MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA......Sweet REGGIE was picked up by fellow rescuers in Alabama several weeks ago. While they were returning from a vet visit down a country road they saw an emaciated dog behind a fence. They turned around to see if the dog needed help and were horrified at what they were seeing. Wonderful REGGIE (short for Reginald) was emaciated and starved. When they got out out of the car, he immediately got up and wagged his tail. They scooped him up and rushed him to the vet. Reggie is a 10 year old Beautiful English Setter that weighed only 38 lbs and should have weighed around 75 lbs. He appeared to have once been used for hunting and had been abandoned. This wonderful loving boy has not been hunting for a long time. We were contacted and offered to take him into our medical / rehab program. Reggie has a growth on one side of his face and is almost blind in both eyes. He was loaded with parasites which also added to his lack of weight. He has gained eight pounds since we got him but still has a way to go. His left eye as you can see from the pictures is bulging. He has severe Glaucoma and a central Corneal Ulcer in that eye. We waited to post for him in hopes we could keep the pressure down in his eye and get it corrected so we would not have to remove it. Unfortunately, that is not going to be the case. The surgeon told me this morning that the ulcer has begun to heal but the pressure cannot be stabilized. The eye will have to be removed because of the pain it is causing Reggie. His right eye has a cataract that will have to be taken care of to give him as much sight as possible. His bloodwork is improving but is still not in the normal range. Over the next couple of weeks, we anticipate that to stabilize. As of now, he should be stable enough for us to do surgery on his bad eye this coming week. At that time, we will be removing the tumor he has on his face and he will be neutered. We have aspirated the growth already and do not think it is cancerous. A thorough biopsy will be done once it is removed.
Hunting dogs work tirelessly to please their Guardians. They go for hours and hours without food or water to do what they have been trained to do. When the day comes they can no longer perform that task, they need to be retired to the loving confines of a home and nurtured for all their hard work. Unfortunately, we see all too often hunting dogs that are abandoned and discarded and replaced with younger dogs. These are some of the sweetest, most gentle dogs around. Reggie is one of those incredible majestic dogs that still holds his head up high and proud. We love this Gentle Soul. If he could talk, I am sure he could go on for hours telling stories of all his adventures. Reggie will not be available to be adopted until after all of his surgery has been done and we feel like he is well enough to leave. He is still at the hospital and will be for several more weeks. Please, drop us a note if you are interested in adopting sweet Reggie.
REGGIE has had his surgery and is doing wonderful. He is still sleepy here from the procedure. He is the happiest dog we have ever seen. He always has a kiss and a smile for everyone.
We brought Reggie back to us to see if we could do cataract surgery on his bad eye. We found out he was not a candidate because of his heart problems. The risk was too great for us to risk his life to have better sight. He is adapting with slowly losing sight in his only eye. Below, he is listening to a football game and seems to be very bored with it.
