Written by Nicola Ramos of R.A.D
Photography supplied by Marisa Steyn
Maverick, an elderly, dirty dog, was running up Ou Kaapse Weg in Grabouw in peak traffic. We could see he was not street-smart and miraculously dodged a few cars and taxis. We couldn't look away and thought that even if we sent him to heaven, at least he won't be cold, thirsty, hungry and very likely run over.
Some kind-hearted men helped to catch him, and even though he made an attempt to run off, he was too tired and gave up after a half-hearted attempt to resist. When we tried to pet him, he ducked and dived, not expecting affection.
It was late, so we settled him in at the vet, where he polished off a bowl of food and rested his weary body on a blanket for the night.
We decided to give the old man a Facebook post that night just in case someone could offer him a second chance.
Marisa spotted him, and thanks to her, he got to have a happy ending after a life of misery. We are so thankful he gets to know love and be part of a family. His new name is Chicken!
Marisa Steyn, Chicken’s new guardian, shares...
When we went to pick up Chicken from the vet in Grabouw, he was very subdued, listless, and wanted to lie down all the time. We had to carry him to the car. R.A.D organised that he got neutered and dipped. I have never seen so many dead ticks in my life, clusters of them on this tiny body.
With him being very weak, energy-less, and so incredibly thin, we had him tested for biliary. The test – strangely – came back negative. Our local vet in Stanford did an in-house blood count and found that he hardly had any white blood cells left. She suspected it might be the other tick-related virus, Ehrlichia, but could not successfully test for it because of the low blood count. He was dying. After sending away more blood tests that came back inconclusive, we decided to take a chance and treat him for Ehrlichia anyway, make him as comfortable as possible and hope for the best. He got good nutrition, medication, lots of love and weekly blood tests to see if we were on the right track with his treatment.
To our delight, his first test results showed an improvement in his blood count, and he started to pick up weight. Every week we held our breath as the tests came back, and they kept on improving! Our Chicken was reacting marvellously well to his treatment and getting fatter and more energetic by the day. He started barking for the first time, playing with the other dogs, and he even had bouts of zoomies.
His favourite things are food and giving kisses. We are so proud of him and how he pulled through his near-death experience. We also suspect him not being quite as old as everyone thought, despite his weathered looks and ground-down teeth. Chicken is still going from strength to strength, and we think he is going to be around for a long time. What a rewarding experience!
Thanks to R.A.D for selflessly fighting for these homeless, neglected animals every day. They are the real heroes.
