The story of Bobby

A few days ago, on Friday night, a dog found me. He just showed up outside of my back door looking….absolutely pitiful. Completely starved and malnourished, ear infections, probably skin infections…just…a mess.

I have 2 small dogs and 3 small kids, so, we don’t just typically let stray dogs in.

But this guy…I don’t know. I don’t know what it was about him, but he drew me in. I didn’t interact with him at first because honestly, he scared me.

Despite being clearly starved, this guys face and jaw and feet are the biggest features I’ve ever seen on any dog. Ever. He could easily hurt me with very little effort. And I don’t know this dog. Or what he’s been through, what his trauma or triggers are or even just his personality in general.

So I watched. And waited. What did he want? Is he just passing through? Is he sticking around? It wasn’t more than an hour that passed before I decided I couldn’t just…not help him.

So I did the thing you’re never supposed to do with abandoned dogs unless you want them to stay forever…I fed him.

I got some of my dogs sensitive stomach food and I gave him a small meal and some clean water just to wake his stomach up. How could I not? He just didn’t seem like he had even one more calorie to spare.

We built a spare bed I had for my goats and put it in the shade so he could get off the concrete. His paws and skin on his elbows already look a bit beat up. And he needed somewhere off the ground to lay.

Well, shocking to absolutely no one at all at this point, he stuck around.

We’re feeding him 4-5 smaller meals a day to get his stomach and organs woken back up slowly.

We got him raw dog food and pure pumpkin purée because those are the healthiest and safest foods to give a malnourished dog. And one of my friends sent us a bag of the same food for him once he goes through this one, which was amazingly helpful and generous. This boy eats a lot, even with his “small” meals!!

Once we knew he was here to stay, we got him his own food, medicated ear cleanser, oatmeal shampoo for his skin, hot spot gel, a collar, and various other things to meet his immediate needs.

Now, this is a big dude. And there’s no way he’s fitting in my car to make it to a vet. He probably does need some actual medications just for his skin alone, and probably something stronger for his ears. I’ve talked to a mobile vet in our area who said she can come out for $140 just for the visit, and around $50 per medication, of which he’ll likely need a few. So…definitely a good bit of money, which sucks.

If I can figure out how to make that work, I’ll have her come out and give him a good look over.

I posted on my towns local Facebook page, no one knows who he is or who he belonged to. Just that he was likely dumped, and that he’s lucky to have found my back door.

His name is Bobby now, an ode to my favorite radio show that I listen to every single morning because of how much I drive…The Bobby Bones Show. He seems to be a Cane Corso, not a bullmastiff like I thought upon first glance through my back door.

And he stays for as long as he wants to. I’ll do my best to get him healthy and happy again. It breaks my heart knowing what this boy must’ve been through. And I can’t sit around knowing he’s out there suffering and not do whatever I can to help him.

This morning when I went out to feed him, I saw him run for the first time. Like, it was the first time he’s even had the energy to run. It was pretty cool to see.

He’s a good boy, super sweet and smart, and gentle.

He’s a beast, that’s for sure. But he’s a gentle beast. And I think he knows our intentions are pure.

Whatever his life has been like up until this point, my goal is to make sure that whatever happens from here on out, while he chooses to stay at my house, he’ll get the care he deserves from day one.