I have been wanting to get June's story out there for a while, so here it is! Marilyn and I found June the day after Christmas while on outreach. It was late in the day and we had a couple more stops before we were going to call in quits. We went driving by a house and I saw a smaller black dog huddled up next to a crappy wooden dog house. Something in me said go back and check on her. So we stopped and knocked at the door and asked if we could put some straw in the dog's house? The lady that answered said yes, so we went back to see the situation. I bent down next to the dog and went to pet her. She jerked away and let out a horrible cry. That's when I noticed she was tied to a pole with just a shoe string. I looked down at her neck and that's when the odor of rotting flesh hit me. I got a closer look and the shoe string was also wrapped around her neck and completely embedded in her skin. I felt the blood boiling in me, I was so angry and so sad for this girl. I went back to the door and confronted the lady about the dog's condition. Apparently the dog is her father's and he wasn't home at the time. I asked when the last time someone checked on this dog, and she said the kids did this morning. I explained that a wound like that doesn't just happen in one day. We gave the lady two options, she could either sign over the dog to Jade's Mission or we would call animal control and wait for them to get there. The woman reluctantly signed the dog over. We went back and cut her free from the 2 foot radius that was this dog's living hell. I noticed that she had no water and all that was in her food bowl was onions and some rotten lettuce.
We took this poor dog to the vet that night where she received antibiotics and a pain injection. We set her up in a warm cage with blankets, canned dog food, and fresh water. She seemed so relieved to be out of the cold and more comfortable. The next morning, the dog, now known as June, was prepped for surgery. It took over 30 minutes to clip and clean up her neck. And on closer look, as we were cutting away the first shoe string, another one was found even deeper in her neck. I knew what this meant, these people knew that one string was already embedded when they tied the second one around her neck. It made me sick and so mad. June's surgery lasted almost 2 hours. Her injury went all the way around her neck. Sections of scar tissue had to be cut away. It was a very tricky surgery too, because the injuries were very close to her trachea and jugular veins. Dr. Utz at Raytown-Gregory Animal Health Center did a wonderful job literally putting June's neck back together. When the surgery was complete, it looked like her head had been reattached! I want to warn you that the next set of pictures are somewhat graphic, I wanted people to see the extent of her injuries.
June recovered very well from surgery and actually woke up wagging her tail!
The next day June received all her vaccinations and was heartworm tested. Unfortunately June came up positive for heartworms. I knew this girl had an even longer road to recovery. I worried about her neck not healing as well as it should since heartworm disease can put a lot of stress on the immune system and body. That night, June went to a very special foster home with Sara and her family! June acted like nothing had ever happened to her, she has the best spirit! She has been getting along great with the other dogs in her foster home and she loves her foster mom and dad! June had her stitches removed a couple weeks ago and her neck looks so great! It just goes to show that a little love goes a long way!
June will begin her heartworm treatment in a couple weeks, this will be another long recovery for her. Sometimes I think we are meant to find some of these animals in distress. I am so thankful that we stopped that day to help June, otherwise I'm sure she would have died in that backyard with no one loving her. Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to June's fund to cover her surgery costs! We can't save and help dogs like June without your help! We will keep everyone updated on June's recovery and when she is finally able to start looking for a forever home on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JadesMission
