Cara

 Meet our new Foster Baby "Cara" - formerly known as - Gracie and Peaches.  We're unsure as to her "real" name because she was being advertised on Epupz as Primrose Yellow Bell!! 



Last week two Bracchi Italiani were rescued from Mr Paul Fryett, who lives in Middlesbrough, Cleveland.  Cara was rescued along with a male dog who is now living in his wonderful new home where he will continue to receive all the love and care he deserves.

Cara (meaning "my darling" in Italian - because she is a little darling!) is currently undergoing her rehabilitation and receiving the vital veterinary treatment that had obviously been denied her previously.

Cara and the dog were living in a barn - the smell and general condition of the dogs would confirm that.  We know that both dogs formerly lived with Mrs Annette Smith, breeder of Shar Pei, Cocker Spaniels, French Bulldogs and Bracchi Italiani - see photographs below taken in this breeder's home.  This breeder has only recently been issued with a breeding licence by Harrogate Borough Council. 
  

Poor Florence

We are also aware that Mrs Annette Smith and Mr Paul Fryett were at some point the owners of a bitch puppy named Elle that Mrs Smith was selling on Pets4Homes in February/March 2010.  We have advertisements and email evidence to prove this.  This poor puppy ended up having to be rescued at the age of around 6 months (Mr Fryett bred the puppy!).  I was one of 4 Bracchi Italiani breed custodians who assisted with the identification - from photographs in my possession.  The said puppy had deformed legs (see above) and the vet confirmed this was due to malnutrition and bad animal husbandry sustained over a significant period of time ie this hadn't just happened in the last week or so.  This puppy's history is currently being investigated and DNA profiling is being carried out by the RSPCA to ascertain her parentage. She is now living with a lovely couple who simply adore her.

  
Cara - then Gracie - in August 2009 at approx 12 weeks with Mrs Annette Smith. 
Photograph taken by Miss K Sellstrome.
Notice the distinctive mark on her side and her lovely tight feet and beautiful confirmation


Cara (Grace) was known to be suffering from a very serious chest infection around August/September 2009 when in the care of Mrs Smith. I have a witness statement to this effect and have asked Mrs Smith to confirm the diagnosis made by the veterinary surgeon at that time.  Unfortunately she has refused to divulge this information.  This means that Cara will now have to suffer the additional trauma of a GA and "tracheal flush" to identify the bacteria causing the chest infection.  I cannot understand why a person would withhold this valuable information!


Grace at approx 5 months old in Mrs Smith's home - pic used to advertise on Epupz!!!!

   
When we rescued the 2 dogs from the Paul Fryett (who is well known in lots of different breeds for his unethical breeding practices - over a 20 year period), you can imagine our shock when we realised that the bitch was Grace.  I had previously been involved in communication relating to Grace as there were no registered litters at the time Grace was born - and yet she was being sold on Epupz as "fully KC registered but going without papers to a pet home".  One thing is for sure, we know that at some point in her short life she was subjected to severe neglect and "whoever" owned her at that time, obviously did not see her as something of value!!  She didn't deserve this treatment - no dog does!!

When Cara came to live with us she instantly settled in with our dogs.  She showed confidence around dogs and children but appeared very nervous around adults.  She's the sweetest girl who's just so grateful now to be with somebody who loves her and shows her huge amounts of affection.  She's now showing over-attachment to me but this is perfectly normal behaviour for a rescue dog.  She will get over this as her confidence around adults increases.

When she arrived she crawled over the threshold and I was told she'd been cowering in the back of the car on the journey.  This really upset Hazel and John Abraham who kindly brought her to me. When my partner and I saw her we couldn't believe what we were seeing - she was emaciated!  Her rib cage was so prominent and her pin bones and buttocks had no fat whatsoever.  She had tremors when standing and her rear end swayed when she walked because she was so weak.  She was a very sorry puppy indeed.

By our reckoning, Cara should be just over 1 year old but her growth has been so stunted that she looks like a 7-9 month old puppy. Our vet was horrified as her condition and has prepared a statement which will be used in any future criminal proceedings.

Further inspection by the vet diagnosed Cara as having a severe ear infection and conjunctivitis.  Interestingly, she was also diagnosed with a chronic chest infection - hence the reason we asked for the previous veterinary surgeon's diagnosis. She's currently being treated for these conditions and only time will tell if she makes a complete recovery.  When she was weighed she topped the scales at 22kg.  The approximate weight for a Bracco Italiano of her age (and she is small!) would be approximately 26kg to 28kg.  A fully grown adult Bracco would weigh between 28kg and 35kg.  Cara is therefore between 10lbs and 15lbs (almost a stone!) underweight.  See photographs below.

 
Can you believe this is the same dog!!!


How can somebody starve a poor defenseless dog?

During the first few days Cara was ravenous but it was imperative she didn't eat too much too soon or her liver and kidneys could fail.  I fed her small meals every 4 hours (setting my alarm clock for during the night!) until she stopped being so hungry.  She is now on 2 meals per day and has gained approximately 4kg (as at 21st July 2010).  I feed my dogs a natural, balanced diet and Cara is now receiving the best nutrition and veterinary care.  That was her birthright!!  There was no guarantee that Cara would make a full recovery  as her immune system was so compromised due to her emaciated condition. We are, however, starting to see a very special dog emerge as she continues to gain weight.  We're all hoping and praying that she pulls through this horrific stage of her life and goes on to live the life she so deserves. 

I'd like to thank everybody who has sent emails and telephoned me with their best wishes for Cara.  It seems that, already, she has lots of fans - and rightly so!!

Rescuing these dogs is something that we didn't anticipate but it's true to say that if they'd been left where they were, it would most definitely have been a different prognosis in as short as one month's time.  
There has been talk that because we paid a small amount for these dogs that they cannot be classed as having been "rescued".  The definition of "rescue" is "to remove from danger".  I defy anyone to look at those photographs of poor Cara and say that she wasn't in imminent danger!  The sad fact is that some of the people who are saying this are supposed to be breed enthusiasts!!  Shame on them!!  Does a dog have to be found wandering the streets before it can be classed as needing to be rescued.  For the welfare of the dog and bitch we decided we needed to get them out of their current situation as soon as possible. 

Click on  "Cara's Diary" to  follow her recovery progress. The photographs below show Cara enjoying her first walk along the seafront opposite our home!!  We we will hopefully be able to heal the physical scars but nobody knows what the long term psychological damage will be for this kind girl.  We will certainly give Cara the best opportunities in life from now on.  If we're mad for doing this then we're proud to be mad!!!

1 August 2010:  Cara has been with us now for almost 2 months and she has come on in leaps and bounds!  We've managed to overcome her physical issues and we're starting to see real progress in her psychological problems.  We did nothing more than feed and exercise her properly and treat her long term infections.  She's a different dog!! Below are pics:

That was then:  This is now!!!!