A DOG CALLED LITTLE BO
A True Story of Inspiration and Hope

Her eyes looked into mine and from that moment my life changed completely.

Sometimes things happen to us in life that takes us in a direction we never would have thought of going. My life changed in an instance when a little dog looked in to my eyes Christmas 2003.

 

It was Christmas 2003 and I was on holiday in Sri Lanka.  One evening I left my apartment and was walking alone along a busy dusty road to go to the local shop.  I saw something move in a foul open drainage ditch at the side of the road. It was a little dog and I had never seen a living being in such a terrible appalling state. Her eyes looked into mine and I could not walk on by as so many other people were doing. Her little body had no hair, and the skin was cut and scabbed all over.  She had been hit by a motorcycle and her hip was injured. The discharge from her eyes ran like tears and the stench from her rotting flesh made you heave. It made you want to weep just to look at her and the tears started to fall quickly down my cheeks. Even though she was obviously in so much pain she tried to come to me when I spoke to her. She was so trusting and she tried desperately to wag her little tail.  It was probably the only kind words she had ever heard in her short life. She was dying and I just had to do something. I fetched her some food and water and sat with her at the side of the road. I then got into the drain to lift her out.  I was wearing a white dress at the time and by this time I had attracted a crowd of locals who thought I was completely mad as I was trying to help something they regarded no more than a sewer rat. What to do. I am alone in a foreign country, I do not speak the language, and it is dangerous here. None of that mattered. I had very little time; she was clinging to life by a thread.

Sri Lanka does not have the veterinary care we have in the UK so finding a vet was difficult enough, but one that would board her because of her skin condition and because she was a street dog was a nightmare. I found a vet that would treat her but they would not board her. I could not find anywhere else open that night that would let her stay and the apartment where I was staying refused to let her in because of the foul stench from her rotting flesh.  A group of local taxi drivers came to my aid and told me that the little dog always took refuge in a derelict house across the road from my apartment. They fetched me a cardboard box and I got one of the sheets from my bed to wrap her in. It was one of the longest nights of my life and I kept going to the derelict house all through the night to check her. I had no sleep as I felt sick with worry about her. The next morning I was even more determined I would not give up on this little dog. I woke the apartment manager up very early for the phone directory, took my mobile phone sat with the little dog in the derelict house and rang every vet listed in the phone book. Some

spoke very little English and it was very difficult. There was only one that would help me Dr.Athauda. She helped me so much diagnosing this little dog’s skin condition and
prescribing treatment. Unfortunately she had no boarding facilities but she found a place where I could take the little dog for 2 weeks to start treatment. 

I visited her every day and took food and fresh water for her and all the other dogs and cats there. Facilities were so limited and nothing could have prepared me for the sights I saw and it was something I could not have ever imagined. The vets were trying to help these animals but they had none of the equipment, drugs and things that we take so much for granted in the UK. Most vets do not even have an X ray machine or post operative care. You assist with the operation and then take your pet home. A lot of vets will not even treat street animals as they are fearful of loosing business from rich clients.

On one of my visits to see my little dog I had to go into the office first to discuss her treatment with the vet. The little dog thought I was not going to see her and that I had forgotten her. I heard a strange noise and went outside to see what it was. It was my little dog. She had never made any noise until that moment. When I found her she was so weak and lifeless I do not think she had any strength left to make any noise let alone bark. She was trying so hard to make me hear her and this funny little noise came out. It was as if she had suddenly realised she could make a noise. It was so strained and she was trying so hard and then there it was “Bo Bo Bo ooooo”. I went to her kennel and her tail was wagging so hard with delight, she was standing up for the first time. That greeting was priceless and a memory I wanted to cherish forever so I called her Bo, Little Bo.

Little Bo was too ill to return with me to the UK at that time so I had to leave her in Sri Lanka to continue her treatment. It was Dr. Athauda who came to my rescue again and found a Sri Lankan lady who was an animal lover that would help me. This lady promised to look after Little Bo and take her to see Dr. Athauda each week to continue her treatment until she would be well enough to fly to the UK to be with myself.  Dr. Athauda never took a penny from me for Little Bo’s care. She said she just wanted to help Little Bo and I will always be forever in her debt.

Little Bo had also been exposed to Distemper so she started to have nervous shakes as a result.  She continued to make progress though and we were all praying for her as she had been through so much.

I returned to Sri Lanka 5 months later for Little Bo. After what seemed like endless negotiations, red tape and heartache I finally managed to get Little Bo fit and well and flown to the UK where she now lives with me and her best friend Coco cat. She almost died on the journey as she was severely dehydrated but she never gave up. She had to stay in quarantine for 6 months and was released at the end of November 2004, almost one year from the day I found her. She was home for Christmas 2004. Her courage and strength always shines through and she continues to give us all so much. She is not an expensive pedigree and therefore not worth anything in monetary value.  However to

everyone who meets Little Bo, she is priceless, proving you do not have to be pedigree to be perfect.

Sometimes it is hard to imagine that the healthy little dog playing in my garden so full of life is the same sick little puppy who was so close to death Christmas 2003. I always say she was the best Christmas present I ever had.

You may now think this is the end of Little Bo’s story but it was only the beginning.  Little Bo managed to inspire people both in the UK and Sri Lanka so much that I founded a registered charity in Sri Lanka and our charity now runs a sterilization and rabies vaccination programme and provides veterinary care for other dogs like Little Bo who have been abandoned on the streets of Sri Lanka. 

Life as a street dog offers nothing in Sri Lanka. Classed as vermin by some people they are either born or abandoned on the streets.  They survive by eating from garbage left on the road side.  Lack of food and water leads to skin disease and mange; secondary infections include ulcerations of the eyes, then blindness. Infected wounds caused by constant scratching leads to septicaemia and open wounds are easily infected with maggots because of the heat. They are beaten, stoned, have boiling water thrown over them, and are hit by vehicles and left to die screaming by the side of the road. There are no animal organizations that can be called to help this situation.

After so many disasters affecting people in the world today animals are always at the end off a very long list but they are living beings as you and I. They are just as capable of feeling pain, fear, hunger and thirst.  Little Bo’s Animal Welfare believes that it is not acceptable for any living being to be deprived of the basics of life and that there never is, and never will be, any excuse for cruelty and neglect.  We have many obstacles to over come in Sri Lanka, language, war, corruption, resistance against sterilization, lack of education on animal welfare, and limited veterinary facilities. I have been laughed at, spat at, had urine thrown over me, almost run over as someone tried to hit myself and my rescue dogs, I have faced machine guns because I was suspected of carrying explosives in ice when I was taking medical samples to a laboratory to save a dogs life and I have had death threats and so the list goes on but I will not give up or give in.  My inspiration, courage and strength as always comes from Little Bo and we will continue as a charity to strive forward until we have made a difference and we have reached Little Bo’s goal which is to STOP THE SUFFERING.  Little Bo hopes that by telling her story it will inspire others to help us so we are able to save more animals like Little Bo that are trying to survive alone on the streets of Sri Lanka.

I have met so many wonderful people that I would not have had the privilege of meeting had it not been for Little Bo. As a child I saw the film Born Free and since then I have always had great admiration for Virginia McKenna who founded the charity Born Free.   I had the tremendous honour of meeting her recently and fulfilling one of my dreams.  None of this would have ever been possible without a little dog call Bo.
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Our next project is to build our own facility in Sri Lanka which will enable us to increase our sterilization and rabies vaccination programme and enable us to help many more animals that desperately need our help.  You can help by donating an item for our tombola, donate your time or service, or organise your own event to raise funds to help Little Bo. We do not get any grants and are totally reliant on donations and support from people who care. Please have the courage to believe that by helping us you can make a difference. It only costs £6 to sterilize a dog and £1.50 to vaccinate against rabies.  Two dogs, and their offspring, in their lifetime are capable of producing thousands of puppies on the streets of Sri Lanka who will be subject to a life of hell as Little Bo began hers. So  £7.50 goes an incredibly long way and can stop thousands from suffering.
You can telephone Little Bo on 01283 704714 or 07860 787039 to help make a difference.

PLEASE HELP US TO STOP THE SUFFERING

Sam Noon (Miss)
Charity President

 

 

 

 

 

 

Registered in Sri Lanka  No.1352.  Registered Office 282/23 Dam Street, Colombo 12, Sri Lanka
President: Sandra Marie Noon