A neighbor noticed him lying in the street in front of a house. Unable to stand. The owner told her he'd been hit by a car and he was just waiting for him to die. He'd dug a hole in his back yard to bury him. Waiting for him to die. Knowing he would.But the neighbor said she couldn't stand it. She scooped him up and brought him to us.
X-rays showed no broken bones. None whatsoever. He hadn't been hit by a car. As it turns out he had arthritis. All over his spine and back legs variety. He was in so much pain, he couldn't even stand. Let alone walk. Should we euthanize him? Help end his misery?
Emily, one of our surgical vet techs, argued his case. Try pain meds for a week she urged. He's only four years old. If he's no better then maybe we should euthanize him, she said. The pain meds worked. Within a few days he was able to stand. Within a few more days he was able to walk.
Tell the guy he can fill in that hole. No need to bury him. He's able to stand and walk and even trot. Not perfect mind you. A little unsteady. But clearly on his way to managing his life. The pain meds worked. Emily's loving care helped a lot.
She named him Old Yeller. This time there's happy ending.
(c) Ron Aaron 2008
1 comment:
Sometimes I get lost in the thought that so many people are bad. You turn on the 10 o'clock news and hear story after story with one common denominator; a bad person. Well, every once in a while I will hear or read something that causes me to remember that there are good people. Old Yeller's story is one. God bless his neigbor for taking him to the animal defense league and saving his life. God bless Old Yeller's neighbor for giving him a voice. Child abuse/neglect is awful but thankfully children have a voice in the rest of us. Who speaks out for abused and neglected animals? Not many. Anyway, thankfully, there are still kind, descent people in the world.
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