A Best Friend is Born

Save Ceasar!

I’ve recently accrued a new foster dog. He might not look like a “baby” (he’s a 65lb, full grown, male pitbull), but he’s as sweet and gentle as one.

It was by chance that I heard about him- a man had spotted him on a country road at the north end of the Brazos County, and he was trying to find someone to help the dog get to the local animal shelter. Unfortunately, due to the prevalence of pitbull fighting in this part of Texas, no pitbulls sent to the shelter can be adopted or even released to anyone without documented proof of ownership. The result is that many, many pitbulls are automatically killed, without any chance of experiencing life as a valued member of a “human pack.”

So it was decided: My girlfriend and I had to go find him- or at least put a valiant effort into searching for him. After an hour of driving up and down country roads, we spotted him along a tree line, curled in the tightest, shivering ball.

He was dehydrated, starving, shaking, severely injured, and- most disturbingly- he had fire ants eating him alive, crawling in and out of his many open wounds.

Ceasar's co-rescuer, Connie

Without a hint of unfriendliness, he allowed us to come near him, give him a few treats, and wrap a towel beneath his massive rib cage to use as a sling to get him to the car. It wasn’t until he tried to stand up that we noticed his mangled leg– Obviously broken in in both joints, it flopped around haphazardly beneath the weight of his body.

Our vet, Dr. Lipsy, and her team at the Booneville Animal Hospital in Bryan, TX met us after hours and donated pain killers and a Capstar flea treatment so we could get him through the night, and she recommended we take him to Dr. Knight at Kingdom Animal Hospital for an orthopedic consultation as soon as possible.

The first night we had him home, his name found him: In order to get the Capstar pill down down his throat, we tried to coax him with all versions of treats- from cheese whiz to pork chops- but he was too terrified to eat anything we presented him. After he allowed us to pry open his giant jaws and stuff the pill down him with our fingers alone, we figured we’d lay off the feeding and let him get comfortable with us.

Terrified

In the meantime, we ordered Little Ceasars pizza, introduced the other dogs and cat, and sat around with him, trying to ease him into adjustment. Any time we walked near him, he tried to limp away as quickly and as far away as he could, but I kept moving back to him, sitting close, without saying a word. Once the pizza arrived, his nose started flickering a bit, so I offered him a pepperoni.

An entire pizza’s worth of Little Ceasars pepperonis later, he got his name- Ceasar- and I realized I had gotten a new buddy.

The next day, we were arrived at Kingdom Animal Hospital as soon as the doors opened- the 65lb lug of muscle meat in our arms. Dr. Knight didn’t even need X-rays to know that Ceasar’s leg would be useless. He is heart worm free, which is a miracle in itself, but his leg will be amputated- Dr. Knight will perform the surgery on Thursday, May 21st, when Ceasar will also be neutered.

One of his many wounds

There are layers upon layers of scars, scabs, and bleeding wounds all over his body, but particularly all over his back half, which makes us think he may have been used as “bait” to train fighting dogs. The doctor put him on antibiotics to help his body recover and to prep him for Thursday’s surger, but it wasn’t until Tuesday- two days after we brought him home- that his tail came out from between his legs enough for us to see that the last inch of his tail is purely bone, and the tip is hairless, skinless, bloody, and oozing. I’m not even sure what Dr. Knight will do to fix that- the skin and flesh has is completely stripped from the bone- it’s heartbreaking.

To think that a dog this precious, this timid, this submissive, and this kind to us and our other pets wouldn’t even given a chance to feel the love he deserved is beyond tragic. But after seeing what cruel humans subjected Ceasar too, I can’t blame the Brazos Animal Shelter for not wanting to chance placing a pitbull in a similar situation again, but I can’t turn my back on this guy and just let him be put to sleep– not when I have the space, time, and ability to show him the same love that he’s aching for.

So we’re doing the surgery, he’s had his first round of shots, and we’re going to nurse this Hulk of a dog back to health. The sweetest/saddest part of all: After a life of abuse and mistreatment, he’s still eagerly trying to please us the best that he can, too. He is a precious new addition to our home, and we hope to place him (after he well and more completely socialized) in a loving, pitbull-understanding, energetic “pack.” [...That is, unless I get my #1 long term goal for big Ceasar: To certify him in obedience and good citizenship in order to be a therapy dog and testament for the benefit of nokill pitbull organizations.]

I’m making this sacrifice for Ceasar regardless, but if you’d like to help out, my saved tuition fund would very much appreciate anything to keep it from being drained even more than it already has been.

$1, $5, $10– anything would be put to use.You can use Paypal to make secure, online payments to help Save Ceasar!

UPDATE: All of Ceasar’s current medical needs are covered. For this reason, we are asking to redirect donations to Ceasar’s paypal account. All residual donations will be used to pay for Ceasar to be put into therapy school to become a therapy dog for children, recent amputees, and others in need. We would love for Ceasar to be able to give back all that he has been given. Thank you to everyone who has given so much support. Our gratitude is endless and we cannot thank you enough. Keep track of Ceasar’s progress on twitter, and on this blog. Thanks, all.

Thanks for reading and even supporting Ceasar and other abused pets like him by understanding the battle he’s been through.

Here is a link to see how he has to walk:Save Ceasar