As an avid animal lover I've taken in numerous homeless pets over the years, usually the older unadoptable ones and provided them with a forever home. Forgetting about my past love of purses and shoes..ahh those were materialistic things anyhow. I'd much rather spend my money on vet bills and kibbles these days.

Here's the story of Panda and I, and how he came to live in my home. Some may have heard parts of the story before (I apologize for repeating myself) but the story continues...

I was scanning the web one time and read a story about an Old English Sheepdog who was living in horrific conditions. The story was posted by two lawyers who had seen this dog kept in a small 4 by 4 metal cage in a puppy mill in Hong Kong. For those of you unfamiliar with puppy mills..unlike breeders whom only breed one type of dog and are very picky about the homes they go to, puppy mills usually keep numerous animals in deplorable conditions. The females are kept in tiny cages never allowed to roam free and are made to have litter after litter until the poor moms die. It's a money making operation with no regard to how the animals suffer. Back to the story.

Panda had been born into one of these puppy mills and adopted by a person unknowlegable about reputable breeders vs puppy mills. She was also unfamiliar with the care required for these big Shaggy haired dogs. For three years he was left on the roof top of an apartment building in Hong Kong and occasionally taken out and fed daily. Unable to keep him any longer..he went through a series of homes, most beat him as the scars on his body prove that. The former owner did continue to care about him and was constantly looking for a home for him.

At a loss what to do until she found him a permanent home as he had been through 6 different foster homes, she returned him to the puppymill/breeder. They charged her 500 a month for his care. Three kennel people ran the puppy mill for the absentee owners. 40 different dogs of various breeds were kept there. Panda remained in his cage for 6 months and never was let out..he slept, and ate in the cage and also had to go to the bathroom in the same place. In order to clean the cages the kennel men would take large hoses and hose all the dogs down. Panda learned to hate hoses.

The day the lawyers visited they expressed interest in him as they had previously owned the same breed of dog. The kennel people let him out to meet them but at the end of the visit he didn't want to go back. The three kennel men then beat him with sticks. Panda learned to be afraid of sticks. The kennel people said he was vicious and the date for his death was set.

The lawyers posted the story on a website and offered to pay for his flight anywhere in the world if someone would take him. I wrote, not with the offer to take him but to provide support and assurance that sometimes you can get a dog to trust again. The example was Shaggy, whom is pictured in my avatar with me. She was also very badly abused when I took her home and no doubt it was a lot of work and many different obedience classes..three years later, she and I were placed under contract with the Humane Society so great was her transformation. She became a therapy dog and her and I educated thousands of people in the 3 years we educated the public on dog behavior. Shaggy had passed away only 3 wks before I saw the story about Panda.

Two thousand people responded and before I knew what had happened most said send him to her house!!!Cathay Pacific offered to send him free of charge. Before I knew what happened he arrived at my home after flying 11 hours and thousands of miles. The kennel people were heard to remark ..whoever takes this dog is (*&*^&^ crazy!!! He's a biter, ferocious, agressive...

13 months later.. and a lot of work. He is extremely gentle and will lay near cats and even rabbits. He does a full body wiggle when greeting anyone. He can be in a dog park full of people and dogs and I whistle only once and he races like the wind and stops at my feet, sits down immediately and looks up at me. People often remark that dog appears to just adore you. No matter how far he is I only have to whisper his name and he stops and races back and sits at my feet. He's never failed to do that.

The first week he crouched down and I would see his lip quiver if I tried to pat the top of his head. It took 6 wks to be able to do it without any reaction from him.It took many more weeks before he allowed me to touch some parts of his body. Now it seems as if that was a distant memory. Ironicially one of my other dogs whom was purchased from a very reputable breeder, had championship parents and cost me a small fortune does not have the same loyalty as this dog has. Panda will often place his head on my lap and just sigh as if he knows and can compare his life now to what it was. I gave him a new name when he came into my home..renaming him Panda as this huge shaggy haired dog with the grey circles around his eyes resembles a huge Panda Bear.

Panda became a hero. He once wrapped his entire body around a young boy in the middle of a seizure whom was vomiting. Preventing the boys aspiration by causing him to roll over on his side, using his body. He was found like that and was also licking the boys hands almost as an attempt to revive him. He sat quietly when the ambulance arrived as if he knew help had arrived. One person said a life for a life. You saved his and he went on to save another life.

Three weeks ago a representative of a dog rescue group from Hong Kong, came to my home to visit him to report back on how a dog in a majority of cases can be rehabilitated. Anyhow although I have many dogs, whom I love, this one is special.

Chrystal

Your story made my day, Chrystal!

I am a dog person myself....Here is a video of my dog Peanut....HE is an american staffordshire terrior. they get a bad wrap sometimes but he still thinks he is a puppy... Mr.Peanut of Peanuts Productions

Sorry fo the profanity at the end of the video...It was a friend....If I didn't point it out you might have not noticed but I figured I would say sorry beforehand...Joe

Joe, what did you put on his back legs?i got the impression that his hind legs gave him discomfort every time he put his feet down,mike

I put playing cards on his feet. It wasnt uncomfortable. It was just wierd on his feet. I was trying to teach him to walk on his front paws. He is getting better.

Thanks Law!

Dredz I was unable to get the vid to work but saw a still of your pup. He's very adorable!

The video worked for me. Its kinda big. If you really want to see it and it still doesn't work I could just email it to you. JOe

Hi Joe,

Thanks for the offer but I'm afraid it's this ancient computer that I use. My friends are forever laughing at this antique. I suppose I could have purchased a new one many times over but choose instead to spend the cash on the critters that need medical or behavioral treatment. Ah well...one day!

Here's a website that shows Panda, when my sister and I picked him up at the airport and a month later. He had been clipped just before his flight so his hair was quite short. http://members.home.nl/sourcerer/Panda/

Chrystal