The pursuit of perfection, then, is the pursuit of sweetness and light.
Matthew Arnold
Isn’t she gorgeous, our Sweetie!
Those ears alone are enough to melt a heart of stone. But Sweetie did not always look like this – on the day we rescued her, she was barely discernible as a dog.
Months of having to forage as an abandoned dog alone in vast, savage woodlands where there was nothing suitable for a her to eat and rarely any water to be found: thorns, brambles and stinging insects tore holes in her skin, blood-engorged fleas and ticks infested the scraps of black coat that mange had not yet claimed. And thin! Sweetie was so pitifully thin that you could watch her heart beating in a nearly transparent chest which was struggling for each rasping breath. She could no longer lift her head, her eyes had started to glaze over, her body lay flat and lifeless at our feet – Sweetie was saved on the very day she was going to die.
There followed weeks of intensive clinical care, therapies, medication and dietary regimens, all specifically aimed at restoring Sweetie to health. In time, Sweetie’s ravaged body healed, and who could not agree that she has become a beautiful, black dog! Astonishingly, her affectionate, gentle nature, her innate trust of people, were not at all impacted by that nightmarish existence in the woodlands. Sweetie was made whole again, in both body and soul.
It is, therefore, not surprising that someone wished very much to adopt our Sweetie and offer her a home, complete with doggie companion and an outdoors big enough for her to run and play in to her heart’s content. Her new family were enchanted with Sweetie, it was love at first sight, and so Sweetie’s new life began in joyful harmony, until it was discovered that her known condition of Leishmania could not be adequately treated on the island which was now her home. The only resident vet there had absolutely no experience with this disease and suggested that Sweetie be euthanized. Imagine the heartbreak her adoptive family experienced! A heartbreak that could easily have been avoided had the former founder of Let’s Adopt Global thought it necessary to carefully consider the availability of Sweetie’s ongoing treatment before he placed her. A dog with Leishmania requires lifelong pharmacy-no-rx.net medication, daily maintenance doses of a substance called allopurinol. Allopurinol tablets are not expensive to buy, but they are essential to the continued health of a Leishmania patient. It is possible that Sweetie may be allergic as well. This aspect should also be taken in account by prospective adoptants.
Sweetie is – in a word – sweet, sweet beyond measure. She is calm and gentle, affectionate and obedient. Sweetie survived inconceivable hardship and loneliness, fear and torment – she deserves a loving family who will take the best care of her, making sure that her medical condition is monitored and medicated for the rest of her life. That is not too much to ask, is it? For the love of Sweetie, our gorgeous girl, nothing is too much to ask.
I simply don’t understand why the condition could not be managed in the Uk. I am in the Uk and have three Leish dogs and have no problem. My vet is very interested and informed and all meds are easily available. Allopurinal is a human drug used for gout and simple to get. I would suggest that the vet be reported to The Royal Veterinary College and advice asked from them
This is just stupid.
It would habe been VERY easy for sweeties family to just order the pills themselfs.
You can do that online. NO PROBLEM.
Shame on the family is all that I can say.
To give away a loved pet just because they do not want to pay for medication and putting the blame on the vets and all others is just WRONG.
I buy medication for my dog and I do that gladly because they help him and I love my dog , he is a part of our family, both our dogs are.
Shame on the family.
Two animal charities I support have recently made public statements requesting their supporters do not comment on stories if they are merely venting to make themselves feel good and attempt to “shame” others. It doesn’t help the animal in any way; it can deter an adopter who is struggling, from asking for help or from admitting they can’t meet the needs of the animal; it can deter those whose circumstances change from admitting they now cannot manage to care for their animal and it makes a well meaning person or family who greatly desired to help an animal and invested time and love but for reasons everyone else can not fully know, feel like CRAP. Pat Moore restricts themselves to facts which could help and encourage a future UK adopter to take a dog with Leishmania. petra Robisnon – you’re contribution has failed to recognise the fact that LAG are accepting responsibility for not researching this placement fully. They are not criticising the family – in fact acknowledge how painful this whole experience has been for them. Your comment – petra – is basically how about how wonderful you are and ignorantly attempting to “shame” someone else. The word for this is TROLLING. Good on you for loving your dog and buying it’s medication – but it doesn’t give you the right to sit in judgement on others. Thank goodness Sweeties first family were brave enough to admit they were not able to manage her condition, ask for help and to return her to LAG to give her the chance of finding a life where she could be healthy. Thank goodness they were not stupid enough to just order medication from the internet and dose Sweetie up without veterinary supervision. Well done to LAG for admitting their mistakes. My respect for, and confidence in LAG increased greatly when I read this story. I’m sure lessons have been learnt around researching placements much more fully. Well done to a family who tried and were big enough to admit that things were not working out. I hope potential adopters will not be deterred by the thought of keyboard warriors waiting to pounce if they prove less than perfect . All reputable rescues understand that not every placement proves successful and would much rather adopters were honest about this rather than struggling on to the detriment of the animal. Much love to Sweetie – a beautiful sweet girl who I very much hope finds a family, and a vet, who can give her a happy – and equally importantly – a healthy life. X