A six-month-old puppy arrived at Stray Rescue of St. Louis on Thursday roaming the streets alone, after he was found by a Good Samaritan. The puppy was heartbreakingly skinny and very sick; even if he found some scraps to eat, the food wouldn’t stay down. His condition was alarming.
He couldn’t eat, he was very sick, and his too-skinny body made our hearts ache.
Upon his arrival at the veterinary hospital, doctors saw intussusception on his radiographs; a condition in which one segment of the intestine slides into an adjacent section similar to a collapsible telescope causing a bowel obstruction blocking food, fluid and blood flow.
He was named Melvin, and on Friday, he underwent surgery in order to perform an exploratory laparotomy and repair the injured section of his intestines. He did great!
The video posted by the clinic showed Melvin walk around, and his first stop seemed to be at Dr. Otiz’ desk to thank him for saving his life. And just to remind us how quickly dogs can fight the good fight, Melvin’s second, third and fourth stops were in search of food.
Because he’s dangerously skinny, he is on a refeeding schedule, so he can only have small amounts of food, several times a day. Food has to be reintroduced forward so as not to shock his system. Every day his food intake is increased slowly until he is back on a normal diet and can start to gain weight.
Check this out:
We’ll keep everyone posted. To donate to Melvin’s surgery, click here (and thank you so much):
Follow the National Pet Rescue on Facebook for the latest animal related news.
Bald eagle
