Rescuer Doesn't Know If Tiny Special Needs Pup Will Make It, Then She Hears His Bark
Puppies are wonderful, joyous creatures. Stressed or feeling down? There’s nothing quite like wiggly, puppy-breath baby dogs to make the world seem right again.
But puppies don’t stay small, and some people get tired of them once they grow up and their adult quirks set in.
They’re also not easy to care for — in many ways, it’s like having a human baby (yes, yes, it’s not the same, but it’s a close comparison). A creature that’s adorable but destroys things, poops and pees everywhere, makes a mess while eating, and needs constant attention? Baby.
Many people just see “cute” and aren’t prepared for the round-the-clock work the adorable furball will require. Not all breeds are created equal in how much care is required, either. Bulldogs, Boston Terriers and French Bulldogs are all pretty popular but have a lot of sensitivities.
For one, many of these breeds are born through c-section. The same characteristic that makes them so irresistible (their huge heads) is exactly what makes them impossible to fit through a birth canal.
Brachycephalic (a fancy term for “squishy-faced”) dogs also have a difficult time regulating their temperature and are born with more instances of cleft palate than other breeds. What this all boils down to is that sometimes pups are born that aren’t quite right, and many owners aren’t prepared to handle the consequences.
That’s where rescues like Road Dogs & Rescue steps in. Their Facebook page says that they are “on a mission to transform the lives of bulldogs and special needs pups in LA and spread happiness and healing.”
A little bulldog pup named Quarrie is especially thankful for their presence in his life. When a caring person found him and brought him in, he was about the size of a potato.
“He’s supposed to be an English bulldog, but he was not the right size,” Nikki Carvey, with Road Dogs & Rescue, told The Dodo. “When Quarrie first came to us, he was about the size of a can of Coke.”
“He was pretty malnourished, very runtish. It was really like, ‘Oh my God, this guy is so tiny. Is he actually even going to live?'”
“But anyone who knows Quarrie, knows what a huge spirit he’s got. Quarrie was pretty fearless, even though he was tiny.”
Carvey made sure that he was getting all the things he needed: love, toys, medical care and proper nutrition. And though he was small, he was fierce.
“He’s very talkative,” she said. “He likes to complain whenever we do anything that he’s not 100 percent a fan of. The main thing he gets sassy about is food. If he’s not getting his breakfast on time, you’ll hear about it.”
Despite the care he was given, his back legs still weren’t cooperating and would slide out from under him. He started a form of physical therapy: His back legs were taped into the proper position.
Of course, he wasn’t exactly a fan of the process, but what he couldn’t know was that his legs were being strengthened and trained to work more like normal dog legs. He took up swimming, too, and in time he was able to get around pretty well by himself.
Most people would have walked away from the sickly little puppy that Quarrie started out as, but thanks to Carvey, Quarrie is now fat, sassy, and ready to live his best life.
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