By
Antoinette Pizzi
Contributing Writer
POSTED: 11:28 am EDT March 19, 2010
UPDATED: 12:39 pm EDT March 19, 2010
BOSTON --
Veterinarians,
shocked by one of the most extreme
animal neglect cases they have ever
seen, are looking for the owners of a
Pekinese dog that they say died after
becoming immobile, trapped by his own
fur.
The
male Pekinese was found abandoned and
unable to move or walk because of
severe matting of its fur in Waltham
on March 6. The dog was taken to the
Good Samaritan to Kindness Animal
Hospital for care but could not be
saved and died a few days later. "This
is probably one of the most extreme
cases of neglect we've encountered in
our practice," said Susan Rosenblatt,
chief of staff at Kindness.
"We're concerned that there may be
other animals in the same household
that are being similarly neglected.
"The
Pekinese was between 9 and
12-years-old, tan and blind in his
right eye. The left eye had been
surgically removed. The dog's fur had
grown and become so completely matted
around its body that the dog was
trapped within itself.
"The
mats were so big and thick that an
open safety pin, which appeared on an
X-ray we took, couldn't be found after
we clipped his fur," Rosenblatt said.
"His
ears, which are normally less than 3
inches long, were nearly a foot long
with the mats. Matted fur also pulls
on the skin, causing a great deal of
irritation and pain," she said. The
dog's muscles had atrophied because it
was unable to move for so long and his
nails had grown in a complete circle
because they had not been cut in
years, the vets said. The dog's teeth
were also rotten and he had pneumonia.
The
veterinary staff at Kindness and other
animal welfare advocates asked for the
public's help to find the dog's
owners. A reward is being offered for
information. Anyone with information
can contact Kindness Animal Hospital
at 718-893-2800 or e-mail
kindnessah@gmail.com.
Special Note: Photos and source are
HERE... please network to see if
someone can identify the owner and
possibly save other dogs from the same
horrible fate!
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