By the time Antonis told me about the mother and her puppies, he and Rose had been feeding them for almost a month. However, as the puppies grew bigger, their fear for their future also grew. They talked about adopting one, but they already had two dogs and a cat and where they lived, it would have been difficult to have another dog. The man who owned the rundown cafe told Antonis that he wanted to get rid of them. I too felt very apprehensive and racked my brains for a solution. I was totally unprepared for the email I received from Antonis just 4 days later .... Well, it was actually the email and some photos received on the 15th which set the alarm bells ringing. Here is what Antonis wrote:

“....These are the pics I took just hours ago. Notice the red plastic sheet hanging on the fence. That was put up today and I don’t understand the purpose of it because it is so easy to go around the property and get a much better view of the place. I just hope the puppies are alive and well. I feel so guilty and I don’t know exactly why. You know, Vesna, I purposely haven’t told you of all the bad experiences I’ve had regarding animals over the years because I don’t want to sound ‘fake’, like some of the stories I read on you tube and facebook stories like “oh I lost a cat too” or “my dog was poisoned too so I now how you feel” kinda thing....I have found so many abandoned cats and dogs you wouldn’t believe. I go looking under bridges and in bins and if I see a plastic bag I try to see if it is moving. It is unbelievable what goes on here. I know you know but there is no end to it. What do I do? Hide not look under the bridges...then I feel guilty and sick to my stomach. And it gets worse when I can’t save them. And lately I haven’t been very lucky. But I won’t get into that now, I’m just feeling bitter, because I always think of the worst and I’m worried sick about those puppies. I just noticed from looking at the pictures at what seems to be raw meat on the wooden board. I didn’t notice it while I was there ... I was too busy calling and looking for the puppies.............”

Was the plastic sheet hung on the fence to stop passers-by seeing what went on behind it?

On the 16th I received several emails from Antonis ... their tone of desperation and urgency ‘transported’ me mentally to where he was ... I ‘saw’ what he saw, felt the fear of finding out the truth. It was almost surreal that in such a short space of time – a matter of just 4 days – everything changed! Our previously felt anxiety about the puppies’ future became a nightmare we feared would happen ...... but for this to happen while we were ‘talking’ about them .... that was just too much!!

In one of the emails Antonis wrote:

“....Oh Vesna, the puppies are dead. Ok...I can’t think straight now so forgive me if I won’t make much sense. The reason the guy (the owner of the cafe) didn’t answer this morning was because he was drunk.... here is our conversation:

Everything about him spelt guilt. Vesna, I only found one (dead) puppy in the van and one under the van. I guess the rest must be in the bush. The mother was still there, but she looked really scared. This morning I checked the bush from the outside, but couldn’t see anything. Now I went from the inside and the mother saw me and came out, but wouldn’t come to me. I was too scared to look further. I threw up; I just can’t handle it. I was alone in there and as soon as I found the two dead puppies, I couldn’t stay there on my own. Now I be live the other 8 puppies are dead in the bush. I cannot find words for I feel right now. It doesn’t make sense. Why only the puppies, why is the mother alive ....where was she while they were being poisoned, I should have taken one!! How could I not see what was coming?! What did those poor puppies do to ever deserve to die in such a way?”

I felt numb by what Antonis told me, not that it came as a surprise. My mind was racing .... we had to at least try to save the mother!!! I called Vangelis and Jaana, whose rescue work & shelter we have been supporting since 1995. I explained the situation and asked Vangelis to meet with Antonis the following day at the ‘place of horror’ and try to catch the mother. He did, but the mother was impossible to catch ... she was very frightened! Vangelis spoke with the cafe owner and was sure that the man was responsible for the death of the 2 puppies found and the ‘disappearance’ of the other 8, though he came up with a very ridiculous theory that the mother took them into the mountains in order to ‘save’ them. When I spoke with Vangelis that afternoon, he said that he and Antonis arranged to meet again the following day (18th) and that he (Vangelis) would bring with him some food laced with sedatives, in another attempt to catch the mother.

The ‘spiked’ food was left near a bush and thankfully the mother came out shortly afterwards and ate it, but she fought against the effect of the drug and it took Vangelis and Antonis 2 hours to catch her. They finally managed to corner her against a fence and once caught, she stopped struggling and within a minute fell asleep in Antonis’ arms. Vangelis later took her home and let her sleep off the effects of the sedatives. Jaana told me that for the first few days, ‘mama’ – who I suggested be named Rose – was quite scared, not only of her and Vangelis, but also of other dogs, though the ‘yard’ dogs are a friendly bunch. However, she gradually realised that she was in a safe place and even started playing with other dogs. Ten days on (I’m writing this on the 28th), she is doing really well .....

In the days following Rose’s rescue, Antonis went back to the horrible place several times and searched through the bushes, but to no avail ..... we will never know what happened to the 8 puppies, though there is no hope that any of them are alive.....