I went to the shelter yesterday to pick him up - he had been in isolation for observation. The folks at the shelter were going to put him down if I waited till today - they said their hands were tied in the matter. I had a wake to attend and wasn’t sure how I was going to make it all work - so I asked again: why put him down? They explained that since he was sick and they can’t afford to find out what with they couldn’t integrate him with other dogs. Fine, says I, he comes home with me then.
At this point I’m working under the assumption he has Parvo. Maybe he doesn’t, but I won’t chance it. I get him home and give him a bowl of really wet dog food and water. I have him isolated in the bathroom so my other dog has no chance of catching it. I bleach spray and wipe everything to the OCD degree.
My girlfriend scheduled an appointment with the vet. Rocky, our new puppy, held down the food! Good, hell, great news! My girlfriend brings him to the vet while I’m at work and the following wake. She calls me and explains that the vets don’t think he has a good chance, considering his high temperature, and do we want to try anyway? I asked them to use a conservative method of treatment - antibiotics, fluids, and overnight observation.
This morning he is awake, minor temperature, extremely low likelihood of anything wrong besides a fever and dehydration. The vets prognosis as of this morning? He will live!
It ain’t over till it’s over, and people are quick to make damning assumptions - don’t fall victim to that - when you have nothing to lose you have everything to gain!
Waaaahooooo! Yeeeeeehaaaaaaaw! Rocky the Puppy lives!
That’s awesome. Rocky is really lucky that you saved him.
It is pretty common that shelters put any dog that shows the slightest sign of illness to sleep, unfortunately, since they can’t afford to treat them all. I’m glad you got him out in time.
From my own experience, I suspect that shelters pull the “due to be executed tomorrow” trick on at least some occasions, to push waverers into adopting an animal.
Thank you for taking a chance on a less-than-perfect dog. I spend a lot of time at my city’s shelter and I see a lot of dogs not making it out. Rocky is lucky you were willing to give him a chance.
And yes, pictures when you get a chance would be greatly appreciated.
Good ol’ boy Slater on the left, new puppy Rocky on the right.
The vet didn’t think he would make it because he thought, as I at first did, that he had Parvo. He didn’t, and I had already suspected this when he held down his first meal.
The puppy has been AMAZING so far. I had to keep him in the kitchen last night as he is still in the chewy puppy phase. I lay down, and sure enough scratch scratch scratch…whimper whimper BARK! I walk over, calmly tell him NO! and after 2 bouts of that he stopped and went to bed. Slept all through the night.
A true heart warming moment from last night: after bathing him, feeding him, and snuggling him for an hour or so, my girlfriend and I took the big dog, Slater, for a walk. When we came back the puppy was howling and my girl was so worried he might be hurt. I explained to her: no, he isn’t hurt, he’s just worried that the best thing that ever happened to him disappeared. He didn’t stop whimpering/howling for about a minute after we got there.
They do look like father and son, and are both adorable!
With treatment, even if it were parvo, there is a very good chance he’d be okay. There isn’t a cure, since it’s a virus, but the symptoms are treated with fluids, etc. If your vet told you otherwise, it may be time to find a new vet.
I agree - he had a temp of 104 otherwise I would have waited for a more reputable vet. I think they perceived me to be a poor college student (this is a college town) and figured I wouldn’t be willing to shell out the $3000-$4000 to rescue him. And, of course, I wouldn’t. I would instead take him home, take a few days off work and nurse him back to health myself.
It’s incredible how full of life he is now that he’s had some food, walks, and most importantly love and affection!
Black dogs and cats have a notoriously hard time getting adopted, so good on you for saving two black dogs that most people would have overlooked!
I am sure your pup is very happy to be part of a family. It’s so unnatural for dogs to be alone in a cage instead of with a pack.
