Rudozem Street Dog Rescue
Help us to help them
The sponsor a dog scheme is to ensure that we have enough funds each month to feed the many dogs. Some of these dogs have been so badly abused that they have trust issues and cannot be put up for adoption. These dogs will stay with us for the rest of their lives. Other dogs may be with us for several months before they are considered ready for adoption or are lucky enough to be offered forever homes. Lets not forget the dogs that are still on the streets. Many of them are scared and hungry. We may not have a shelter or facilities for catching them, but at least we can make sure that they have food.
This is a co-sponsorship scheme whereby some dogs are sponsored by more than one person and some may not have a sponsor at all. 9 euros no longer covers the feed costs for one dog but during these difficult economic times, we decided to keep to this figure and hope that each dog does have more than one sponsor.
Can you sponsor a Street dog for 9 Euros a month? Just click the subscribe button above, complete payment details and the name of the dog you wish to sponsor.
Subscription will automatically run for 12 months. If your sponsor dog is fortunate enough to be adopted you have the option of transferring sponsorship to another dog or cancelling.
Matty
( LEFT Before photo - RIGHT after photo)
May 2009 - We were horrified when Luke came home one day and showed us pictures he had taken of a dog with an extremely matted coat. He had been unable to approach the dog as it was growling and went off in the other direction. We went out several times a day to try and find him. Weeks later, Tony and the boys did find him but the dog hid under a van. At any approach he would growl and threaten them. He did seem less threatened by females and after days of me patiently sitting on the road trying to coax him with food, we were able to catch him and bring him home. Matty was extremely aggressive and untrusting. It was quite a struggle to get his coat clipped. The poor dog was in so much pain as his legs were all matted together and all his claws were over grown.
Matty decided that he likes and trusts two human beings but anyone else, he will bite. Even family members that he sees every day, cannot touch him. We since found out that he spent 6 months at the isolator (shelter) in Smolian before somehow finding himself on the streets of Rudozem. I visited the isolator and was shown the “cell” where Matty was kept. It was a small concrete pen with nothing at all to lie on. The pens are hosed down with cold water with the dogs still in them. The dogs do not get out and are fed on bones and if they are lucky they get a stock cube in some water. Matty was castrated whilst at the isolator. It is little wonder that he doesn’t trust people as we have heard reports of the dogs being castrated whilst still awake. To this day we do not know how he survived his time at the isolator, we are just glad that he did and that he is safe and loved for the rest of his days.
Lily
Lily is so affectionate and craves attention. Before we ever fed her, she would follow us around the shops, jumping and crying at the doors until we came out. Lily lived on the streets untill being moved to the forrest with her pups. Her pups were just a couple of days old when they were moved. Sadly, they were left in the full sun and two died, The rest have grown up a bit and are all friendly, healthy youngsters. Lilly gave birth to 8 healthy, beautifull pups on 4th of May 2009. We built her a house in our garden but she has moved into our cellar instead, at least her and her pups are at our house in safety where they will be properly looked after and fed.
Foxy
26 March 2008 - Foxy is quite old for a street dog. You don't often see dogs his age, due to their struggle to survive and downright cruelty. He is one of the sweetest little dogs you could ever meet. We would often see him trotting about the town centre, looking for food and trying to avoid passing kicks. Most of the street dogs tend to stay in the town centre or the forest. Many of them in packs. Foxy however is one of the few dogs that comes out of the centre to our own neighbourhood. At night, he would sleep on a grass verge near the shop, no matter what the weather was like. In the day, he would look for scraps of food or happily trail children who were out playing.
Last month he was following a group of children and teenagers, when one turned round and repeatedly shot at him with an air rifle for no other reason than his own sick amusement. The poor little thing just ran off yelping. A couple of days later, Liam and Luke saw two local boys, brutally kicking him about. Liam and Luke shouted and went running over and the boys ran off. Poor little Foxy could barely walk. We didn't see him for a few days after that.
Sam, my eldest daughter, spotted him one day on his usual grass verge and thought it strange that he never got up to say hello. He was obviously quite ill. She got Tony to drive down and brought him back in the car. He was limping badly from the kicking and had abscesses from where he had been shot. Sam bathed him with antiseptic, fed him and off he went. This was repeated for a few days and the infection started to clear up. Every day he would come to the gate for food, then toddle off again.
Last week we had some very bad weather. Snow, hail, torrential rain, thunderstorms. We could see Foxy huddled against the side of a building in a field across from the house. All day he just lay there shivering. We told Liam to go and check he was ok. As soon as he spotted Liam, his little tail started wagging and he followed him home. We put an old quilt in the cellar for him and he settled down for the night. By the morning he had gone. Later that evening I spotted him waiting outside the gate. I opened the gate and he went straight to the door waiting to be let in the house. One look at his little face and who could say no. He now stays every night and is spending most of the day here. He loves the cats but as yet hasn't met the other dogs.
Foxy lived with us for 10 months before he initiated any contact or made a show of affection. He is now a very mischievous little boy who is loved and spoiled. He does have trust issues and cannot be trusted with strangers.
Bigdog
20 August 2008 - About five or six weeks ago a dog just turned up outside our house. He had a collar on but no one knew where he had come from or had seen him before. We presumed he was after Lulah, one of the dogs we have taken in, as she hasn’t yet been spayed. We thought if we didn’t feed or encourage him then he would go in a day or so. We then got worried when he started following any of us if we went out anywhere. I knew if it was just Lulah he was interested in then he would have stayed outside the house. I referred to him as "Bigdog" thinking if I didn’t give him a name, we might not get attached to him. That is a bit difficult when he started chasing after us if we went anywhere in the car, then would be there to greet us when we got home.
He caused problems when I took the goats out as he was trying to get the baby goat. We called the police but they weren't interested. Someone had to hold him to make sure he didn’t follow whoever took the goats out. One day I took them into the forest on my own. Bigdog suddenly appeared and I was worried he was going to attack the baby goat. However he didn’t bother the goats but would not leave my side that day. There happened to be a guy we didn't know in our forest plot cutting grass. It might have been a coincidence but It did make me feel safer knowing that Bigdog was next to me.
Weeks have passed and he is still here night and day. We cant let him in the garden because of the other dogs and we don’t want to risk a fight. It isn’t too bad at the moment while the weather is warm but the worry is what will happen when it turns cold. There is also the added worry that people will start tormenting him and hurting him, even shooting him. The poor dog is also terrified of thunder. I had to bring him in the porch a couple of weeks ago when we had a torrential storm. He stood, trembling with his head pushed into me. I don’t know what he would have done if he had been left out in it.
Bigdog eventually got his own way and moved in and became a permanent resident.
Barney
We first heard of Barney when Luke (our youngest son) saw a lady throwing stones at an old dog. Luke shouted at her and went to check the dog. The dog was Barney. He was very thin and going blind and his teeth were all broken. He took pictures of him and then came and told us about him. Despite us looking for him, it was a month later before we spotted Barney , on the other side of the town centre. We tried giving him food and attention but it was almost as though he had given up. He showed no emotion at all. After weeks of stopping and talking to him every day, he did start to pay attention and accept a bit of food. We noticed that he was also losing the sight in his other eye which meant that he wouldn’t have much chance of surviving on the streets.
We decided to bring him home. We were very careful as we didn’t know how he would react to having a collar and lead put on , especially with him being partially sighted. However as soon as we got the collar on him, he went straight to the back of the van, put his front paws on it and waited to be picked up and put inside. It was almost as if he was saying “come on, take me home”. Barney is now a permanent resident. He has put weight on and is much stronger. He is very loving and affectionate. He has his own pen and kennel in his favourite spot under the grapevine. He might not be able to see much but he is happy with his life
Misty
Misty appeared in Rudozem as a very young and untrusting dog. She was obviously hungry and the boys threw food to her. For days she would follow them about and wait outside the house each night for them. Despite this it was weeks before she would let them touch her. A lady in the town centre recognized her and rang her owner who was from a town 28km away. She phoned the person who she thought Misty belonged to and was told that they no longer wanted her and had thrown her out and to give her to the boys she was following. We were very short of space and it was a struggle to take in any more dogs. We had no choice but to take Misty in as she was in serious danger of being shot after she had been killing hens around Rudozem . She also had no road sense and had been hit by a car.
She has serious trust issues and it was months before she would settle with anyone else once the boys went out without her. She is still very wary of people she doesn’t know but has now accepted all family members. We belive she was born around January 2008.
26 March 2008 - Ranger was one of the many hungry and abused street dogs in Bulgaria. At some stage in his life, he had received a horrific head injury which has left him with an odd shaped skull and his face is paralysed down one side. My youngest son, Luke would see him when he went to the town centre. He told me about the dog and how he had been told by his friends that someone had caused the dogs head injury by hitting him over the head with a large stone. The dog was very wary and would have nothing to do with people. Luke was told to keep away from him in case he got bitten. However he carried on talking to the dog and throwing him bits of food and before long, the dog was following him everywhere and waiting outside all night for him, sometimes in the pouring rain. We told Luke not to encourage him as there would be fighting with our other dogs but despite trying to send him away, he would not go. We realised after Ranger came back the whole thing wasn’t quite right and no way would we let him go again without a battle. We never found out what happened to him in those few days and didn’t pursue it. My guess is that instead of putting him down, the guy sold him as a guard dog and he escaped. Despite being locked up, Ranger came back to where he would be fed and cared for and to a young boy who probably showed him the first bit of kindness in his life. 
Ranger (The First Rescue)
Neighbours were not happy about a street dog hanging about. Many times, old ladies would beat him badly with large sticks, children would throw stones at him and shoot him with air rifles. One day, children were being cruel to him and he turned and jumped at one of them. Although she wasn’t bitten, the girl was shocked and her father came after Ranger with a shotgun, firing it at him outside the house while Liam and Luke were trying to get him in the garden. The police then came to the house and we explained that he wasn’t our dog, he was a street dog, but if people weren’t cruel to him, there wasn’t a problem. We were still told that if we didn’t keep him on a chain, we would have to take him to be put down. We tried to keep him on a chain but because of his odd shaped head, he could slip a collar. One day he escaped for no longer than five minutes. He had a run about with Liam and Luke trying to catch him then ran straight back. He never bothered anyone. Minutes later, I saw a man at the gate and went out to see what he wanted. He started shouting and waving a handgun at me . At this point I just wanted to be back in the UK where people couldn’t get away with such cruelty or wave a handgun at a woman. 
The police told us it would be best if Ranger was put to sleep. As we had just recently moved there, we were slightly intimidated and never thought to question the legal rights of it all. The police told my husband Tony to take the dog to a town 25kms away, meet the guy, pay him and Ranger would be put down. Tony took Ranger to be put down. We were all heartbroken, especially Luke who blamed himself for making friends with the dog in the first place. Four nights later, I couldn’t sleep. I kept thinking Ranger is somehow alive and trying to find his way back. The next morning, there he was at the doorstep, hungry and exhausted.
Jessie
1 Jan 2010 - A man handed a Husky to Luke and said he wanted him to have her as he didn't want her anymore but knows that Luke will look after her. He had previously given her to another boy which is when we saw her running around the town. The man had taken her back and tied her up again. She was called Jessica, which Luke has shortened to Jessie. Huskys seem to be a "fad" dog here. Young boys seem to think they are fighting dogs and most would be keen to have one. Although she is the first dog we could probably find a new owner for in Rudozem, it would not be a "home" and she would probably be used for fighting and breeding, so we will not re-home her here.
Teddy
30 May 2010 - Teddy a Collie that has been hanging outside the RSDR house, was brought inside after being attacked by another dog. He has a badly cut face and was limping.
He is a beautiful dog and is very affectionate. All the other dogs welcomed him into the house.
Oscar
We were asked to take Oscar after he was found on the streets. The lady who found him was unable to keep him in her apartment. Oscar is very thin and his teeth aren't so good. He has to be fed tinned meat and soft foods. He is used to living in a house and knows how to open doors so was probably once someone's dog.
Indy
Indy was brought home by Kerry and Tony. They witnessed a woman beating him with a broom outside a shop. Kerry ran across the road and called the pup who went straight to her. Despite his size he still has his baby teeth so we guess he was born mid to late July. He is a very friendly pup.
Heather
Heather was found one night in the town centre on her own. She was bathed as soon as we got her home as she was covered in fleas. she is a very friendly outgoing little pup and loves to play with people and other dogs.
Brownie
Brownie is very timid. she is a young dog but has lived all her life on the streets or forest without any human contact. She came to rely on us for food but would always wait until we backed away before she would touch the food we left by our gate for her. Brownie came into season and was served by several dogs. We dreaded the thought of her wandering off to the forest to have pups, which would also grow up without any interaction with humans. We therefore tried to tempt her through the gate and eventually got her to the cellar. She is still wary but does come to us and let us touch her now. At least her pups will be born somewhere safe and won't ever add to the population of street dogs.
Buddy
We were asked by someone if we could take Buddy. He was just 5 weeks old when he came to us. Buddy has now been wormed and treated for parasites and is getting proper puppy food and milk. By the time Buddy is fully vaccinated and can go for adoption, he will be four months old. Please can you help by sponsoring Buddy. Sponsor money will help to pay for Buddy's food, worming treatments and monthly treatments against ticks/fleas.
Todd
Todd is Brownie's pup. She only had the one pup and he is a beautiful little boy. Please can you help us by sponsoring Todd until he finds a loving home. Todd will be with us until he finishes all his vaccinations which means he will be just under 4 months old before he can go to a new home.
Keegan
Luke found Keegan under a bench in the town centre in the middle of a thunderstorm. The liitle pup was barely 4 weeks old.
Sasha
Born: 16 April 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Medium
Sasha was found by Tony at the landfill with her sister Tasha. They were very thin and frightened. But now in the care of RSDR they are doing well.
(Photo taken 4 June 2010)
Tasha
Born: 16 April 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Medium
Tasha was found by Tony at the landfill with her sister Sasha. They were very thin and frightened. But now in the care of RSDR they are doing well.
(Photo taken 4 June 2010)
Breanne
Born: 4 May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Medium
6 June 2010. - Today we saw a dog in the middle of the road with two tiny pups. We grabbed the pups and the mum ran up the mountain where we could hear other pups. We knew it wouldn't be long before her other pups tried to follow her down or even fall. It was a tough decision to take the pups from their mum but if we had left them, they wouldn't last long. Kerry and I went up the mountain to get them. Kerry went up the last bit of the way and found another two pups. It was quite a scarey rescue as the way up was steeper than it looks on the video. We now have the pups. one boy and three girls.
Breanne is a little girl
Tammy
Born: 4 May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Medium
6 June 2010. - Today we saw a dog in the middle of the road with two tiny pups. We grabbed the pups and the mum ran up the mountain where we could hear other pups. We knew it wouldn't be long before her other pups tried to follow her down or even fall. It was a tough decision to take the pups from their mum but if we had left them, they wouldn't last long. Kerry and I went up the mountain to get them. Kerry went up the last bit of the way and found another two pups. It was quite a scarey rescue as the way up was steeper than it looks on the video. We now have the pups. one boy and three girls.
Tammy is a little girl
Luca
Born: 4 May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Medium
6 June 2010. - Today we saw a dog in the middle of the road with two tiny pups. We grabbed the pups and the mum ran up the mountain where we could hear other pups. We knew it wouldn't be long before her other pups tried to follow her down or even fall. It was a tough decision to take the pups from their mum but if we had left them, they wouldn't last long. Kerry and I went up the mountain to get them. Kerry went up the last bit of the way and found another two pups. It was quite a scarey rescue as the way up was steeper than it looks on the video. We now have the pups. one boy and three girls.
Luca is a little girl
Hana
Born: 30 March 2010
Size: Short to Medium
Hair: Medium
Hana is one of three little girl pups that were wandering on the roads when Tony found her and brought her home. RSDR had to build another pen as they had no room to put them. They are now safe in their new pen
Tilly
Born: 30 March 2010
Size: Small to Medium
Hair: Short
Tilly is one of three little girl pups that were wandering on the roads when Tony found her and brought her home. RSDR had to build another pen as they had no room to put them. They are now safe in their new pen
Kiki
Born: 30 March 2010
Size: Small to Medium
Hair: Medium
Kiki is one of three little girl pups that were wandering on the roads when Tony found her and brought her home. RSDR had to build another pen as they had no room to put them. They are now safe in their new pen
Sadie
It took us a long time to gain Sadie's trust. When we first saw her she would run off in a panic as soon as we stopped the van. During her time on the streets she was pestered by amle dogs when she came into season and was looking very thin and weak. Eventually she would come for food that we put down. Sometimes we would be unable to find her for days. One night we found her near a bin and it was as if she just decided she needed help. She let Tony fuss her and then came and put her head on me. She is now becoming a very loving girl. We don't know yet if she is pregnant through her time on the streets but at least she is now safe and well fed.
Destiny
We were busy with dogs in the garden when we heard a puppy crying from across the road. A little pup was trying to get under the fence from the field to come across to the house. Luke went and caught the pup who was very dehydrated and hungry. We have no idea where she came from or how she found her way to us. We called her Destiny.
Freddy
Freddy was found in a village out of town. He was so hungry that he was in the middle of the road, eating cherries that had fallen from trees. He was in a bad way when we got him home. He was thin, hungry, dehydrated and full of parasites. He had a terrible skin allergy due to all the fleas. His skin condition is being treated and despite not being used to human contact before we found him, he is now a very loving little pup. Freddy was born around the 29th April.
Cindy
We were asked if we would take in Cindy and her brother Tommy by an elderley man who has the mother of the pups. Both pups are very friendly and although the man couldn't keep them, he was concerned about what would happen to them. Cindy was born on the 6th May.
Tommy
Tommy is a very friendly little boy. We were asked to take him in along with his sister, cindy, as the man who owned the mother dog was unable to keep them. Tommy was born on the 6th May.
Thor
Born: May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Medium to Medium-Large
14 July 2010 - A neighbour told us about 5 pups that were outside a cement works which had closed down. There is no one about to feed the dogs so the mother dog has abandoned the pups and gone elsewhere. None of them are used to contact with people so it was a struggle to catch them. There are two boys and three girls.
Thor is one of the 5 pups and is a little boy.
Mac
Born: May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Short
14 July 2010 - A neighbour told us about 5 pups that were outside a cement works which had closed down. There is no one about to feed the dogs so the mother dog has abandoned the pups and gone elsewhere. None of them are used to contact with people so it was a struggle to catch them. There are two boys and three girls.
Mac is one of the 5 pups and is a little boy.
Jodi
Born: May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Short
14 July 2010 - A neighbour told us about 5 pups that were outside a cement works which had closed down. There is no one about to feed the dogs so the mother dog has abandoned the pups and gone elsewhere. None of them are used to contact with people so it was a struggle to catch them. There are two boys and three girls.
Jodi is one of the 5 pups and is a little girl.
Summer
14 July 2010 - A neighbour told us about 5 pups that were outside a cement works which had closed down. There is no one about to feed the dogs so the mother dog has abandoned the pups and gone elsewhere. None of them are used to contact with people so it was a struggle to catch them. There are two boys and three girls.
Summer is one of the 5 pups and is a little girl.
Chloe
Born: May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Short
14 July 2010 - A neighbour told us about 5 pups that were outside a cement works which had closed down. There is no one about to feed the dogs so the mother dog has abandoned the pups and gone elsewhere. None of them are used to contact with people so it was a struggle to catch them. There are two boys and three girls
Chloe is one of the 5 pups and is a little girl.
Pepsi
Born: May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Short
15 July 2010 - The boys Luke and his friend Lubo climbed up a very steep mountain to rescue some pups. They did eventually catch three of the pups. It wasn't easy as the pups aren't used to people and it was quite dangerous. Tthere are still more pups up there but we had to leave it as it was getting dark.
Pepsi is one of three pups and is a little girl.
Robin
Born: May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Short
15 July 2010 - The boys Luke and his friend Lubo climbed up a very steep mountain to rescue some pups. They did eventually catch three of the pups. It wasn't easy as the pups aren't used to people and it was quite dangerous. Tthere are still more pups up there but we had to leave it as it was getting dark.
Robin is one of three pups and is a little boy
Henry
Born: May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Short
15 July 2010 - The boys Luke and his friend Lubo climbed up a very steep mountain to rescue some pups. They did eventually catch three of the pups. It wasn't easy as the pups aren't used to people and it was quite dangerous. Tthere are still more pups up there but we had to leave it as it was getting dark.
Henry is one of three pups and is a little boy.
Damson
Born: May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Short
22 July 2010 - We were driving back along the mountain road from Smolian to Rudozem and a mother dog and pup were walking in the middle of the road. It is a very windey road with lots of blind bends. We jumped out and tried to coax them... to the side of the road with food. the mother dog was very timid and wouldn't come near us. The pup wouldn't let her get any of the food and she was very thin. We made the hard decision to take the pup before it got killed. further down the road we came across another pup that was limping but heading in the same direction. It was obviously being left behind as she couldn't keep up. We managed to get her aswell.
Damson is one of the two pups and is a little girl.
Micky
Born: May 2010
Size: Medium
Hair: Short
22 July 2010 - We were driving back along the mountain road from Smolian to Rudozem and a mother dog and pup were walking in the middle of the road. It is a very windey road with lots of blind bends. We jumped out and tried to coax them to the side of the road with food. the mother dog was very timid and wouldn't come near us. The pup wouldn't let her get any of the food and she was very thin. We made the hard decision to take the pup before it got killed. further down the road we came across another pup that was limping but heading in the same direction. It was obviously being left behind as she couldn't keep up. We managed to get her aswell.
Micky is one of the two pups and is a little boy.
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