Stressed and helpless: 20 dogs in one home
Overrun and overwhelmed by an accidental litter, this owner had 20 dogs and was struggling to keep up.
Two of our Outreach officers, Serena and Charis, went to visit the owner to see how we could best support him. However, when they arrived Serena knew she needed to act quickly and think fast.
She told us, “The situation was far worse than imagined. We could hardly speak to the owner over the constant barking.” It was a very stressful environment for the dogs as well as their owner, who was clearly drowning.
Thinking on her feet, Serena asked if we could take in all the female dogs to prevent any further breeding in the home. The owner agreed, understanding that this would help him and his beloved pets. So, Serena packed up all of the female dogs, Philadelphia, Mascarpone, Edam, Wensleydale and Halloumi, and brought them to Woodgreen.
They were all extremely nervous and worried when they arrived on site. In their kennel they would avoid their carers, backing off and trying to hide. Some would bark and lunge at them out of fear and stress. This meant getting them seen by our vets was even more difficult.
After just a couple of days in our care, their main carer Casey went into Wensleydale’s kennel but she was unusually quiet and relaxed. He told us “I went into her kennel, and I thought, oh wow she isn’t barking at me, but then I started hearing little cries. I cautiously moved her to find four puppies cuddled up close to Wensleydale.”
Unfortunately, due to the inbreeding of the dogs in the home and such a stressful pregnancy for mum, the puppies weren’t in the best health. Sadly, two of the puppies passed away very early on and we couldn’t have done anything to help. This hit our teams hard, but they knew they had to keep going to ensure the best outcome for the two remaining puppies.
Wine and cheese on foster
The puppies were named Merlot and Pinot, and our Fostering team got to work finding a foster home for them. Behaviourist Wendy told us “Most new mums would prefer a quiet home but for nervous mum Wensleydale it was even more crucial.”
Providing the best care for these puppies was a huge collaboration between all our teams, from our behaviour and training specialists advising on raising puppies, to our Off-Site Care team visiting for health checks.
“When Wensleydale first came to my home, she was very nervous. She had been through so much, who could blame her?”, Wensleydale’s fosterer, Susan, told us. She wanted to help Wensleydale feel safe and supported while raising her puppies.
Giving the dogs their confidence back
It was important for Pinot and Merlot to be socialised in the correct way, setting them up for the best start in life. Wendy told us, “Meeting new people is really important for all new pups, however, pups learn from their mums. So, with nervous mums, it’s not good for the pups to meet people if the mum is worried.” Wendy gave Susan a lot of advice on how best to support these puppies whilst making Wensleydale feel comfortable and safe.
Susan updated us on Wensleydale’s progress, saying, “As the weeks passed, Wensleydale’s attitude towards visitors and neighbours started to mellow. She has a beautiful loving personality, and I am so lucky to have got to see her confidence grow and be a brilliant mum to Merlot and Pinot.”
A happy ending
While Wensleydale was being cared for in her foster home, the other four dogs were making a lot of progress in the kennels. With a lot of support from their carers, it wasn’t long until they were all ready to find their new homes.
Back in the original owner’s home, in partnership with the RSPCA, they helped remove some of the other dogs from the home to relieve this desperate owner further. The home is now a lot calmer and the eight dogs remaining are no longer at risk of breeding. Our Outreach team took further action providing support with health checks and treatment for flea and worm. They even shared updates with the owner on how the five girls were doing in our care.
The hard work of all of the teams here at Woodgreen has allowed not only this desperate owner to thrive but also help seven dogs find new loving homes. We look forward to hearing how Mascarpone, Edam, Halloumi, Philadelphia, and Wensleydale settle into their new homes and how puppies, Pinot and Merlot, grow up.
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