Every puppy should have a pretty new collar to wear, and an identification tag with his owner’s phone number in case he gets lost. What this little guy got was a nylon rope tied snugly around his neck and attached to a tree. As he grew bigger, the rope grew tighter, until it was imbedded in his skin and throat. There may have also been a pen or chain-link fence keeping him in bondage, too. We don’t know for sure, but his teeth are worn from gnawing something hard, and he’s only 18 months old. Eventually he was able to get loose. Perhaps he gnawed the nylon rope in two. When he was found, the rope was still imbedded in his skin and throat and had to be surgically removed. As you can see from the pictures, the wound goes completely around his neck.
As you can imagine, this little guy had no reason to trust people, since the only people he’d known had treated him so badly. Fortunately for him, a group of shelter volunteers fell in love with him and took turns teaching him to trust again, while he waited out his hold time in the shelter. They also put out the following plea:
He was rescued last Friday and was discovered to have a rope grown into his neck. One of the local vets has removed the rope but the dear boy has a wound about 1/2" all around his neck. He is on antibiotics and pain medication. He is quite skinny and quite apprehensive around people. As I was going to pet him, he withdrew back into his kennel as though he thought I was going to hit him. He is so sweet and deserves a chance. We desperately need to find him a loving, caring home. Can you help?
As if this poor little guy didn't have enough trouble, he also tested positive for heartworms, which made him unadoptable from the shelter and narrowed his options significantly. Even though he isn’t pure gold, we were the only option he had and we were able to see the sweet golden potential that he offered.
Thanks to the dedicated work that the shelter ladies started, he is learning to trust again, and is responding to a taste of the Golden Life. His sweet personality continues to blossom in spite of his rough past and the medical problems he has to endure.
He has a long road to recovery ahead of him. His wound requires daily cleaning and medications to combat infection. He is severely underweight and needs to gain a substantial amount of weight before we can proceed with his treatment plan, including his neuter surgery and heartworm treatment.
Since he has such a sweet personality, we wanted an “angelic” name for him, and we chose Gabriel, or Gabe. Gabe needs some Golden Angels of his own, to help with his veterinary care on his long road to recovery, as well as a wonderful family to make up for all the love he’s missed.
THE GOLDEN WALK
Crisp spring mornings in Savannah are a joy to behold - flowers blooming, trees greening, cool breezes calling for a jacket or sweater. Add a couple dozen goldens (and golden wannabees) and their people and you've got a little piece of Heaven!
Twenty-plus people and their dogs turned out for our first Golden Walk in historic downtown Savannah to raise money for Gabe's veterinary care while learning about Georgia's oldest city. Many thanks to Bob and Mary and their staff at Adventures in Savannah for providing this fun and educational morning. We raised $300 for Gabe, and as you can see from the pictures, a great time was had by all!
Watch for news of our Fall Walk - you don't want to miss it!
