'Pretty disturbing': Manitoba dog rescue rehabbing dog found alive with hole in head
The Manitoba Underdogs Rescue (MUR) is calling on the public for help to save a dog that was found with severe injuries to his head and face.
Isaac is a one-year-old shepherd mix and was rescued over the weekend. When the organization found him, they said he had a hole in his head, around 1.5 to two centimetres wide and was missing most of one of his ears.
"We went up to a remote community on Sunday, we had some dogs to pick up there were being surrendered into our care and a bylaw officer in the community brought our attention to a dog that had an injury to his head, and the memo said that he had bone exposed," said Jessica Hansen, executive director of the rescue.
She said they were surprised at first that a dog that had bone being exposed would still be alive and thought the situation might not be as bad as they expected.
"But when we got there, it was terrible. His left ear was missing. The entire front of his face was just a wound. There was blood and pus and it just smelled so terrible."
Hansen believes Isaac's injury happened from either a bullet or an icepick and said it is probably one of the worst injuries she has ever seen.
"Especially when you think about the intent, the force and the violence behind an intentional attack like this, it's pretty disturbing for our volunteers to have to cope with."
Despite the gruesomeness of his injuries, Hansen said they expect Isaac will make a full recovery, noting he is still a very happy, human-loving dog.
"I think the thing that baffled us the most with Isaac was his personality immediately … Isaac came running over to us at full speed, super happy. If you had seen him in the distance, you never would have known, you never would have guessed that anything was wrong with him. I mean, it was like (his injury) wasn't even there," she said, adding he is still kind of playful while receiving care and he wants food and treats.
As part of his treatment, Isaac is receiving IV fluids, antibiotics to get rid of the infection in the hole, pain medicine and the bandages are getting changed daily.
Once the infection is stabilized and improving, Hansen said he might also require surgery to close the hole.
The bills for all this care is why the rescue is putting out the call for help.
"So to start off with, the hospitalization and initial treatments, we're trying to get about $2,000 … and then if we're looking at surgery, we'd probably be looking at another couple thousand dollars."
The hope is Isaac is able to make a full recovery within one to two months, not including the surgery Hansen said.
Donations for Isaac can be made online.
DONATING TO ORGANIZATIONS TO SAVE ANIMALS
While the rescue is asking for donations to help Isaac, Hansen said donations in general throughout the year are important to keep the organization going.
This year, she said veterinary bills are averaging about $30,000 a month, which Hansen said has been steadily increasing since the pandemic.
"We have found that we're getting more and more dogs in general, whether they're injured or sick or not. It's just been very overwhelming this year."
Hansen understands several pet rescue organizations including MUR are asking for donations to help and said any donation to any organization is appreciated.
"A dog saved is a dog saved … we're all working towards the same goal, we want to help dogs in this province, whether it's locally or in some of these rural and northern communities."
She added if money isn't something that is possible, people can also look at becoming a foster or volunteering.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trump fined US$1,000 for gag order violation in hush money case as judge warns of possible jail time
The judge presiding over Donald Trump's hush money trial has fined him US$1,000 for violating his gag order and sternly warned the former president that additional violation could result in jail time.
The story of how a B.C. man found his birth mother
After his adopted parents died, Dave Rogers set out to learn more about his birth mother. DNA results and a little help from friendly strangers would put him on a path to a small town in England.
When grief and AI collide: These people are communicating with the dead
AI tools can offer recommendations, answer questions and 'talk' with users. But some users are using them to recreate the likeness of the dead.
Spike in 'violent rhetoric' since Oct. 7 attack from 'extremist actors,' CSIS warns
The Israel-Hamas war has led to a spike in 'violent rhetoric' from 'extremist actors' that could prompt some in Canada to turn to violence, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service warns.
Italy's white-collar mafia is making a business killing
Italy's mafia rarely dirties its hands with blood these days. Extortion rackets have gone out of fashion and murders are largely frowned upon by the godfathers.
WestJet, mechanics union agree to tentative deal to avoid strike
A potential strike between WestJet and its mechanics union appears to have been avoided.
Russia announces nuclear weapon drills after angry exchange with senior Western officials
Russia plans to hold drills simulating the use of battlefield nuclear weapons, the Defense Ministry announced Monday, days after the Kremlin reacted angrily to comments by senior Western officials about the war in Ukraine and Moscow warned that tensions with the West are deepening.
Summer forecast: What to expect as El Nino weakens
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Actor Bernard Hill, of 'Titanic' and 'Lord of the Rings,' has died at 79
Actor Bernard Hill, who delivered a rousing cry before leading his people into battle in 'The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' and went down with the ship as the captain in 'Titanic,' has died.