Monty joined the sanctuary residents back in early 2023. Like so many Monty was being given away as he was no longer desirable or wanted, the commitment to his needs no longer attractive. He was in a particularly gruesome state, which was clearly apparent in the first few seconds of meeting him. We knew, whether or not he was friendly with our other dogs, that we were not leaving him behind.
Monty was emaciated, ribs and spine showing, gangly, unstable and limping. His coat sparse, brittle, grey; with large bald spots revealing scabby red skin and scuttling fleas. He was being driven wild scratching himself and whimpering. He had a huge swelling on his head, lopsided swollen ears, discharging a putrid smell, and had a missing testicle.
We were told that he always hid with new people, peering out from under the table and piddling in the corner, yet he scooted over to us. Slinking, belly to the floor, he arrived at our feet, quivering, tail tucked, a desperate little boy in need. Popping him on a lead made him squirm and piddle, walking him for his toilet needs showed evidence of a warm overload. Monty sniffed at our car and jumped in without a backward glance, then vomited hard, raw, pasta all the way back home.
Arriving at the sanctuary we bathed him, fed him, wormed, flea treated and cleaned his ears. He only weighed 17kg and would only drink if we walked out the room. He was booked with the vet and we slept with him this first week. His first vet visit confirmed severe untreated bilateral ear infections causing cranial swelling. High parasitic load, skin infections, allergic reactions, deficiencies, fear induced incontinence, testicular problems and a 30+kg dog that only weighed 17kg.
We decided that he was so poorly and unstable that his story would remain unpublished. He was to be one of our many “quiet ones”; to only share if we could balance the sadness and horror with some hope and grace. The world is so turbulent, the news now so treacherous; as a sanctuary we decided long ago to not add to the misery. We want our active profile to match our real life, to have compassion for those reading and not to dump any more virtual sadness unless it can be tempered with a silver lining. That being said, for the first six months we just didn’t know if he would push himself through, or if his miserable start would be too much of an obstacle to the rest of his life.
His next vet visit, 10 days later, showed a weight gain of 6kg, just from being wormed and fed correctly. He was continuously drinking, so we knew something else was to be unearthed. We were cleaning his ears twice a day, rubbing in creams, walking only on a lead and using positive reinforcement all the time. Cutting a very long year short- Monty gained 15kg in the first two months, needed 5 trips to the vet for his ears and skin. He then needed stomach surgery to remove 4 large stones, we think from trying to fill himself up. He has needed intense care for his first year and remained emotionally fearful and incontinent for 6 months, if voices were raised, arms moved about or shone a lead.
By January 2024 he was finally able to sustain other exploratory surgery to remove his internal testicle and have his ears cleaned again under anaesthetic. fast forward and Monty now has a shiny black glossy coat and is 38kg. Monty is about to turn two and he has had over a full year and a half at the sanctuary to recover from his first year of life! He is confident, playful, and no longer wets himself. He sleeps in Louis’s room as he suffers from night terrors if he doesn’t have his human family on hand. It seems he has turned his corner and he has his family, his dog friends and his home.
No comments:
Post a Comment