A few weeks ago, I shared the story of Bobby, an abandoned/dumped dog in absolutely horrible shape that found his way to my back door. I’ll link that here in case you missed it and want to catch up.
When I wrote that, he’d only been around for just a few days, and his future was filled with uncertainties.
Since then, I’m ecstatic to report that this is officially my boy now. Bobby is 100% a member of this family, and he isn’t going anywhere.
He’s been seen by a vet, had round one of vaccines (with round 2 coming next month), gotten started on medication to alleviate heartworm and likely tapeworm from his time living abandoned and eating god only knows what to survive.
Once he gains about 10 pounds, we are going to have him neutered, microchipped and get him some dental work. It wouldn’t be safe with his level of malnourishment to put him under anesthesia yet, so we’re hoping in about a month he’ll have gained enough weight to make it safer for him. He’ll also get labs at that time to determined his overall health.
He is honestly just the absolute best boy ever. He shouldn’t be so perfect for the amount of suffering he’s endured. Our vet said that he was probably a hog hunting dog who sucked at his job (was too nice) and got dumped. They said his ears were probably cropped by a freaking hatchet, and he’s probably never lived indoors a day in his life.
He has scars all over his body and rough callouses from laying on nothing but concrete and who knows what else.
We have been taking things very slowly with him, moving at his pace, letting him show us what he’s comfortable with, what scares him, what excites him, etc. It’s been so rewarding watching him become more confident in himself, and more trusting with us, even just in the few weeks that he’s been here.
I’ll put a video clip in of us giving him his first bath a few nights ago. I had absolutely no idea how he’d respond to water. Or me spraying him. Or any of it. We took it step by step, allowed him the space to walk away and take a break when he needed to, and he always came back. It’s been such an amazing experience having him here. Oh, and the kids are obsessed with him too.
Despite the fact that we welcomed him immediately with open arms and accepted the responsibility of caring for him and nursing him back to good health, this was not a situation we were prepared for or expecting financially. This big guys costs have added up quite quickly.
Between the vet bills and immediate supplies, medications and everything else that has gone into him, it’s a burden that we’re happy to have, but a financial strain nonetheless. There are some things that he needs in the immediate future that we haven’t been able to get yet, and also some things that we just want him to have because he deserves it.
I made an Amazon wishlist, which I’ll link here, just to gather everything in one spot for myself to see what I have and what he needs. But I figured I’d share it in case anyone felt called to contribute to it as well.
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2DO0UVZVUSFL6?ref_=wl_share
If you don’t want to or can’t donate anything towards his care, that is absolutely perfectly 100% fine. But if you could share the link, that would be so, so awesome.
I love this boy so much. He truly deserves the world. And I don’t want his care to be limited by my own financial strains in any way.
