Poor, balding, and all alone.
A dog that looked like a “werewolf” had been lingering by the roadside for months.
His scales were tough, and his tail was broken and jagged.
The little bit of remaining black fur on his neck stood up on its own and was a mess.
The dog seemed like he hadn’t eaten in weeks; he was clearly in a bad state and could hardly move.
Except for the fact that he had been seen in an orchard in Madera Ranchos, California for a while, nobody had any more details about this mysterious creature.
Because of the animal’s scary appearance, no one dared to get too close.
The unlucky canine was named “Werewolf” since no one could figure out what he was. They weren’t brave enough to find out.
Then, near the end of the month, a driver spotted him and wrote a few things about him on Facebook.
The woman stayed near the dog until help came. Soon after, Megan Bowe, another animal rescuer, arrived.
“I was almost in tears when I saw how terrible he was,” Megan Bowe, founder of Bowe’s Adoptable Rescued Pup, told The Dodo. “He was really at the end of his rope. He was down and could barely stand.”
The “werewolf” Megan found was actually a very sick German shepherd mix.
She decided to call him “King.” Then she put him in her car and rushed him to the nearest emergency animal hospital.
King seemed relieved to get help and followed Megan without a second thought.
The vet diagnosed King with multiple diseases and wounds. His mange, broken pelvis, and busted tail were the worst of his injuries, though.
King was only a year old, even though he looked so old and worn.
“My vet thinks he was hit by a car, and that would explain his messed-up tail too,” Megan Bowe said. “That injury happened months ago because by the time I got him, it had already started to heal wrong. And with such a damaged pelvis, he couldn’t move around much to find food, so he was really skinny and dehydrated.”
Megan kept King in the garage to stop his contagious diseases from spreading to the other animals she took care of.
She started King on a low-calorie diet and slowly built it up so he could regain his strength and weight the right way.
Before getting surgery on his pelvis and tail, King needed all the support he could get.
Despite his physical weakness and injuries, it was clear that he was grateful.
“He’s a really affectionate dog,” Megan said.
King seems to want to snuggle Megan, as he lays his head on her when she sits.
“He’s been so calm and easygoing through everything,” Megan said.
King’s condition got better after about a month of treatment. They were able to cure his mange, and he felt like his old self again.
His pelvis and tail were surgically fixed a few weeks ago after he had recovered enough for the operation.
Plus, all the procedures went well.
The vet recommended regular walks to help King’s hurt leg heal.
King will go back to the doctor before the end of the month to get his stitches out and see how well he’s recovering. He might need surgery on his other hip once he’s healed from the first two procedures.
King has come a long way in the past few months, and his progress has made things look a whole lot better than before.
There’s a huge difference between King and the scary “werewolf” from before.
Megan says that in a few months, King will be back to normal. After that, he’ll be available for adoption.
While he waits, King is loving his new life, with doggy ice cream, walks, and rides in the car with the windows down.
“He’s happier than ever now,” Megan said.
She can’t understand why someone would leave him to die by the side of the road, weak and starving.
“It’s hard to believe that all those cars passed him by and didn’t stop. Nobody wanted to take him home or help him because he looked so bad… But all it took was one person,” Megan said.
Taking that extra step can mean the difference between being a coward and a hero in some cases.
Big thanks to Megan and all the other animal-rights activists who never ignore cruelty or neglect. Now King can have the happy, healthy life that every dog should have.
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