It's a Wrap! Adoption Drive 2010

Hey all. Gentle Paws Adoption Drive 2010 is finally over! You have no idea how absolutely worried we were about the turn out. Up till the eve of the drive on Friday, we, okay I, was tossing and turning in bed, hoping fervently for some response to our publicity. Sure we distributed 2000 flyers but if we put things in perspective, 2000 is measly little. If we were lucky, 0.5% of people who received the flyers would come. 0.5% doesn't sound like much statistically, but it equates to ten people. If ten whole families were interested enough to travel the distance to the shelter, it was enough to keep us jumping for joy.

But reality is harsh and even 0.5% was but a distant dream. On a rough estimate, I think 0.05% of those who received the flyers actually came down. That amounts to a grand total of... one family. Nevertheless, we are grateful. That one family meant something. One is better than nothing at all. Even though that family didn't adopt eventually, i do think we managed to raise some awareness. On a half-glass full point of view, it could have been so much worse. We're guessing the other people who came probably read about the drive through our Facebook page, saw the classified ad kindly sponsored by one of our supporters or from this very page - our blog.

While adoptions remained few and far between, on a brighter note, we had many of our supporters come down to the shelter to visit the dogs and spend some moolah at our flea market. With every gesture our supporters dole out in aid of the dogs at Gentle Paws, we are filled with a rush of appreciation. The results of the Adoption Drive are as follow: Daelle and Didi went for a one night home stay with a lovely family. Daelle was great, they said. He was house trained and quiet and quite the ideal dog. But they could sense he was a little subdued and missing his best friend Dillon a whole lot. The family eventually decided to bring Daelle back to the shelter but extend Didi's home stay until they were certain about the adoption. Having been confined within the four walls of a toilet by his ex-owner for three years, Didi is an easily excitable furkid who needs some training. We were very encouraged that the family was prepared to look beyond his unschooled ways and was willing to give a shot at training him into a proper house pet. It certainly helped that this family was experienced with handling dogs. This is the single opportunity that arose from the drive and here at Gentle Paws, we are really hoping that it pans out. Our English cocker Princess had some visitors as well. A potential adopter in search of a companion for her own cocker will be bringing her down to see if the two get along. We're keeping our fingers crossed on that front because Princess is truly an endearing dog who deserves a place to call home.

Flea market wise, we did pretty well. The jewellery lovingly made and generously contributed by Charmed Bowtique (http://charmedbowtique.blogspot.com/) and Jennifer of Daisy Waisy Collections (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Daisy-Waisy-Collections/111799868873241) were too pretty to resist. Our Gentle Paws t-shirts sponsored by a regular volunteer (who prefers to remain anonymous) sold pretty well too. The car decals printed by our volunteer, Eleanor and her contact, was a refreshing item which was quite well-received. There were also 50 spanking new tote bags contributed by a Baylie Tay who kindly wrote in and offered his help. Also for sale were too-adorable-to-resist doggie outfits contributed by Jazz of Aristomilago Pawzllywood (http://www.apawz.com.sg/). In addition, we sold stuffed toys, secondhand books, dvds and other pre-loved items. Even if the Adoption Drive was slightly disappointing, the results of our flea helped raise our spirits. Right here, right now, we would like to take the opportunity to thank one and all we have made our flea such a success!

To really see what went on on the ground, I guess you need some pictures. So.... here you go.


Here we are setting up...

Here is a look at the wares on sale...

And on the adoption front...

Here were some of our visitors. Spot yourself?

Remember we said we would have a mini obedience performance? The star of our show was Dakdakdei, whom a professional trainer has deemed to be competition worthy if properly trained.

This series of photos show him jumping over an obstacle that is pretty high.

Pretty amazing ain't he? This is the culmination of hard work of both Dakdakdei and his trainer, Choo. Choo is so good that... Dakdakdei can now fly. Just look at his wings! There he goes... up, up and away!

Besides jumping and ahem, flying, DDD can sit, lie down, high five (or paw) and stay on command. Who says shelter dogs are inferior? Who says mutts are any less smart? With correct training, a shelter dog can shine. Choo has done a wonderful job with this wonderful dog and the two of them have really become quite a team.

But the poor boy was quite shagged afterward. All he wanted to do was play with his toy.

With yummy pork liver for treats, Dillon and Daelle were not ones to miss out on the action! Here is a look at them at work, with the singular purpose of getting the treat dangled before their eyes.

The visitors also had a tour around the shelter to befriend our dogs...

Some of the furkids came out to join us for the drive as well!

And they made some new friends along the way!

As the drive drew to a close, many of the furkids remain lonely. It is our greatest regret that we failed to find permanent homes for more of them.

So this is it! We have come to an end of the pictorial overview of what happened over the weekend of December 11-12. Thank you one and all for the support you have shown. We are sorry that there weren't more adoptions. Even though this drive is over, that doesn't mean adoptions will be halted. For those keen on adopting, you can always come down to take a look at the dogs. Just drop us an email at farmwaylove@gmail.com to arrange a visit in view of adoption!

Before I scoot off, let me leave you with words from a certain Disney song...

A word's just a word

Till you mean what you say

And love isn't love

Till you give it away. 

There's so much to be experienced in adopting a dog, if only you would consider. Take a chance on our shelter dogs and step forward if you are serious about adopting! Remember - adopt, don't buy and you'll be doing a world of good for our doggie community.

Photo credits go to Sebastian of D's Workz (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ds-Workz/133824593322174), Jialing and Colleen/damselfly.