As Sydney’s only charity pound it’s not just cats and dogs that the Council rangers bring in to us. Last financial year, we welcomed more than 60 rabbits into the Home. Sadly only a handful were reclaimed by their owners, leaving our team to find new loving homes for the remainder.

As with all the lost and abandoned pets that come into our care we try to set them up for success, investing thanks to the community’s support, in providing them with the veterinary treatment and care they deserve. One recent recipient of this support is Bunjamin.

Bunjamin arrived at Sydney Dogs & Cats Home as a stray bunny with a weepy eye. Upon further investigation by our vet team – which included sedation and X-rays, before his desexing procedure – it appeared that Bunjamin had an abscess in the root of his tooth. This infection was causing his eye to weep.

The team put Bunjamin on pain relief and anti-biotics and organised for Bunjamin to see a specialist as dental work on a bunny is difficult and requires an expert with specialist equipment. Further investigation by the specialist revealed that Bunjamin had an elongated tooth root that is likely impinging on the right tear duct. Although the tooth does not need to be extracted at this stage, potentially it will need to be removed in the future.

Bunjamin’s dental disease also involves malalignment and malocclusion, leading to the abnormal wearing of the teeth. The specialist vets have burred-down Bunjamin’s teeth so that they are now wearing normally. However, they have advised that Bunjamin needs regular dental checks and further treatment as required.

The overall prognosis for Bunjamin is positive. With appropriate ongoing care and treatment, he should have a happy, healthy life. And after spending five months in our care, we are excited to announce that Bunjamin was adopted early in the new year.

We currently have three rabbits in our care waiting to find their forever homes. If you are interested in adopting a rabbit or other pet please check out our website.

Tiger, a 9-year-old stray is one of the recent residents of Sydney Dogs and Cats Home to benefit from our new South Strathfield facility, our very own vet clinic.

Picked up and brought into the home, it was immediately apparent to the team that Tiger was not in the best of health and would have been in extreme discomfort. Tiger was suffering from severe dental disease and would require surgery for extraction of many of his teeth.

However, even more concerning was the fact that he presented with his right ear full of pus. Tiger was put under general anaesthesia, and his ear flushed. What became apparent was that Tiger had a mass in his ear. A biopsy was taken and sent off to the pathologist for further investigation.

Thankfully the mass was diagnosed as a benign polyp, but surgery was necessary to remove the growth. Although it was benign, the mass located in Tiger’s middle ear if left untreated could become larger and obstruct the normal flow of secretions through the ears, causing constant pain, damaging the nerve structures and causing a secondary infection.

The surgery Tiger required was called a ventral bulla osteotomy. It is the removal of the polyp from the middle ear along with the middle ear lining, to minimise the risk of recurrence.

Fortunately for Tiger and our team, specialist small animal veterinary surgeon Dr Mark Newman of Sydney Veterinary Emergency & Specialists volunteered his time. Dr Newman performed this successful, skilled surgery and taught our new vet, Dr Michelle Smith, how to conduct such a procedure.

Following the surgery, Tiger was placed into a foster care home to recover before conducting a second surgery to treat his dental disease, which resulted in the extraction of a few teeth.

We’re pleased to report that Tiger – a friendly, smoochy older gentleman – was adopted shortly after Christmas and was able to welcome in 2020 in his new home.

South Strathfield Vet Clinic

The South Strathfield Vet Clinic is currently not open to the public. The clinic is being utilised to perform the necessary veterinary treatment and surgeries for our shelter residents in preparedness for their forever homes. Previously Sydney Dogs & Cats Home and our furry residents were dependent upon the availability of a third party veterinary practice to gain access to equipment and operating facilities to perform the required vet surgeries.

The 19th October 2019 marked the one year anniversary of Dorothy’s arrival at Sydney Dogs and Cats Home. Abandoned at a veterinary practice and brought into the Home by the council ranger, Dorothy was in terrible condition.

Estimated to be a six-month-old pup, Dorothy had a serious case of demodectic mange and a terrible skin infection. She was also extremely underweight. Having lost almost her entire coat of fur, nearly every centimetre of her body was red raw, inflamed and covered in scabs, and there was a strong odour emanating from her infected skin.

Thanks to the care and dedication of the team at SDCH, Dorothy made a full recovery, but sadly more than 12 months on Dorothy still has not found her forever home.

As a member of the Getting 2 Zero movement, SDCH doesn’t place a time limit on any animal awaiting adoption. Whilst in the Home’s care Dorothy has been adopted and returned twice. She is currently residing in a foster care home, where SDCH still provides her and her foster care family with support in terms of behavioural consultations, veterinary treatment, and the provision of Hills Prescription Diet Zd Skin and Food Sensitivities dog food.

If you’d like to learn more about Dorothy please check out her full profile here.  Or if you think you can offer our beautiful girl Dorothy a forever home please contact the team on 9587 9611 or email info@sydneydogsandcatshome.org