Like most of our rescues it happened all of a sudden. It gave us no chance to reflect, to consider, to plan..
There she was, crossing across a village road in the Spanish mountains.
You could barely see her, so thin and squalid, shy and just a few hairs left in her body. It was a reflex act, pull over to the right really quickly, stop the engine and get out of the car carefully, hoping that she won’t run away, because if she had done it would have been nearly impossible to catch her.
She did try to escape, but she was too hungry and debilitated to pass by me, got on my knees and clamped her down. This was going to be the day her life would change. I would not allow for her to go back to the road and the fields and to be eaten alive, slowly by surely but the disease that engulfed her.
We named her Ginny.
Like Troy a few months ago Ginny has extremely advanced mange and a tick-born disease, Erlichiosis that if left untreated will end up killing her.
As a matter of fact, we really don’t understand how she managed to stay alive for so long. But she did.. and thanks to her strength and her will to live she is here with us.
Ginny won’t be healed in a day, or a week, or even a month… hers will be a long and arduous transformation. The improvement on her skin, the reversal of the ravages of Erlichia, it will be slow.. but it will happen. And one day, we will all look back at these pictures and shout: is this the same dog?
Please help us save Ginny’s life. Don’t look away, don’t hope that she will be saved anyway.. please make her her future your business too… 🙂
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Update May 1…
Treatment is working.. Ginny works much much better… we have all the hope in the world…
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Update May 17…
Ginny has made amazing progress, she looks like a totally different dog. She is still a bit weary and mistrustful but she has bonded with her carers. I think this picture speaks volumes..
Unfortunately we have a massive problem. Ginny has developed a series of masses on her mouth, lips, tongue. We believe they are associated with her state of inmune depression and they are expanding FAST!.. We must operate them ASAP before they reach and cover the rest of the mouth. We need your help, she has gone such a long way… we can’t fail her right now..
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UPDATE JUNE 14
Ginny… today…
As we promised, a total transformation has been achieved…
No comment.
Please, if you can, DONATE to Ginny’s treatment today.. we are all she has and we will never look away…
Many many thanks!, and if you can’t help, please at least help by SHARING Ginny’s plea in your social networks..
Viktor
P.S. Once she is treated and recovered Ginny will need a home. Please write to me, open your family to her, she’s going to need us all.. My email: viktor@myletsadopt.com
I wish I could take her, that poor little thing, people are heartless, disgusting
I would so adopt this girl,if she was near by where I could,here in Houston,Texas,USA.
Please let us know how she’s doing. I’ve posted and shared. Prayers for her and the people helping her.
You might have more success in adopting if you didn’t exclude people that smoked, just because you’re against it. It’s ridiculous, especially since I really dont smoke in my own house.
Then you may be considered…. but sorry.. a clean air is the bare minimum we can give to our animals.
IF you wish to adopt her please email me on viktor@myletsadopt.com
Best
Now little girl, surely you’ll make it thanks to LAG’s angels… YOUR guardian angel was there on the road, making Viktor stop the car! Bless you and courage for the treatment… Your bad days are over 🙂
The no smoking family rule is not ridiculous at all. Only smokers think it is. http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2009/09/17/how-cigarettes-and-smoking-impact-your-pets-health.aspx
Such a sweet face. Hooray! She is saved. No matter the outcome, she is rescued and loved.
As many dogs out there that need to be saved, I think if someone is wanting to give one a loving home. then smoking shouldn’t be a problem. (I don’t smoke) I understand that you try to find the best home for them but with so many needing a home and they keep coming every day, then don’t be so strict on some things. Fence yard for big outside dogs, if they take the animals they currently have to the vet etc…..just saying
Smoking IS a problem. If someone doesn’t want to respect this basic rule we usually send them to their nearest kill shelter where they can save a dog that is about to be killed. I’m not going to spend thousands of dollars treating a rehabilitating an animal and then send him to a home filled with smoke and ash. You know dogs have an amazing sense of smell right.. well.. imagine… just saying
I foster for a rescue in Phoenix AZ. I would never allow my foster dogs to be adopted into a home where the inhabitants smoked. Not only is second hand smoke dangerous for people, it’s also dangerous for our animal companions. If Ginny were anywhere close to where I live, I’d apply to adopt her in a heartbeat. As she isn’t, I have no doubt that you will find her the perfect, loving home.
Thank you for all you do for these babies. The world is a better place for people like you.
I WANT HER! dam to bad for me! poor pitiful dog. i hope she survives and makes a recovery. plz get well soon ginny the world is gonna pray for you. we all love you 🙂
Poor Ginny glad to see her in safe hands. Glad to hear that the animals that the homes they go to will be smoke-free…Nobody is allowed to smoke in my apartment with my 3 cats…..Thank you Barbara P
Then maybe u shouldn’t let anyone have one if the drink alcohol ,they might fall on them, or if they have children it might get its tail pulled I have been sharing but will not anymore ,a stupid rule to many animals need homes to be so strict,just another person that’s wants to take away a persons rights , hate when people think their right about everything same way an atheists got their way and now Gods not allowed in schools.
Yeah u say but cigarettes are bad I’ve heard it all ,but they are legal to buy should be legal to smoke anywhere you Want to too. I know it pointless to give this opinion smokers have no rights anymore.
No… you can keep your rights. I’m not interested in taking them away.
You don’t have the right of blowing smoke in the face of our dogs.. and because chances are that you will I’m afraid I can’t adopt an animal to you.
No hard feelings believe me
Poor little girl ! So glad you managed to catch this one ! I often see similar poor dogs in this state in Mozbique where I live and it is usually very difficult to catch them , they are survivors and very cautious and suspicious naturally ! Rescued a Chow Chow dog two years ago covered in mange and it is still a ongoing battle with him , but we love him anyway . Thanks Viktor
Posted, shared and donated. I hope Ginny gets an awesome home with people that will love her for all her life.
Donated and praying for Ginny. I praying for her and y’all… that you get the financial help you need for Ginny and thay you find a good and loving home for Ginny. I’m not a smoker but have 3 animals and can’t afford a 4th one. That breaks my heart. I wish I could give them all a home. Please don’t take her to a kill shelter. She deserves to know what its like to be loved and cared for.
She is going to be a beautiful girl when she is all better!
God bless you Viktor !! You make THE change in the world everyday!
I thought the rule is no animal adipted by a smoker that smokes inside the house? Did I get that wrong? I’m confused. Not that I am able to adopt another dog or cat at the moment.. Just curious. 🙂
Exactly.. no smoker that smokes inside the house… which are the vast majority unfortunately
Thank God these poor creatures are adopted to non-smoking homes. The background checks probably check to see how little kids and other factors like habitual drunken stupor etc. will factor in. Most smokers I have known didn’t once consider anyone else’s feelings. My health issues now reflect on such persons. These poor souls can’t handle or get away from such conditions without help. Just as smokers have the right to smoke, non-smokers, including animals have the right to breathe fresh air. Sorry if that offends, but in my life I’ve had to care for people with lung cancer who never lit up but their family member did. Very sad.
Donated ,,, sending prayers ,, kiss that baby girl for me,,, and THANK YOU for having a massive heart !!!!
i do home checks for different dog rescue organisations and dont discriminate against smokers. do you really not rehome if families smoke?
Yes.
Donated! <3
I know Ginny is going to be in good hands with you guys. Praying that she will find a forever loving family.
God bless you Viktor…..for all you do, to help the helpless…..sick animals. If they could speak,they would say they love you and thanks for helping them. Your a Hero….to all who follow your work……most of all, to the precious dogs and cats….you work so hard to save.
So glad this sweet girl will live. Thank you Viktor, for all you do!!
just had a loved one pass away on the 4th from stage 4 lung cancer. he smoked camel straights all his life, started when he was 11 back in the 1930’s. thank you so much viktor for sticking to your ‘guns!’ no one should have to die a death like that!
and if you think it’s cute to blow your smoke in the face of animals or babies–GUESS AGAIN!!
as for atheists getting their way… no we didn’t. it would be your Founding Fathers who got their way finally after about 150 years or so–but, they were patient–it is called SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE and they were the ones who came up with the idea in the late 1770’s! do yer book larnin’! reason for that separation is there are too many gods that would have to be recognized nowadays. and about those F.F.s… they were deist. another reason why they wanted god out of the government… they didn’t believe in him.
nobody’s picking on smokers. but their right to ruin their lungs if they choose impinges on everybody elses right to not die of second hand smoke inhalation. one thing at a time, and someday maybe we will wise up about alcohol which is the world’s deadliest drug.
i due fostercare for the state so i cant smoke in the house.i have animals to so i wut not smoke around them . but the way u go of about it is not right i spent long houres with kids or my animals every day
I do agree if a dog needs a loving home smoking shouldn’t be too much of a obstacle but i also herewith viktor dogs and other animals have stronger sense of smells higher risks of allergies and more delicate lungs i don’t smoke but if i take my dog anywhere someone issmoki we have to leave my dogs allergies cause him bronchitis inflamed lungs which he has steroids for every other day which is very common and if passive smoke can affect humans it sure as hell affects the animals then you do a amazing job l.a.g keep it up u r the animals voice !
I am so pleased she was found. I would love to adopt her but I am in the wrong country. I can’t help with donating but have shared. xxx
So thankful for all you do for the furbabies!!! May i be one of your servants in heaven to thank you for your actions here on earth!
My girlfriend is a smoker and every single one of her animals has died with cancer!!!!! Her mother was in a home growing up with smokers, never a smoker herself and now has COPD and emphysema in her older years….AND NEVER SMOKED!!!!!
Daniel Halle and Patricia Norman – great homes have no borders to adopt the LAG lucky ones. There are requirements for their care, and you can submit adoption apps for review and approval for when the time comes.
And Viktor is 100% correct, why would you think that rescues would spend countless time and funds, to get the absolute best medical care, to save an animal’s lfe, only to place him or her in a home where someone smokes cigarettes ? Now that’ is one of the most ignorant commentaries I’ve ever heard of……animals have such small lungs and are way more succeptible to cancer though 2nd hand smoke than human beings. If you have no respect for your own health, why would you think you could be considered an acceptable adopter for an LAG pet ? Please….eye roll..
victor LARKHILL. you do a marvellous job if you need any home , for your dogs I COULD HELP YOU IN SOME WAY.
Victor, I applaud you for not adopting to smokers. The welfare of the animals has to come first and if people want to ruin their health they have no right to infringe on others, their bad habits. Thank you for saving this baby. It’s a crime what people do to animals. They have no souls! God Bless you!
Debbie and other smokers – get over yourselves – smoking is foul and if you smoke near your animals you are shortening their lives as well as yours – i for one loathe this foul habit – and cant be around them much less be in an enclosed space with them – i wouldn’t inflict that on any animal – you may be a lovely person but you show no respect for the animals or LAG when you moan about YOUR rights – what about the animals whose right to clean air and healthy lungs you would take away – hope you find her a loving happy and healthy home Viktor 🙂
You are in good hands now Ginny.. thanks Viktor for everything you do x
blessthe little pup god heal her
so sad, i wish i win the lottery
Please – all you people trying to waste space here defending smokers..can you go away to some other forum and leave us alone to try and help Ginny. These are the rules set by LAG and if you do not like them, go adopt from a high-kill shelter that does not have this rule. Simple. Stop trying to bring “god” into this, or any other subject. It is all about helping Ginny.
Oh I wish I could take her to sweden..Poor girl..She seems so loveable and very cute..I can imagin her loving the swedish forests and swim in the Gulf of Bothnia.And i time she will play with my 5 cat’s..:)
I hope you find a loving home sweet angel..
im a smoker and i take my dogs to the vet they are in perfect health. just cause i smoke doesnt mean i smoke around or in front of them and if they are inside i always smoke outside. my dogs are my family and my care for them is above and beyond. being a smoker doesnt mean you will be bad to your animals. if thats the case then drinkers of alcohol, and drug users should never own an animal. and definately no one with kids ive seen dogs with broken tails and legs from rough play with a child so smoking really cant be that damn bad.
Dear Victor i live in the netherlands i work 20 years with dogs. I Am à Fosters mam i have 4 dogs in my home al dogs are from France België Romania and spain. If there is Am option to transported her to THE netherlands i Will adopt her. Hope to hear from you
Hi Viktor, I know you told me not to donate until I’m back on full pay, but I felt I just had to. This poor dog has been through so much and looks amazing, now for this to develop is just so darn unfair.
It’s not much but it comes with my love and best wishes for a swift recovery.
Beautiful dog. I hope she gets a beautiful home. Interesting dialogue. I agree about the non-smoking though, Smoking leads to nothing but sorrow for everyone, including your pets. I used to be a smoker, many years ago. Realized after I quit just how terrible I smelled and how nasty everything in my house was. As far as I know I have no health issues that stem from those days (I quit in 1981) but I was lucky. I have friends who were not so fortunate.
I am a old age person but i love all your animals and cry for them all.And cry because i cannot donate . Ido tell every one
sorry smokers this is not about you – its about the animals health. compromise yours all you want to but leave the animals health intact – ty ( oh and quit for your owns sake)
Ginny is in my families and my heart. God has blessed her with a life that is not close to it end. Things will be okay. All she needs a home and lots of love. I wish I could do more for Ginny but its not able to be done right now. But she is in my heart. God bless uou Ginny.
I stopped smoking the day I rescued my first dog. Dogs have such a keen sense of smell..can you imagine how smoking must smell to them!? While I do feel that smokers are obviously capable of loving a dog, to spend thousands of dollars on medical care just to put a dog in possible harm’s way in a house with smoke makes no sense. We know second hand smoke is as dangerous as actual smoke so why expose these dogs who have already had horrendous health issues to more potential problems! Shelters do not have these restrictions and have plenty of dogs to choose from so if people choose to continue to smoke they can adopt there. Lets give these dogs the chance they deserve!
I really don’t see wjat the problem is here, as Viktor points out LAG spemd large amounts of money, money that we have donated, on saving the lives of these animals. They work to exceptionally high standards and, quite rightl, these standards are reflected in their adoption policy.
I’m a smoker and fall oitside their acceptance criteria, I also libe in a town without any butcher shops – all our meat comes from supermarkets which means a raw food diet is impractical. Am I angry, upset or in strong disagreement with LAG ? No I’m not. Those are the rules and I happily accept them. LAG have my full support on this subject.
Anonymous from the Netherlands who is fostering, could you please contact me? I’m in the Netherlands as well. You can pm me through Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/isabel.carvalho.5458498?ref=tn_tnmn
Another little donation for poor little darling who’s already improved sooo much! Courage all the team and Viktor of course – love you all, thanks for helping this little angel!
Hey… Any news on Ginny’s condition?
well as a smoker i think the rule about smoking is not unfair at all, infact it is necessary. Because smoking harms the nonsmokers who just breathe the smoke more than the person who smokes it. Same situation is valid for the animals. They can be harmed or develop diseases because of smoke. Its not about discriminating people who smoke (me included), or dont letting them adopt animals just because viktor is against its about protechting an already injured creature. Do you support smoking near children? Everyone knows that it can harm them. it is the same with animal companions. Yes, may be never smoking near them can be a solution or people who dont smoke inside homes. But still, i believe smoking rule is necessary.
I love your work Viktor – it’s so important and special what you do and I whole heartedly agree with you that you shouldn’t smoke near people/pets etc if you can’t understand that *smokers* then you don’t deserve one of these beautiful rescued babies who deserve a chance at a LONG and happy life.
Donated & Shared! Thank you for making Ginny’s hell-like living conditions a thing of the past! Praying that a very lucky someone gets to give Ginny the loving home she so obviously deserves.
Interesting how smoker’s defend their rights by comparing them to drinkers and rough playing children. Would you leave your human baby with someone who does any of these things that could harm your child? Why would you consider that it’s okay for an animal to live with these dangers? Viktor, you are truly an angel on earth. I see your halo. Thank you with all my heart for helping our furbabies who would not survive without you and others like you.