Shuffled from house to house before joining the Animals In Distress family, an 8-year-old dog had been neglected for a long time as various human dramas played out. She was subjected to domestic abuse in several of her homes.
Understandably, during those years of trauma, this poor dog developed a great fear of strangers and of physical and verbal violence. Despite her fear and the risks to her, she would try to intervene and protect her owner from being abused, resulting in her being beaten as she tried to save her person. Adding to the trauma, this sweet dog suffered an injury to one of her nipples. A large growth developed, and as time went on, it started to stretch the skin to the point where it looked like a pendulum of skin hanging from her chest. (see photo)
Because the dog, named Cocoa, had never been spayed, and had had a couple of litters, we were very concerned that she might have cancer. Unspayed females are much more susceptible to cancer, and she had been through so much trauma that we feared the worst.
So the decision facing us was: do we take in a scarred and traumatized dog who had several strikes against her? She is a Doberman/Pitbull mix, so that’s one limitation in the eyes of many. She is psychologically traumatized and may take months or longer to become stable enough to be placed in a home. She also needed surgery for the mass removal, spaying and all the bloodwork and diagnostics involved with all of that. In addition, she needed vaccinations, testing for Lyme, heartworm, etc. and a multitude of other things. That is what we knew at that moment we needed to decide.
Her family was being evicted and had no one to take her. There was no one who would provide for all her needs. Other shelters they contacted refused to help her except to euthanize her. We were her last hope.
Cocoa had her surgery and did well. Best of all, the mass was biopsied and turned out negative for cancer. Her bloodwork and other tests showed good results, so she should have many fulfilling years ahead of her. We gave her a second chance along with time for her to regain the knowledge that she is loved and safe; that no one will hurt or threaten her or those she loves; and a belief that each day brings good things: kind words, soft caresses, enough food, and stability.