Read about Emily's progress here!!.

      The photos that accompanied the plea for help were shocking. You could barely tell that this was a dog, much less what breed of dog she was. A kind-hearted woman had seen "unnamed white dog" in her local animal control. She was trying to take photos of the dogs in hopes of getting them adopted, instead of being put to sleep. She took these photos and walked on down the line of kennel runs.

By the time she returned, "unnamed white dog" was laying on the floor of the kennel run, bleeding from her ears and neck after being attacked by the dog they had put in with her. Her emaciated, filthy body, lay lifeless on the cold, cement floor ... the life was draining from her.

     When asked about the dog and whether the shelter was going to do anything for her, the response was, "Oh, that one. It's not going to make it anyway. We just haven't gotten around to putting it down. If you want it, take it."

     Without a second thought, the woman scooped the girl up and whisked her to safety. Without adequate resources to care for this poor dog herself, the woman sent out urgent requests for help -- one of which landed in the e-mail box of Echo Dogs. There was something in her eyes that touched us to the core and one of our foster homes said, "I'll take her on."

     Foster Mom began corresponding with the woman who had the dog and quickly determined that time was of the essence and that this little girl would not be able to physically handle a transport where she had to change vehicles every hour, so Foster Mom drove the 10 hour trip to pick up her newest Echo Dogs dog. She consulted our fabulous veterinarian about what to expect and how best to handle this little girl for the trip.  The back of the SUV was cushioned with layer upon layer of blankets, to make the trip more tolerable for this girl who had no muscle as padding on her bones.

      She seemed to like and respond to the name Emily.  We knew she needed a good, strong name if she was going to make it through.

      We knew she was thin and sick, but Foster Mom wasn't truly prepared for the condition Emily was in.  She was so emaciated that she couldn't stand for more than a few seconds at a time, and even then, her legs quivered as though they were about to give out.  She couldn't hold her head up and wouldn't eat, which is common with extremely emaciated dogs.

      The very next morning Emily was in the vet clinic.  The vet staff cried when they saw her and one vet commented, "Well, I've seen other dogs in this condition, but they've all been in the freezer."  Her initial weigh-in was 31 pounds.  Thirty one pounds, on the frame of a dog that should weigh about 70 pounds.  She also had bleeding ears and a fairly significant gash on her neck from the dog attack.  A few days later, we also discovered a deep puncture wound in her armpit and the veterinarians suspected some internal soft tissue damage as well.

      Emily is making progress, slowly but surely.  She drinks Pedialyte to help maintain her electrolyte balance during her recovery and Foster Mom and Dad are having to force-feed her dog food to ensure she is getting enough calories each day to support her recovery.  Emaciated dogs often lose their hunger trigger, so it can be difficult to get them to eat.

      She has a lot of damage for her body to repair before it can really start adding weight, but she is making progress.  It hasn't been a linear progression with Emily, though.  We've had a couple of hospitalizations as she has had some fevers and dehydration, but she is starting to be more responsive each day.

      She is finally feeling strong enough to walk and she has even jumped off a small retaining wall!

     She still has a long road to travel.  When she is finally healthy enough, she has some additional veterinary work that will be needed.  Her malnutrition has affected some of her teeth, so she will require some dental work before she can go to a new home, and she still needs to be spayed.  In the meantime, we celebrate the small steps Emily makes toward being healthy!

      Any donations you can offer to help us defray the cost of Emily's medical expenses are greatly appreciated!

Susan Fishbein
President
Echo Dogs White Shepherd Rescue, Inc.
www.EchoDogs.org