Ruff justice: Queensland Reds lend support to RSPCA’s bid to help abandoned dogs

THE Reds have lent their support to the RSPCA’s $250,000 target to help the state’s abandoned pooches.

From left are Ben Lucas with Jocko and Milla, Quade Cooper and Chuck, Mike Harris and Che

THE Reds may be in the doghouse for their results but they have still lent their bark to the RSPCA’s $250,000 target to help the state’s abandoned pooches.

Teaming six strapping Reds players, their seven dogs and an impish red heeler team mascot for a photo with a homeless hound named Faith was one of the biggest missions of the footy season.

What could possibly go wrong?

Nothing until Jono Owen produced a spoodle fur-ball named Louis who is anything put the big, growling image you’d normally associate with broken-nosed props who push their weight around.

The poor picked-on pooch ended up in the creek behind Ballymore with a conga line of followers led by Chuck and Milla, an American Staffordshire terrier owned by utility back Ben Lucas.

Jono Owen and Louis at Ballymore before all pooch-induced hell broke out.

Owen was soaked to the shoulders fishing out Louis and the happy chaos of a dog’s daily life put all at peace.

“Not all dogs are as fortunate as the much-loved family pet,” RSPCA Queensland spokesman Michael Beatty said.

“More than 18,000 dogs are surrendered, abandoned or seized around Queensland every year. Care and finding the lucky ones new homes costs millions.”

More than 17,000 people and their dogs are expected to join the fundraising spirit of the Million Paws Walk at 26 locations around Queensland on May 18.

Quade Cooper’s mischievous streak is now a seven-month-old American staffy named Chuck.

For flanker Beau Robinson, his farm boy upbringing makes a blue heeler named Bunge a perfect fit. Hooker James Hanson’s rottweiler owes her name Wilma to The Flintstones character.

Mike Harris dog-sits his girlfriend’s English staffy Chewy and Lucas has his hands full with Milla and Jocko, a tiny Maltese Shih tzu, who always feels left out.