Since May, I’ve been following this story on an internet forum that I frequent. It’s the story of a woman who works at a vet’s office, and had to step in to save the life of an animal that had been horribly neglected. A bit of her story:

This guy brings in an 11 year old dog to euthanise. The little dog isn’t walking, she’s also incontinent.

While in the waiting room, he asks about costs. We give him our speel about cremation services and also mention that he may also take the remains with him, and he says “I can throw her in the garbage?” and seemed to think that was a reasonable option.

When in the room, we notice that the little dog is very happy and eager for our attention. She isn’t walking very well, but her tail is wagging and she gives everyone kisses. At this point, we know that we don’t want to euthanize. So we start asking lots of questions and examine her.

The little dog “Lady” has not been to a vet in 5 years. She stopped walking six months ago. One of her front paws was obviously broken a long time ago and was never treated. It flops around and you can twist it every which way you like. Her teeth are horrific, the doctor is pretty sure that they’ll all have to go. When she gets excited she squeeks and coughs. She seems on the verge of blindness and deafness. She can hike herself up onto her feet sometimes, but her legs seem very rigid. Either she had a stroke at some point or she has really terrible arthritis.

They kept her in a bathtub for the past six months. If it is arthritis, that sure didn’t fucking help.

We convince him to leave Lady (now renamed Abuelita) with us.

We start taking care of her. She gets medication, hydrotherapy and massage. In the hydro tub, she shows every possible sign of enjoyment and paddles her gimpy little legs. She also loves massages. Immediately after her therapy sessions, she seems a bit stronger and more willing to stand up…

She’s old and she doesn’t walk well, but if that doesn’t bother her, it certainly doesn’t bother me. No matter how cute and sweet she is, I know that she isn’t really adoptable. But I can’t stop thinking about her so I step up and say that I will pay for her dental work and if she survives it, I will keep her.

 

 

She almost died during her dental surgery, but pulled through and now lives a great life with her new owner.

This kind woman has since gone to great lengths to nurse this dog back to health. The dog can barely walk, and because she has a collapsed trachea, goes into respiratory distress easily. She has almost died twice, but now has an owner who is fighting for her.

Abue at her hydrotherapy appointments for her arthritis:

About town:

Abue goes everywhere with her new owner, including going to work with her. This poor dog went from living in a bathtub, barely able to eat, to living this great new life being loved and lavished with attention every day. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve cried over the months reading her story, with the ups and downs (and terrifying scares) of her medical problems. Each time she was nursed back to health by her new momma.

Go read the thread for the whole amazing, heartwarming story (and tons more pics!)