Com’PET’ability.

She was a rescued Schnauzer who permanently lost her sight when she was found abandoned by a roadside in a heart-wrenching condition. Her eyeballs were hanging out their sockets and by the time rescuers got her to the vet it was too late to save her eyesight.

She came our way when one of her rescuers, Sathia Chandran from Lucky Paws contacted me to ask if I knew of anyone who could foster her until Sathia could find her a home. I had never really taken to fostering purely due to knowing that parting ways with a dog I’m caring for can be difficult, so I surprised myself when I agreed to foster this doggie. I mean, a blind dog? How hard could it be?

Ceasar (as Sathia had named her thinking she was a male) arrived at my home that afternoon. She was a tiny, frail thing, quiet and unassuming, perhaps still recovering from her traumatic experience. But right on her face where her eyelids should have been fluttering over beautiful Schnauzer eyes were sew threads that would now forever keep two gaping cavities on her sweet face covered from the rest of the world.

Watching her adjust to life without sight was heartbreaking at first. Imagine what it must feel like to be able to see then not see. On her first day out of her pen she walked into walls and tripped over drains. I had no idea that watching this was going to break my heart so much. She seemed so frustrated and confused. I wanted to help her but I didn’t know how. But with plenty of love and patience and research, she and I created an illusionary world just for us, a world where she runs and cuddles and knows that as long as she can hear my voice she is safe.

She became my magic Maia.

Despite her sweet demeanour this tragic incident has left her wary, anxious and sometimes unfriendly and will leave a permanent scar on her psyche, something I hope love and time will slowly erase from her memory.

Unlike Maia, Echo (as we came to name him) was born with his disability. Despite being deaf in both ears from birth, he is the calmest and happiest puppy I have ever met. He doesn’t know any different, and perhaps thinks that silence is just life. He will never know or hear his name being called, or hear other dogs bark at him or be afraid of the sound of thunder.

The one thing that both Maia and Echo have in common is that they are dogs who cannot be trained like normal dogs, therefore making their assimilation into a family or pack challenging. I discovered this the hard way when on Maia’s second day with the pack, she got into an altercation with DeNiro, my older boy.

Wildly snapping in mid-air in all directions to protect herself, she was unaware that I was reaching out to carry her. Not knowing that she could not see me left me with a bite in my left index finger down to the bone that required five stitches and is now permanently damaged.

But it wasn’t her fault, or mine for that matter. What I didn’t know then that I know now is that a special needs dog requires just that, special needs. I had assumed that being blind would mean she would be a docile dog. I was wrong. And that’s when I realized that as much as I thought I knew about dogs, I still had so much more to learn.

Echo is a Dalmatian-mix pup who was found tied to a pole in Kajang by a young girl who could not bear to leave him there. Apparently his owner (who contacted her a few days later after seeing her post on Facebook asking for him back, of which she refused, good girl) informed her that Echo was tied up because he wouldn’t stop barking. And no matter what his owner did he wouldn’t stop.

When Echo was rescued, he was immediately put up for adoption. At four months old, he is probably one of the cutest puppies you’ve ever seen, playful and hyper-active. There is no way anyone would have guessed that he was deaf, until a visit to the vet confirmed it.

Did you know that 80 percent of Dalmatians are born either deaf on one side or both? I didn’t. By that time he had already been through two families and returned. Having spent time researching life with Maia, I knew that I was more than equipped to adopt him, but only if he could not find a permanent home, which was the case. He was adopted because of his cuteness, then returned because he exhibited behavior that wasn’t typical of puppies, like cry when left alone in a room or come across as disobedient when corrected (which as it turns out is the Dalmatian-stubbornness in him).

Coming across his plight on Facebook after being returned by another adoptee family unable to accommodate his needs, it became very clear to me that Echo was not the problem. The problem, not just with his rescuers and fosterers but all animal warriors in general was a compete and total lack of understanding the importance of ‘ComPETability’.

‘ComPETability’ is exactly what it sounds like - identifying the right match between a canine’s personality and a human / families dynamics.

We all know that every dog comes with its own unique personality traits. Just like human compatibility is about finding two individuals that match so closely that the chances for a failed union are next to impossible, comPETability is about doing the same for the pairing of a domestic animal and its human. Imagine having to 'return’ a potential partner because you both discovered that you just don’t 'vibe’ together.

We have forgotten that it works the same way with dogs and people.

Echo went through four hands before he came to us. In between those hands I received a call from a rescuer asking me if I would like to adopt him as she had heard that we had adopted Maia and were prepared to accommodate special needs dogs. It was just our luck that my partner David was in KL that same evening and was about to head out to pick Echo up when his rescuer / fosterer informed me at the last minute that she was going to let a housewife from Cheras adopt him instead. According to her, said housewife wanted to 'try him out for a few days’ before deciding.

Now I’m no expert in the animal community but what I am is greatly troubled by the lack of knowledge and education possessed by our rescuers. Rescuing is not just about getting an animal off the streets and putting it up for adoption for any Tom, Dick & Harry to adopt. It is not an overnight process that should leave you feeling pride at 'saving an animal’s life’. It is not about increasing the adoption turnover only to have the return rate increase. And it certainly is not about making sure your rescues find a home as soon as possible so that the rescuers financial burdens and obligations are alleviated.

So I called the fosterer and decided to have a chat with her. I inquired about Echo’s history, from his rescue to his re-home to his return to his medical diagnosis, all the while taking note of how Echo behaved in each environment he was placed in. They ranged from insecurity to wild barking to frenzied whining to aloofness to just plain deafness and non-responsiveness.

Then it was my turn to speak.

Have you ever dealt with a deaf puppy before?

Have you educated yourself on what a deaf puppy like Echo needs?

Have you interviewed his potential adopters and asked them if they have educated themselves on his needs?

Are they aware of the time and patience required to train him and are they prepared to commit to it?

And the final one: What happens to Echo if this adopter returns him, which I guarantee you she will? How long do you think it will take to find him a good home and what if we are unable to take him then?

No. No. No. No. I don’t know but I don’t think she will.

Not good enough, I told her. But there was nothing I could do but wish her luck and hope that Echo would reach his final handover.

Three days later when my phone rang and my screen displayed the rescuers name, I knew Echo was coming home. True enough, he was being returned.

“Can you please take him?” was a question I had answered “Yes” to three days earlier but today, that didn’t seem possible. “I told you this would happen”, I said to her, and with a heavy heart she sighed in defeat and admitted that she should have allowed us to take him when we were ready to. “Please, I don’t know what to do with him now or who will adopt him. I am so sorry.” (I am HAPPY to share that this wonderful woman Lai Mei Kueen is now a better rescuer and animal lover from this experience and now shares this nugget of wisdom as much as she can and we LOVE her for that!)

We thought about the dog. It’s always been about the dog.

We met with his rescuers / fosterers back in KL four days later and brought ChelseaBoo along for the first meet. And as his rescuer opened her car door and carried him toward us, we fell in love with Echo. He was a docile and timid puppy, curious and unperturbed by everything around him. He and Chels said hello and in that instant he had a new friend. We were warned that he was uncomfortable in cars and sure enough he was a handful as we ran a few errands before heading back to Ipoh that evening.

By the time we reached the farm he had become visibly attached to David, never taking his eyes off him and sleeping right next to him wherever he was. At first he barked when David left the house but eventually didn’t even care as he had 12 other dogs to keep him company. (The number has since grown to 30 canines).

He is this amazing ball of love and affection and as all puppies are is a bundle of high energy. But what amazes me the most is how he never ever flinches in his sleep no matter what is happening around him. In his head, there is nothing but silence and peace. He could possibly be the calmest dog I have ever met in my life. And on his first week at the farm as we watched him play in water puddles formed in the garden by last nights heavy rain, we were reminded of why we do what we do - there is nothing in this world quite like the joy and love of a happy puppy.

I remember when Echo first came to us; we received all the usual tips like how he can’t be left alone or he starts to cry, he’s antisocial, that he’s clingy, all typical deaf puppy behaviours. But with lots of love and understanding, what we have seen is a puppy who has blossomed with us. He is playful, brave, independent, patient and most of all loving beyond belief. He is simply amazing and we are so blessed.

As an animal wellbeing advocate and animal lover I am constantly reminding myself that it isn’t just the public that need to be educated but us advocates too. Rescuing and rehoming, while satisfying does not serve a beneficial purpose to anyone if the match isn’t perfect in the first place. Rescuers need to start elevating the standards of how they carry out their passion for animal rescue and rehoming. Sorry to burst your bubbles but rescuing an animal, putting its picture up on social media and handing it over to the first person who says yes DOES NOT make you an animal rescuer. It DOES NOT make you an animal lover. It DOES NOT mean you changed an animals life for the better.

It’s time we stopped fanning our own egos and started doing real work - the kind that reaps real permanent lasting results. Every animal that comes into our lives is worth our complete attention and devotion. Rescuers need to start treating each and every one as priorities.

Get to know the animal and its personality. When the time comes to put it up for adoption, give it an identity. Describe a trait that’s endearing, like how it howls when it’s happy to see you. Create a file and an interview questionnaire. Talk to the potential adopters. Ask them questions like whether they have pets or if this is their first time adopting. Ask them what they plan to feed them and where it will sleep. Study if their lifestyles will benefit or be detrimental to the animals wellbeing. And most importantly, pay your best attention to special needs adoptions, especially when they are puppies. At a young age, puppies are prone to remembering everything that happens to them and that moulds their adult behavior. Don’t let your laziness change a happy puppy into an anxious dog.

As a country we have for years lobbied for the government to make animal wellbeing a priority. But it isn’t just the government that is responsible in educating and creating awareness for animals. All of us who are in one way or another part of this sometimes-euphoric sometimes-vicious cycle must take our roles seriously and do our part to ensure that these voiceless creatures are protected and their rights and wellbeing preserved. It is our duty to do so.

Echo is one of thousands if not millions of dogs around the world who need our attention. While he has been blessed with a loving home, many will not be. There are ways you can change that. Adopt a puppy or a special needs puppy and discover a whole new world of dogs you didn’t know about. If you can’t adopt, sponsor one. Most of all, educate yourselves, and you could help dogs like Maia and Echo find their perfect happily-ever-after.