BEAUFORT, SC......Yesterday was a day to top all days and nights. I was contacted by Beaufort County Animal Care Services to see if I would help a sweet 10-year-old poodle that was put in a garbage bag with dirty diapers and trash and thrown in a dumpster with no way of getting out. A good Samaritan at DHEC heard the cries from the dumpster and looked inside. She was horrified to find a dog yelping and screaming to get out. She found a piece of a fence to open the bag and got him out. Usually, the dumpster would have already been picked up and compacted, but they were 30 minutes late this morning.
We are calling this special pup Treasure. Animal Control took him to our favorite Vet, Dr. Marikay Campbell, at Port Royal Veterinary Hospital. Dr. Campbell stopped everything to assess his condition and see what he needed first to survive his unimaginable condition. His fur was so matted that he had 2-3 inches of mats all over his body. This poor pup could not even see with all the mats.
Two pounds of fur was removed from his body. Treasure is a medium-sized poodle that weighs only 10 lbs. On a scale of 1-10, his body score is a 3. His nails are over an inch long and curled under his feet. He was covered with feces and urine all under his body and on his face.
I repeat this time and time: why do animals stay alive when their daily existence is pain and torture? It is as if they know someone will come along and save them. Based on Treasure's condition, he had to have been confined to a kennel for most of his Life. He has been waiting all of his Life to be saved.
The best news is he is finally safe and will never know hardship again. He has a lot of medical conditions that have to be addressed. The first is he was starved and is now in danger of Re-feeding Syndrome. His body had already begun to shut down from lack of food and care. He has to have lots of tiny meals to allow his body to wake up and learn how to process food again. Too much food, too soon, and it will kill him. His body cannot process what it has not known for a long time.
Dr. Marikay and her incredible staff spent all day yesterday ensuring Treasure was stable and comfortable. Today, she is doing a more thorough assessment to see if anything can be done with his eyes. He is blind with cataracts in both eyes. We have to see if surgery will restore any of his vision. Once we determine that, our favorite eye specialist, Dr. Anne Cook, will see him.
Treasure is a sweet, sweet pup who gave all the staff kisses yesterday. He is a loving dog despite his abuse and neglect. Beaufort County has set up an anonymous hotline for any information leading to the arrest of the person who did this. The pup was dumped in a trash dumpster by DHEC in Beaufort. The authorities are also getting DNA from the trash bags that had used diapers. Someone has to know who owned this dog.
Our current focus is healing Treasure and showering him with unconditional Love. Please donate to give Treasure the best medical care possible. Your support is needed now more than ever for this precious Soul.
