Oscar's Updates

  

We had blogged about Oscar previously, but I'm willing to take a bet that you have no recollection whatsoever of this cute little face. And there is a good reason for this. Oscar has been steadily putting on weight and is well on the road to recovery! When I fetched Oscar for his vet review today, I can barely recognize him myself.

Lil' Oscar at the vet

Oscar is looking so much more alert and a lot less tense than when I first saw him. The vet said that he had put on 1 kg in a mere 1 week! I had been told that this little boy loves his food. And that is a good sign :) Skin culture was done, hence the small white patch on the body.

This was how grotesque poor Oscar looked when HOPE Dog Rescue first picked him up at the cemetery. I can only imagine life as a living hell for him. Lest everyone forgets. Oscar is only 6 months old. Still a baby.

And this was when I first met Oscar. Although slightly better but still a pathetic sorry sight. His skin was extremely raw and there were patches of open sores. He was also huddled up like a ball and terribly afraid of his surroundings.

Take a look at our brave little warrior now! He has come a long way and I am immensely proud of him. However, this does not spell the end of the ordeal. Oscar has to go back to the vet weekly for jabs and it will take him a few months to completely recover.

Oscar staying at the boarding kennels. He desperately needs a foster home.

Monthly charges at the boarding kennels don't come cheap and we're hoping someone would come forth to offer him a temporary home. Volunteers take turns to go down daily to feed him his medication. While Oscar's physical condition is improving, I am worried about his psychological condition. When I entered the kennel today, all the other dogs were jumping up and down, barking excitedly. All but Oscar. He lies unmoving, only looking at me with his big brown eyes. As you can see from the photo above, he is all by himself, confined by cold slabs of concrete. This is no way for a puppy to be growing up.

I was cradling Oscar all the time while we were waiting for the vet and I can see that he was slowly warming up to me. His body relaxed and he started to check out the surroundings. And when I placed him in the car, he shifted himself and propped his head up on the hand-rest to look at me. I was all mush when that happened. My heart was won over by him 100%. It became apparent to me that all it takes was love and human touch to mend this broken soul. 

When I returned him to the kennel and placed him on the cold hard floor, he seemed resigned and reverted back to his lifeless self. I was devastated. Sleep will be difficult for me tonight as Oscar's gentle helpless eyes keeps coming to mind. 

Little Oscar desperately needs a home, even if not a permanent one but at least something temporary, so that he need not be placed in a kennel. If you can foster or adopt Oscar, please email alicia@hopedogrescue.org.

Thank you for giving Oscar a chance at life.

Story and photographs by Esther Low.