“Good am. I m fr (location). Got adog was hit by car tis am. I think bone is broken. Can u please help." This is definitely not the type of sms one wants to receive early in the morning but this was exactly what we woke up to this particular morning.
That’s just how volunteering in rescue work is. In the midst of rushing to work, we also had to scramble to look for pet transport and volunteers who could go down to search for the dog and take it to the vet.
Coordinating this rescue effort took us almost 2 hours but we finally managed to get the resources required together. It wasn’t easy searching for the location. It was at a farm, with only one graveled lane for traffic and many factories with no unit numbers to identify them by. We had to go from factory to factory to ask if there was an injured dog.
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| The workers put her there to prevent her from moving and getting hurt further |
We finally found the small terrier looking dog. The workers had kindly confined her in a cage. She was lying down and not moving. She would cry out in pain whenever they tried to pat her. The workers said a car had hit her as she played on the farm and they thought she had died on impact as she could not get up. However, they found that she was still alive and carried her away and kept her in a small cage while they looked for help.
They got our contact from other workers who told them that we would come every Saturday night to feed, distribute food and provide medical aid and sterilization. We were told that someone had given them this dog, a 7-month old female who they named Bella and that they would let her run around freely because she was young and active.
In the carrier, we noticed she had poo on her bum. She had probably defecated in shock and fear when the accident happened. There was also blood in her urine which was a sign that she might have sustained internal injuries.
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| Blood in the carrier |
At the vet, she was so scared and in so much pain that it was almost impossible to examine her thoroughly. But we managed to get xrays of her back and sides. Thankfully, the xrays showed no fractures, but the vet did say that the xrays may not pick up any minute tears in her bladder, so she will need to be monitored closely.
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| On the way to the vet |
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| Examining Bella at the vet |
Bella's stomach was very swollen and painful to the touch. It is suspected that this may be due to bruising and internal bleeding. She had internal hemorrhaging in the top of both eyes, probably from impact of being hit or as she tumbled away. Fortunately, her vision doesn’t seem to have been affected. No surgery is needed at this point in time but the vet will monitor her for leaking in bladder, similar to Cammy’s case. Her white blood count was high so she was put on drip to protect her kidneys.
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| Bella has internal hemorrhaging in the top of both eyes |
Bella will be closely monitored over the next 24 hours, and will stay at the vet for a few days. Once she is better, we will also sterilize her before returning her to the workers.
Bella was lucky that she had workers who love her and look out for her, and we managed to get to her in time. However, her accident reminds us that other strays are not that lucky.
To help with Bella's vet bills, email hopedogrescue@singnet.com.sg
