you can call me sassafrass

18th May 2013

Photoset reblogged from Kissing Bovines with 282 notes

losers-count-sheep:

Rosie is the luckiest Chihuahua in the world even though she has just about every congenital defect one dog can have – her vision is poor, her immune system compromised, she has scoliosis, fused leg bones, and her jaw is shockingly malformed. Her teeth are crooked, the list goes on… Why is she lucky? Because she is loved.

Rosie was born on Valentine’s Day 2010. At birth, she had congenital deformities of the face, jaw, spine, and legs. By adulthood, twice the amount of teeth was crammed into her long, skinny, misshapen upper jaw. Oversized curved teeth hooked up from a half-sized lower jaw preventing her from closing her mouth. To eat she had to scoop food backward into her mouth and roll it back and forth because her tongue was trapped in the back part of her mouth – there was no room for it to stretch out beyond her teeth in that crowded little mouth and there was no way to chew.

When she was a few months old, her front leg bones stopped growing and fused where they met to compensate. She learned to walk on the first third of her front legs rather than on her foot pads.  Her feet are twisted and her toes curve onto one another but it is unclear if they were always like this or if the malformations are caused by the way she scoots them ahead of her as she moves. It is also unclear if her scoliosis was present at birth or developed as she learned to walk. Inadequate nutrition and dirty living conditions brought on a case of demodex mange that robbed her of most of her fur. Living in darkness all her life, her eyes had trouble adjusting to the sun or even to the light in a bright room.

Despite the severity of her deformities, she managed to survive by crawling across urine soaked floors through years of feces to eat what bits of food the others left behind. Hoping to demonstrate that Rosie was normal intellectually, the breeder told her rescuer that she tended to hide under furniture to avoid being trampled by the other dogs.

Three months after rescue, Rosie has undergone two major surgeries to remove her extra teeth and repair her jaw. She is sprouting fur on about half of her body. Her eyes are adjusting to light normally now, and she is no longer afraid of a squeaky toy – she dives in and gives that toy a good shake. She wiggles when she sees her family enter a room and gets excited at mealtime. She enjoys every day and looks forward to whatever it brings.

When Rosie was rescued  there were several pregnant Chihuahuas. No vet care was ever provided to any of these dogs! The living conditions were deplorable and it is a miracle that any dog – especially one as frail as Rosie – survived there at all. But survive is what she did which is a testament to her spirit.

Rosie is not in pain, and she is a normal, loving girl - who loves begging for treats and getting snuggles and love. Her bone conformation prevents her from fully using her legs. She has adapted, and walks balancing on her forearms and with her hind legs partially bent. She moves quite quickly when she wants to get somewhere. Her legs, chest and jaw configurations are due to genetic issues and there really isn’t any way to repair them. Her physical therapy sessions are primarily for social enrichment and to preserve the level of movement she has now.

Rosie is recovering from mange, and the fur seems to be growing back. Rosie’s caretakers believe she has had it for her most of her life. She has hair on about 75% of her body at this point but it doesn’t appear that she will ever get much on her head, legs, neck, or tummy. Although, her immune system is improving, her skin is still very sensitive and easily scraped. If you look at her photos, you will see that this has been an issue all her life, she has a scar on her forehead and tiny scars on her legs from injuries she received before she was rescued. A tiny scrape for Rosie can turn into a serious issue. To keep her safe, she wears clothing or is wrapped in a blanket when she is out of the house or exposed to any possible “danger” for her.

Please do not support breeders. I don’t care how “humane”, “trustworthy”, “prestigious” they are etc…. because at the end of the day it is about money. You will not convince me otherwise. Why breed at all, no matter how ‘interesting’ it is, when there are thousands of animals who are in shelters needing somebody to look after them? If they care that much about animals, why are they not giving medical care, love and shelter to the many individuals trapped in shelters on death row?

There are thousands of dogs like Rosie and awaiting rescue. Some of them are in need of a little socialization and some good food, others like Rosie need patience, medical care, and lots of love.

Rosie is lucky - she was rescued from negligent conditions and has a family who love her dearly and give her the best possible care. Many dogs never find a home or loving, caring people like her caretakers - and end up dying in misery, or being euthanised.

Adopt, don’t shop.

To learn more about Rosie, visit her website.

Source: losers-count-sheep

18th May 2013

Photoset reblogged from Snow with 58,432 notes

Source: tumboy

18th May 2013

Photoset reblogged from ONLY LOL GIFS with 24,529 notes

Source: thefrogman