Chichi Factory Rescue

Here are all the special souls that were part of our organization, which ended up being more of a sanctuary since they stayed with us until the end. Each had various quirks and issues, adding a pinch of spice or sweetness to the crew, but all found a comfortable spot in our loving family. A safe haven in the countryside of Normandy, France.

This was our logo, that I created after a picture of Gutz, our mellow guy whose face testified his many years serving as a breeding soldier.

Mamie Nova

She was our first senior and was about 13 when she came to us. Rotten teeth, mammary tumors, severe arthritis, poor overall health, she had clearly been neglected for years. She perked up the first year with us, followed me everywhere, gave us private opera recitals and was clearly feeling great despite her age. She sadly was in kidney failure, which triggered several strokes that left her senile. Her whole system got weaker, hypothyroidism came topping all of her other issues and we had to let her go. Hard to know when it is the right time, especially when the dog has such a will to live despite a weak body… She was also the first dog we lost, it took me a few weeks to get over it. She had spent almost three years with us and left a big void.

Arnold

This senior alien was found in the streets of Paris and was scheduled for euthanasia. He was hypothyroidic, walked like Robocop because of arthritis, had obviously been abused physically (by both humans and canines) and also quite neglected. With the right treatment and care, patches of hairs grew back on his legs, but his whole body remained naked, which gave him a fun look, kind of a naked Crested with curly hair. He was not afraid to tell when he was bothered by something, was pretty grumpy, but super loving once he let his guard down. The sweetest signs of affection he had was to sneakily come next to you and put a paw on your arm or leg, and just stand there peacefully, like saying “I love you”. He was truly a character, making weird noises while scrubbing his back in his favorite chair. He remained stable for two years, but later suffered from an acute renal failure that weakened him and he passed of heart failure after more that three years with us. He was around 14.

Guizmo aka Qui

He had been brutally abused as a puppy and left with a partially paralyzed rear end, incontinent and several health issues due to this condition. His digestive and urinary tracts were a mess, he had trouble keeping all the nutrients and had kidney failure. Euthanasia had been brought up several times by the previous organization that rescued him, because he had so many issues and needed regular drainage of his bladder and colon, something few peope would be willing to do. We couldn’t let that happen without trying! He needed a lot of care, but we actually managed to keep all those issues under control for a few years. He gained weight and strength, so much that he could be a trouble maker at times, but he was smart and learned to behave. His incontinence was not much of a problem (see our diapers for dogs post), until he started to have several urinary infections despite a rigorous sanitary routine. I was always super careful he got drained regularly and his diapers changed often, but it was almost inevitable. Although he had many good days and was a happy pup, he dragged the abuse he endured until the end and passed way too early.

Titus

This guy was another heartbreak who came to us too late. He was suffering from Leishmaniasis and although he had received a treatment by another organization, it took weeks for him to be transported to us and his other issues had not been taken care of. His liver and kidney were too affected, he passed two weeks after he arrived. He was only 5. This loss was the last straw and I decided to quit the organization after that, continuing my work in the shadow, away from the too many malfunctioning and phony people of the rescue world.