result her hind legs didn’t respond…x-rays and other tests showed no injury to her spine or legs. But Renee couldn’t walk… Still we never gave up, and we set out to rehabilitate her paws and make her walk.

    A miracle, an achievement of the whole team, and their enormous spirit of overcoming have made Renee able to walk today. We can call it a miracle, because it certainly is. But it has also been the result of intense and hard work by especially her veterinarian Mariana and her physiotherapist Elena who never threw in the towel, and from all of us who have always encouraged her and helped her achieve it.

    Tears of happiness to see her and tears of sadness to know that this is her last day with us…Renee is now adopted, and this is our tribute. The video of the evolution of an authentic warrior.

    We’re beyond proud of you, and you don’t know how much we’re going to miss you. Enjoy your new life, and be happy because your happiness is ours.

    🇬🇧 A NEW MIRACLE CALLED RENEE

    Video of Renee’s story

  • UPROMA – working on animal welfare in Murcia, Spain

    Pedro-José-Moratalla-Moratalla 250A report on 2 more of the speakers at the PAES International Conference in Murcia in October 2015.

    Pedro José Moratalla Moratalla has a degree in Computer Systems Engineering. He is involved in environmental and animal welfare issues, issues on which he has received training over time and has continually joined different national and international volunteering programmes.

    Pedro joined the Local Police of Castellón de la Plana in September 1997 and since then he has developed different positions at the Police Units of Traffic, Public Safety and Emergency Service. In 2012 he presented a draft project proposal to set up a specialised unit on environmental and animal welfare issues which was approved. The new unit, initially called Blue Patrol (now UPROMA – Environmental & Animal Welfare Protection Unit), under Pedro’s management, started working at the very beginning of January 2013 and he remains at its head today.

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  • Update on galga Tina, now back at Pepis Refuge

    Update 8 11 2013 – Tina is home. She will be staying in the Vera care centre for some considerable time.

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  • Latest style in Galgo Transport – another survivor from Spain

    Lucho transport 3 250 6 2012Regular readers of GN and those of you who have purchased my book, will remember the story of Lucho, another amazing survivor of the galgo hell in Spain, now living happily in the US. Lucho survived leptospirosis, leishmania and a leg amputation, yet still enjoys life, although he now finds walking any distance with his canine mates can be somewhat tiring. Here’s what his Mom Chris says.

    ‘ Lucho’s difficulty is in walking any distance. He can go several houses up the street, then needs to come back home. Whatever happened to him in Spain that caused him to lose his rear leg resulted in twisting his spine. His back is arched and his hip is abnormal so his one back leg is not strong. He gets around okay…up and down 3 steps to go out to go potty and he gets up on the sofa…..but we can’t very well take the others for a walk and have him home alone howling!’

    So here he is riding in style! Eat your hearts out, galgos everywhere!!

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  • Galgo Marko – Pepis Refuge, Animals in Distress and Arca Noah to the rescue

    Marko 1 AID 250 20 1 2012Joe Safont-Ruiz of Animals in Distress tells the story of this poor boy.

    ‘A Galgo (Greyhound) was left tied up outside Pepis Refugio – The dogs were barking as normal but Alan and Jane knew the different barks and this meant a new arrival. Alan walked down to the gate with a small torch only to see two green glows at the gate; yes it was Marko (his new name).

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  • Leishmaniasis – from negative tests to positive tests – be aware

    Lucho C Mosey 250 Those of you who have read my book will have been introduced to Lucho, an amazing survivor of the Spanish holocaust, adopted by Chris in the US from Scooby Medina. He developed leptospirosis and Chris kindly wrote a case history about her experiences with Lucho and beating the disease.

    Earlier this year, Lucho developed Leishmania. Even though he tested negative before leaving Spain, the disease can lie dormant and poor Lucho succumbed. Chris shares her experience here.

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