09/24/2025
A month ago I got a call from a young couple that was somewhat confusing. I tried to decipher what she was saying and it was close to this. She and her boyfriend took a dog from friends two days ago because they didn’t want him anymore, and this couple wanted a dog. BUT..they found out the apartment could either not have dogs or they could not afford the pet fee. AND to make matters worse, they were leaving on a vacation for ten days the next morning and had nowhere for the dog to go. He was only 2 years old.
The picture she sent showed a blurry face of what appeared to be a wire haired terrier. He had never been to vet to their knowledge. I was totally full here and so was Lori. We had both taken in several emergencies and this was just not workable. I told her we had no room, but I would come over, take pictures and send them to some friends.
That afternoon I picked up Lori and we drove to the apartment and they brought the dog out. I admit I did not check him over physically or I would have put him in the car immediately, but I took pictures. He was dirty and depressed which worried me, but I kept telling myself I simply could not save the world and I had to think about myself. I was barely keeping my head above water at this point.
I asked her what she was going to do with him if they were leaving in the morning. She had a few more friends to call and said maybe her relative would take him. They turned and went back into the apartment , the little dog hobbling behind them on an old faded leash and we left.
Stop worrying, Maureen, he will be fine.
But as we drove along I was so preoccupied I could not focus. I stopped and pulled off the road, turned to Lori and said that I did not feel good about this. She didn’t either but her house was a no go as she not only had too many rescued dogs, she took in a bunch of homeless kittens.
I called the girl and said I was coming back to get the dog.
They put the dog in the car and we left. When I reached over to pet him, I could not believe what I felt under the thin wiry hair. Nothing but bones. He was a living skeleton.
This dog was broken mentally and physically. His feet were infected and red from what could only be hours and hours in a wire crate with no bedding…and no food. I felt sick. I turned to him in the backseat and he looked at me with a profound sadness.
I knew what to do.
He was about a two, on a scale of ten. His hindquarters were concaved so as to make his bony chest look swollen and his head looked huge in comparison. And he smelled terrible.
Kelli came over and we bathed him and she groomed him. There it was…his poor body exposed…a bone rack.
I put him in a large outside kennel since it was warm. It had an igloo doghouse and a bed with blankets, but the kitchen was where I went and fast. If you have ever fed a starving dog, you know what it is like when they are so hysterical they knock the bowl out of your hand and start devouring the food off the floor. This went on for weeks….four to five bowls a day and he inhaled so fast I doubt he even tasted his food. I cooked chicken, rice, hamburger and as soon as I put it down, it was gone. It took two weeks for him to finally start filling out..he was on flat empty.
In a starvation case, the body burns up fat to stay alive and then muscle. He had nothing left….no fat, only a hint of muscle, and bone. But he was alive.
I named him Bobby. Every week our volunteers exclaimed how much better he looked, and he was not only filling out but starting to play and run.
Finally he was strong enough to get his vaccines and be “fixed.”
Bobby aka Ricky Bobby or aka Bobby Magee, is a total joy. He smiles now, runs with the other dogs and swims in the pond. It has been slow going, every step done with courage.
Bobby is almost ready for a new home, but I won’t tell him that quite yet. In my heart I know he needs a family, maybe with kids and lots of patience knowing that this little dog’s time was just about up.
I doubt he would have survived another week. I am thankful I listened to the quiet voice that whispered to me….
save him, save him.
(the first three pics were when we got him, and the last three are now)