Phoenix has had a rough road…from being found after giving birth under a trailer, sick and underfed to making it to WAR, recovering, and then being adopted by a loving family and receiving the love and care she deserves! Here is an account of her journey.
On January 23, Wilton Animal Rescue received a call at about 5:30 PM about a female dog in really rough shape who had given birth to puppies under a trailer. Animal Control had received a call early that day about the mama dog and they were supposed to pick her up, but they never showed up. The folks that called had managed to retrieve 5 puppies from under the trailer, but couldn’t reach the mama. When WAR arrived, they could hear a squeak coming from under the trailer, but mama wasn’t moving. Carol got down on her belly in the mud and rain so that she could get under the trailer to help mama and the puppies out from under it. With the help of a catch pole, they were able to pull mama out and then retrieved two more puppies…one still alive and one unfortunately dead. While on site, they did their best to warm the puppies up and secure mama for the ride back to WAR. When they got back to WAR, they got mama and babies comfortable and warm, but she was so weak that she was unable to care for her babies…she just lay there unmoving. The puppies had to be bottle fed every 3 hours throughout the night
The following day, they gave mama a bath to get all of the grease and dirt off her. They had to follow the first bath with a second one given with Dawn soap to get all the fleas off her. She had so many fleas that the water turned red from all the damage they had done to her skin.
After getting cleaned up, mama felt good enough to start looking for her babies. They got her warm and settled next to the fire and laid her puppies next to her. She was tested for both Parvo and Giardia and fortunately tested negative for both. But she was still very weak and sick.
In the days that followed, it was determined that mama (now named Phoenix) was too sick to continue caring for her puppies so they were fostered to a vet tech with extensive experience bottle feeding puppies. But unfortunately, one by one, each of the puppies passed away. They likely suffered from Phoenix not getting sufficient nutrients during pregnancy combined with her being severely ill. Phoenix ended up being diagnosed with a severe infection and multiple organ failure. She had to have surgery to remove several areas of infection in her body, plus an emergency spay procedure. Amazingly, she began to turn a corner and feel better. By February 9, WAR was able to let Phoenix out to explore the yard. By mid-February, Phoenix began to display her happy, wiggly personality. She showed how much she loved belly rubs, exploring the yard and interacting with the other dogs. She was on her way to a 2nd chance at life.
Fast forward to today…this little lady is living her best life since being rescued by Wilton Animal Rescue and then adopted by a wonderful family. She is so loved and is now experiencing the best that life has to offer with her new family! Phoenix is a perfect example of the impact that a dedicated animal rescue can have on such an innocent life. WAR has watched her blossom from a being so sick and malnourished that she almost died to recovering into a beautiful loving dog that is now a member of a loving family. Her story is why they do what they do. Bless you Phoenix! And bless Wilton Animal Rescue.
