Eaten Alive!

Little Scout, so tame and docile, was suspected by his feeders to be either a lost or abandoned dog, despite being less than a year old. People think that when they abandon a dog in an area with other dogs, their abandoned dog will appreciate the companionship. They are so wrong. This poor dog ended up so badly attacked, because he was an outsider and the dogs living there had already established their pack and were territorial. 

Feeders first spotted him in their regular feeding area back in October 2013. Scout was all alone then, and he has continued to live alone as a refugee in that area for the last 8 months. The poor dog was often seen running from other dogs in fear, not even daring to come out to eat. His feeders would only get to see him once in a blue moon. He would suddenly appear out of nowhere, grab a pack of rice, and run away just as quickly as he had come. Such was his sad life, he lived on the run and in great fear.

The territorial packs in the area would always try to hunt him down. Eventually, as it was bound to happen, little Scout got careless and was badly attacked. Despite being submissive and timid, the pack of dogs didn't spare him. There were 7 deep puncture wounds on him, including 3 huge ones on his back. But because he was always hiding and hardly appeared, the feeders hardly ever saw him. Nobody knew yet that he had been hurt.

Poor Scout, hurt so badly

Last week, one of his feeders was doing her routine feeding rounds when she finally got a good look at him. She noticed 3 huge puncture wounds on his back. But they couldn't catch him. The next time they saw him was more than a week later. Maggots had infested his wound so badly that the 3 holes had merged into one huge, gaping and badly infected crater. The maggots had been feasting on his flesh and he was literally being eaten alive.

One feeder aunty called another feeder aunty; and in the end, 3 aunties went after this poor little puppy. He tried to evade them by running into a nearby condo, but they managed to corner him there and put a leash around him. Scout didn't even put up a struggle. He completely gave up and let them leash him. He must have been so weak and tired from running away from the bigger dogs that he knew this was best for him. Or maybe he simply couldn't care any more.

The aunties carried him to the car and took him to the vet for emergency rescue. They drove with the windows down, the overpowering smell of rotting flesh wafting through the air. The little dog sat silently and trustingly beside them. It felt as if he had been in cars before. Poor fellow, could he be reminiscing and missing the family that abandoned him?

Maggots feasting on Scout's back, eating him alive 

Maggots kept falling off his body and into the car, but the kind aunties didn't care. They were only concerned with saving this sweet little boy. His wound was a lot worse than Champ's. Although Champ's wound was huge and his skull was exposed, he received medical attention earlier, so the wound was not as badly infected. Scout's wound was deep and at least 10 days old. He trembled in pain but not once did he whine or complain about the situation he was in. He was just grateful to be saved. 

Flesh from half of his back had been eaten by maggots

Scout is about 1 year old and small-sized. He is probably HDB-sized. He has been sterilized previously, and has an ear tattoo instead of an ear clip. He is very sweet, and doesn't mind being handled. He allows us to open his mouth and check his teeth, hand-feed him, etc.

Handsome lil fella

Fortunately, he tested negative for heartworm and tick fever. But he is suffering from low protein levels and his white blood count is extremely elevated. He is very, very weak and lethargic. He keeps lying down and sleeping, and we fear that septicemia might be setting in because his wound is very badly infected. The next few days are crucial.

Extremely pale gums

                                               More puncture wounds caused by the bigger dogs.

Most of the time when our volunteers visit, he is asleep. He could be lethargic and weak from the severe pain and infection. He could also be tired from months of being on the run. We take turns to visit this little one daily, bringing him nutritious food and comforting him.

Change the lives of those who have no Hope. 

To contribute to Little Scout's vet bills or foster him as our vet bills are sky high and we can no longer afford to keep our dogs at the vet for too long, for treatment, please email hopedogrescue@singnet.com.sg