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This poor little man was hit by a car--four days after his owner got him from a newspaper ad. And the bad skin isn't from the accident, it's demodex. So obviously whoever put the ad in the paper wasn't ignorant of the problems.

Unfortunately, the owner is on a very fixed income and cannot afford to get his fractured leg fixed so the Vet Emerg called us. Fortunately it's only a leg fracture and nothing worse.

We think he's only about 7 months old, but the owner didn't seem to have any information on him--wasn't sure of age or if he'd ever been vaccinated, etc. And he's intact, of course.

Meet Harley--I won't be fostering him, but the ER clinic sent us this picture. We'll be changing his name since we've had a ton of Harleys in rescue.

AND this is owner surrender Number 5 in less than 48 hours.......

Awe, he is precious. Poor little man. That skin is terrible. People are fools.

Poor little fellow. That just pisses me off to no end that "people" can be so ignorant that things get this far. Then to be hit by a car to boot, geeeez.

It astounds me that people put an ad in the paper selling or giving away (who knows which it was, but I'm guessing "giving it away free") a dog in this kind of shape.

And I know I may get slammed for this, but I also wish folks who are on gov't assistance wouldn't take on a pet. This is not a slam for folks on it--but I know how very meagre our gov't assistance programs are (Like welfare and disability). It's a struggle to keep body and soul together for oneself, much less taking on an animal. I'm sure that this person likely didn't know how bad the dogs skin was and probably felt that the dog would be better off out of the situation, but this is such a common phenomenon for us in the rescue. People want a dog and get a dog free or cheaply and then find out the animal needs a ton of vet work which they can't afford. And so we end up taking the dog.

I'm thankful we can be there for this dog, but I wish folks saw past the desire for an animal to the potential costs involved.

That poor little guy!! You guys are getting SLAMMED, but obviously you had to take this poor boy. I think, in a perverse way, he was lucky to get hit by a car. The new owner was obviously totally out of their depth and his demodex would have just gotten worse. At least now, with the accident, he is going to get all the proper care and a loving home.



And I know where you're coming from about taking in a dog if you don't have the resources for all eventualities.

Aussie Witch wrote:
And I know where you're coming from about taking in a dog if you don't have the resources for all eventualities.

Well, for me, it's more about folks on disability and welfare here in Canada can barely afford to keep themselves fed, clothed and housed (and usually food is gone before the end of the month). So having a dog isn't so much about the eventualities as it is about even being able to feed it. I understand wanting one, especially if you have kids, etc--but life on ODSP and GWA (Ontario Disability Support Program and General Welfare Assistance) is incredibly hard without any other expenses.

I would adopt that little guy in a second if I lived in the states,I would make the drive no matter how long it was, show him what the life of a dog is supposed to be about! FAMILY!. My wife is crying looking at him, and wants to take care of him.

Stitch Chan wrote:I would adopt that little guy in a second if I lived in the states,I would make the drive no matter how long it was, show him what the life of a dog is supposed to be about! FAMILY!. My wife is crying looking at him, and wants to take care of him.

He's apparently sweet as pie--not a big surprise. Most pugs are.

Surgeon is going to fix the leg on Tuesday and in the interim, he's under the good care of the Vet Emerg Clinic in London, Ontario. Leg is splinted for now.

We'll tee up transport to his foster home on thursday, probably.

I am so happy that this sweetie is now in safe and caring hands where he will be given a new and better life.



Who will get to give him the new name? Foster home?

Yes, Elaine. Foster home gets to name the dog.

Poor little guy just breaks my heart. I can;t wait to see before and after pictures of him, though!

Oh, he's adorable even with the mange. Poor little guy sure has had a rough start to life! I'm glad that you guys are able to help him and I can't wait to see more pics.

O M G ! That poor little guy. I'm glad he's in good hands now.

Poor little guy. I'm glad his future is going to be much better than his past now that's he's in rescue's hands.

There seem to be so many pictures of new rescues with demodex mange lately. I have no experience with that condition. How difficult is it to take care of? Is it something that recurs if a dog has had it once? Just curious.



He's a cutie. Hope he lands in a great home.

Oh, that poor baby! Demodex is a stinker, and it is fixable. Bless you and your rescue, Blanche, for saving this boy. Things will only get better for him from here on out.

How sad Blanche and the "new" owner couldn't be that responsible if the poor boy was hit by a car! Geez!!!!



I agree with your comment on government assistance! We have the lowest welfare rates in Canada yet people have pets they can't afford. Funny thing is...they all smoke cigarettes too!

Millie'sMichael wrote:There seem to be so many pictures of new rescues with demodex mange lately. I have no experience with that condition. How difficult is it to take care of? Is it something that recurs if a dog has had it once? Just curious.



He's a cutie. Hope he lands in a great home.

It's pretty treatable, Michael. Can take some time, but is mostly about immune systems than actual disease. It doesn't usually recur once you've gotten rid of it--but it is more likely to happen to puppies with immature immune systems or dogs with compromised immune systems. Dogs all have the mites that cause it, but it only flares into mange with the immune compromised/very young.

juneau hunter wrote:How sad Blanche and the "new" owner couldn't be that responsible if the poor boy was hit by a car! Geez!!!!



I agree with your comment on government assistance! We have the lowest welfare rates in Canada yet people have pets they can't afford. Funny thing is...they all smoke cigarettes too!

My understanding is that a child was walking the dog and it got away from him/her and got hit. And I won't slam folks on fixed incomes for smoking. It's an addiction and a tough one. Sure the money spent on smokes could be spent on other things, but trying to quit smoking is hard even when one has access to all the supports in the world and can afford to use patches and gum and other devices to help. Doing it while living in daily stress and no income to spend on support groups or quitting aids is doubly tough.

And while I understand the impulse to get a pet, it is frustrating when folks take on dogs or cats that they can't afford to feed much less deal with the medical aspects. We actually have a pet food bank here.

We have a very active pet food bank at our shelter. Anyone can ask for pet food, and we don't ask for any kind of proof of income. Many folks I've met on fixed incomes (whether it's unemployment, disability, or SSI) will share their own food with their pets if they can't afford pet food, so having free pet food available is important.

I totally get where you're coming from with not wanting folks on welfare to adopt. I do, truly. But over the years I've found that some of them are the very best pet owners in the world, possibly because they spend time with their pets 24/7. When something goes wrong medically, I've seen them borrow money, sell a car, etc. to treat their beloved pet. And I've seen people dripping with money who live in gorgeous homes and drive $100,000 cars act stunned when they learn how much a (minor) procedure will cost for their sick/injured animal, and surrender it to the shelter instead. I guess I think it's more about the individuals involved.

I wish EVERYONE, regardless of income, would think through getting a pet before acquiring one. That will probably happen around the same time that monkeys fly out of my butt...