Terry and his friends were fishing on what started out as a normal day, but turned out to be something else entirely. A few hours after they arrived, Terry caught sight of an injured dog nearby. The tiny dog had a huge, gaping wound that covered almost the top of her entire head. He got worried, and lost the mood to fish. Immediately, Terry told his friends that they had to give the dog the help she clearly needed.
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| This is little Sasha |
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| Look what the big dogs did to her |
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| The wound covered her entire head and neck |
To his dismay, the dog had wandered out of their sight. Though it was already late in the evening, Terry was determined to wait for her to reappear. However, despite searching till well past midnight, Terry couldn't find the dog again. He didn't give up. When he got home, he wrote to us for help. Our volunteer Iris responded, and guided him on what he could do, how he could catch the dog and recommended vets to him. Iris recommended two local dog catchers to Terry, and HOPE also offered to pay the vet bill once the dog has been treated.
The thought of the poor little dog wandering the area on her own, with such a horrific injury, was just too much to bear. From experience, we know that stray dogs seldom get the nutrition or rest needed to heal such injuries. Their wounds would only get bigger, deeper, and more infected with bacteria and maggots over time, until eventually, it kills them. Both Terry and us knew that doing nothing to help this dog would have been letting her die.
So the next day, kind Terry and his friends went down to the same spot at noon. Terry waited for the entire day once more, and stayed even after all his friends had left. To help him catch the injured dog, Terry had called Raj, a professional dog catcher who arrived just after midnight. It was just in time, as the dog reappeared less than a meter away. However, Raj didn't have a dog carrier and suggested that he use netting to catch the dog instead andTerry agreed. He asked Raj to act immediately, as he had already waited over 12 hours for two consecutive days, and the dog really required immediate medical attention.
However, Raj refused, saying that the dog was too smelly (due to the huge maggot-infested wound on her head) and that he needed a mask. Despite Terry's frantic urging, Raj strolled over to his van to get the masks. While this was happening, the dog got up and disappeared into a forested area yet again, to Terry's dismay. Terry was obviously frustrated and quite upset, but Raj assured him that the dog would reappear. Together, they then waited another two hours, but unfortunately, she was nowhere to be found. They called it a day, and Terry reluctantly paid Raj $80 for his time. It was to be another sleepless night, fraught with thoughts of the disturbingly huge wound, too large for the tiny dog's fragile body.
In the morning of the third day, HOPE informed the clinic and our volunteers to be on standby to receive the injured dog. Terry was determined to get the dog this time and headed to the same spot at noon. He called a different dog catcher, Damy. At about 730pm, the dog reappeared. She was very hungry, and was lured out by the smell of food. Finally, Damy managed to catch her, and she was rushed to Mount Pleasant Bedok. Our volunteers were there to meet Terry and the injured dog, whom he had named Sasha.
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| Removing hundreds of maggots from her wound |
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| Some of the maggots from her wound |
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| Sasha cried a little but was otherwise a very brave girl |
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| The maggot wounds were really deep as they had burrowed in |
We really have to commend Terry for his patience and persistence in wanting to help a stray dog. Despite waiting several days with only a few discouraging glimpses of the injured dog, Terry never gave up. Very few people are as kind as he is, and it's because of his persistence that he managed to save the dog in the end.
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| Sweet little Sasha |
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| After her wound was cleaned |
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| Enjoying her first decent meal |
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| Resting at Mount Pleasant Bedok |
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| Worried about her future |
Thankfully, Sasha is otherwise in good health despite her massive wound. The maggots have been removed, her wound has been cleaned and she will be staying at the vet for a week while her injury heals. HOPE will be footing her vet bill. Sasha is very young, less than a year old, and long coated. She is really sweet and enjoys being patted and touched. We think she was most likely attacked by bigger and fiercer dogs, so we really hope to find her a home off the streets, where she can be safe from such attacks. If you or anyone you know is interested in fostering / adopting her, please email fiona@hopedogrescue.org
Written by Elena Lin
