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Our latest addition came to our lives 2 months ago, right
around Valentines Day. He traveled over an hour at the back of
a pick-up truck to get to M.A.S.H. where I worked. He possibly
was hit by car the night before and had a broken leg and was
very underweight. The owners that brought him there had him
only for 1 week and allowed him to roam free at night. As this
breed is virtually invisible in the dark, he got hit by car. And now,
they did not have any money even to pay for the exam. Poor
Bruno lay on the blanket we provided, as they tried to decide
what to do with him. 18 months old, beautiful purebred
Neapolitan Mastiff without a place to turn. I called and left a
message with a Neo mastiff rescue volunteer but never got a
call back. At this time, I had nothing to do but take his
responsibility and try to help this poor boy.
Dr. Nwadike of Mid-Atlantic Animal Specialty hospital performed
the surgery. He had to place a pin and a plate to hold the leg
together. The outcome seemed miraculous even to me who
has seen many surgeries of this type. Bruno almost didn’t even
have a limp right after the surgery. M.A.S.H gave us a much
discounted price of $1500 and chance to make payments.
Bruno thanks all the staff of M.A.S.H for their generosity and
efforts in saving his leg. He will have many years to enjoy this gift
he was given.
Now started the grueling task of keeping this puppy calm and in
a crate for 2 months. This was no easy task; poor Bruno could
not understand why we would punish him and keep him in a
crate. After all, he was a great puppy. He got along with our 4
other dogs, was very respectful and also house broken. He
chewed a few things here and there but I believe this was
because of boredom. During this recuperation period he got
vaccines and got tested for heartworms. He was POSITIVE. It
would have been wrong to think that people who would shoot
him with buck shots, let him roam would keep him current on
heartworm prevention. Yes, you did not hear wrong, Bruno also
has many pellets from buck shots all around his body including
one in his eyelid. By recommendation of Dr.Gordon a close
friend of mine I used to work with, we put Bruno on Heartguard.
He possibly will still need to be treated when he is better and the
drug to treat the disease becomes available (possible cost of
another $1500)
Although not diagnosed, Bruno possibly also has hip Dysplasia
and will need to be on supplements for the rest of his life.
Although he went through a lot in his short life of 18 months and
was never treated right by people, Bruno never stopped
wagging his tail when he saw us. Amazingly he still had a lot of
love and trust for people and just wanted to be loved.
Bruno had his final X-Rays at M.A.S.H yesterday (4/6/05) and Dr.
Nwadike allowed him to gradually go back to normal activity.
So, Bruno will be ready for adoption as soon as the right family is
found to love and care for him for the rest of his life.
If you are interested in adopting Bruno or helping out with the
costs related to his surgery and future heartworm treatment
please e-mail us at vetmail@vettaxi.com. I can send you the
adoption application form via e-mail or direct you to where you
can send your donation. Home visit and reference check will be
required for prospective adopters. In the meanwhile, Bruno
sends his love to all the people that care.
UPDATE: BRUNO WAS ADOPTED BY A VERY NICE FAMILY AND
LIVED WITH THEM FOR 1 MONTH BEFORE WE REALIZED THIS
WAS NOT THE RIGHT HOME FOR HIM. HE CAME BACK TO OUR
FARM, AND HAS BEEN DOING WONDERFULLY WITH OUR
FAMILY. BECAUSE OF ALL HE HAS BEEN THROUGH, AND SO
MANY NEW HOMES HE HAD BEEN THROUGH IN SUCH A SHORT
TIME, WE DECIDED HE WILL NEED TO STAY WHERE HE FEELS
VERY COMFY AND HAPPY. WITH THE BOYLE PACK AT ZILLA'S
DREAM FARM.
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