Neediest 2023

Star was found in a ditch in Tennessee last week. Her left rear leg was mangled and probably had been caught in a trap. A good Samaritan brought Star to the emergency vet where she was scanned for a chip and the owner was identified. The poor dog was a livestock guardian for goats. She didn’t like being a guardian and would wander off, so they chained her up.

Star’s owner wanted to bring her back to the goats but couldn’t afford to treat her. Star could have lost her leg or worse. She had never seen a vet before, like most of the livestock guardians we see. It took a couple of hours to convince the owner to surrender Star to us so we could get her vaccinated and start treatment with antibiotics and pain medication.

Thomas (front) was one of two litter mates dumped outside Jasper, Alabama in September. We were able to move them to a Tennessee foster in October but they were still in rough condition. Both had mange and were emaciated. Thomas’ foster noticed he seemed to be struggling a bit so we brought him to a specialty vet to be evaluated.

Thomas was diagnosed with severe subaortic stenosis, an inherited heart defect which obstructs blood flow from one side of the heart to the body. His condition will continue to worsen and he will be prone to infections. Congestive heart failure will occur over time but it is difficult to say how long he can live.

Olaf came from a high-kill shelter in North Carolina in October. He was a stray traveling with two female Pyrs, Elsa and Blair, who also came into our rescue. The dogs’ owners were known to the shelter people but they chose not to reclaim their dogs. We were able to arrange transport to a Virginia foster who held Olaf for a few weeks, until she herself had health issues. Olaf was diagnosed with luxating patellas on both rear knees and came up to Connecticut in October. He is on carprofen while we schedule his surgery and look for a foster who can care for this sweet boy during his recovery.

Ben’s a young dog but he’s had a rough time. He was found as a stray wandering in a field in Central Louisiana. Ben was unchipped and severely underfed. Poor guy tested positive for heartworm, hook and tapeworm. His skin was awful due to scabies. Ben came north to a New Jersey foster in June. She noticed he was barking at inanimate objects, like trees when the light was fading. When we had Ben tested at an ophthalmologist, we learned he had developed cataracts at less than two years old and will need expensive surgery to correct his vision.

We hope Weda has found a happy ending. We heard about this poor girl from someone “new” in the neighborhood. Apparently Weda had been wandering around for years with a prolapsed uterus that no one did anything about. Dana, one of our Tennessee volunteers, was close enough to check the situation out. What she saw was horrifying. Within a few days we were able to capture Weda and bring her to Dana’s vet for surgery. She thought Weda looked terrible and could not believe Weda was still alive and or experiencing the pain she must have been in. Weda’s surgery was successful and she is now being fostered by one of the neighbors who fell in love with her and is interested in adopting her.

We heard about Frankie from a Tennessee shelter. We thought he was four months old but he has the dental plaque of an older dog. When he was examined at a specialty vet in Nashville, they found serious neurological issues which have negatively impacted his development. In vetspeak “Frankie has a lesion effecting cranial nerve VIII. A central brainstem lesion is suspected, but a peripheral inner ear lesion cannot be ruled out at this time. The most likely central causes are infectious or a congenital abnormality.” Poor guy. His vision has been severely impacted. He has head tilt and nystagmus, where the eyes make repetitive, uncontrolled movements, side to side or up and down. This could have happened when as young puppy his eyes were “searching”, trying to find his surroundings with the limited vision he has. This isn’t a puppy who can be fixed. He’s been transformed in the last couple of months but still needs someone willing to care for him for the rest of his life. You can read more about him here. Please let us know if you can care for Frankie, our special needs dog.

Update 11/23: Frankie is adopted! We give our deepest thanks to everyone who helped him.

Max was given away at an event to a Kentucky cat rescuer. She couldn’t hold him, searched for a Pyr rescue and found NGPR. He’s a smaller guy, around 65 pounds but very undernourished. He had gnats eating at his open wounds and filth and bacteria consuming his ears. His fur and skin were worn away in places leaving him with painful uncomfortable infections scattered over his body and scabs. His nails were so overgrown he had trouble walking. We think Max is 4-5 years old. We brought him to the vet where he was tested for several skin conditions and he received antibiotics and medication to relieve his pain. We hope over the next few months, this sweet guy, who was the victim of terrible neglect, will start recovering and will soon be available for adoption.

Five-month-old Mindy was HBC (hit by a car), badly injured and left out in the hot sun on the road in Alabama. The local shelters were too full to pick her up. A kind gentleman reached out for hours trying to find someone to help her and Rhonda at Brindlee Mountain Rescue offered to help. Rhonda picked Mindy up and brought her to a vet office for fluids and X-rays. Her hip was badly broken and pushed forward. She was brought to Huntsville Orthopedic who advised us Mindy needed an FHO (Femoral Head Ostectomy) to repair the damage. That surgery was done on 7/14 and we hope that fix will enable little Mindy to lead a normal life.

Sandi came into rescue last Fall. Everything was fine for a few months but then she started to exhibit lameness on her left side. She was put on medication as we hoped her condition would improve with time and rest but her lameness continued to flare up. Sandi was seen by specialists early this year, who after a CT scan determined that her lameness was the result of a bone fragment lodged in her left elbow. Surgery to remove the fragment and put Sandi on the road to recovery was $5,000. Sandy is only 1 1/2 years old so we hope this surgery will help her lead a long and pain-free life. She now available for adoption here.

Update 9/26: Sandi still needs a home! Please apply at the link above.

This sweet girl came out of a Kentucky shelter last December with her sister. She tested positive for three serious tick born diseases, Ehrlichia, Lyme and Anaplasmosis. We also learned she was deaf and had an obvious hip issue. When it didn’t resolve, Kaylan was scheduled for FHO surgery in June. Although that went fine, her recovery was hindered by the development of a UTI infection. At the same time she has been undergoing PT and her prognosis is much improved. Kaylan is now listed for adoption here. We would love for her to find her forever home soon!

Update 11/22: Kaylan’s FHO surgery failed and she now needs hip replacement surgery.