Ammo/Big Man

A few weeks ago, my sister called me and told me that a lady had brought in a dog (a pit mix) that she'd found in her yard, with his face torn up and bleeding. He was an intact male stray, so it was likely a street brawl with another dog. She paid for his vet care and my sister called me, as the lady couldn't keep him and didn't want to take him to IACC, where his chances weren't the best. I contacted the local humane society to see if they had a spot for him. They told me they had a parvo issue but could take him in about a week's time.

So Big Man, as I called him, b/c he was short but all of 60 some pounds, and thick, came to stay with us. We crated him in the garage, since he was intact and seemed WAY too interested in the cats (who are not fazed by dogs anymore, so they'll walk right up to new dogs, which wouldn't have been a good situation with this dog). Sis named him Ammo, because he was a tough dog who had to have 3 drains put in his face b/c of how badly he'd been torn up. He stayed here with us for about 10 days until we could get him to HSI.

Big Man was such a sweet guy, and a very easy going guest. He was crated 95% of the time, and didn't protest, which was great. He was super happy to see us always, and at first wanted to hump me, he was so happy to see me. A spray bottle fixed that relatively quickly. In general, he was just a happy goofy looking dog. Didn't mind us cleaning his wounds twice a day, and loved being out in the back yard, marking any and everything he could find. Ryan nicknamed him Marky Mark because of this.

Sadly, yesterday we found out that he didn't pass his temp test. He had some issues guarding his food, and didn't do well with his dog intro. Unfortunately with those two things combined, he couldn't be passed. I consulted my new comrade, one of the IPC board members, and we talked about trying a couple of options for him. But upon talking with another board member, who actually did his test, and having her explain to me in detail why she didn't feel she could pass him, though she was saddened by it, as she said he was more social than a lot of the dogs at the shelter and absolutely loved every person he interacted with, and not having the space or resources to try and take him on ourselves, we have no other options for him. I'm waiting for the call for them to let us know it's his time and my sister and I will go up there and be with him and say goodbye. This is the absolute worst, and heartbreaking, but I'm trying to stay positive and remember that he was loved by us, even if for a short time, and to work even harder for the ones we can save. Here's to you big Man, you're a good boy, a big chunk of love, and we won't forget you.