(UPDATE: 6/21/18, 6 p.m.) We’re happy to report that Minnie is doing very well after her emergency leg amputation earlier this week. She is eating well and getting the hang of walking around with just 3 legs. She has already taken some good walks around our campus. We shaved her completely, so she is now mat-free, probably for the first time in months. She is feeling so much better! Despite all she’s been through, she is a total sweetheart and loves spending time with people. We’ll be continuing to work with Minnie as she recovers, but her future is looking bright!
Monday, June 18, 2018: Minnie arrived at the ARL after she was found wandering out of a wooded area in a Des Moines park. She was horribly matted, dehydrated from the 90-degree heat, and unable to put weight on one of her front legs, which was raw and oozing. Two of our veterinarians immediately gave her an IV of fluids, then put her under anesthesia so they could clean and examine her leg.
That was when they found something truly horrifying.
A thick mat was wound so tightly around Minnie’s wrist that it had strangulated the tissue there, cutting all the way down to the bone. Her wrist had broken. A few tendons and ligaments were the only things holding her leg together.
The severe mat had been so tight for so long that it had killed everything below Minnie’s wrist.
The smell of dead flesh was overpowering. Minnie had obviously been in excruciating pain for a very long time. At this point, her leg needs to be amputated.
We’re getting her into surgery right away.
Emergency situations like this are why our Miracle Medical Fund is so critical. We never know when an animal will come to us in desperate need of medical care, and we need to be ready every time that happens. Pets like Minnie deserve a second chance when the people they rely on fail them.
It breaks our hearts that someone could abuse and abandon this sweet dog, leaving her to fend for herself. But today, Minnie’s luck has changed and she will finally get the help she has needed for far too long.
