The night before Halloween I answered a call at the clinic. Person on the other end says, "Ummm...I let my dog out to go to the bathroom, and about 30 minutes later he came back, scratching on the door to be let in. Ummm.....now he's missing his right hind leg!" I'm thinking, yeah, right. This is another one of those prank calls we occasionally get. About 45 minutes later in walks this guy with the dog, and sure enough - he's missing his right hind leg. Seems his 'terrier attitude' got the best of him, and he got just a little too close to the train that runs near their house!
Thankfully, it was a crushing injury, so he was hardly bleeding at all. His leg had been amputated about mid-thigh, but it left a huge, gaping hole. The vet cleaned the wound, and put in a purse-string suture to stretch what skin was left over the wound.
The owners never called or came back for this little guy, so after watching him cooped up in that kennel for almost two months, I brought him home. Now he has a big fenced-in back yard to run in, and he rules the house. He's even won over my husband, the original "Mr. NO ANIMALS IN THE HOUSE".
I did finally get in touch with the (ex) owners just to let them know he was doing great and had a good home, which they were very happy about. They just couldnt afford the $$$ (especially with the holidays coming up) to pick him up. I found out he is a Carin Terrier, and will be 2 yrs. old this coming June (2003).
We could not have asked for a better dog. He's doing great now, you would never know he's missing a limb (it sure hasnt slowed him down!!) unless he turns his hind end towards you. We are looking forward to many happy years with this little guy. |
