Called Mercy by those who rescued her, a dog with a black coat was discovered abandoned on the side of a road in Brown County, Ohio (United States). She wasn't alone, as she had recently given birth to 5 puppies. The local association Brown County Humane Societyalerted by witnesses, came to the aid of the small canine family on Friday August 28, 2026, reported Room 12.
Arriving on the scene, the team Brown County Humane Society immediately saw that the dog was thin and injured. Its members thought she had been hit by a car, but it later turned out that she had been shot.
Bullets and fragments lodged in the skull
Her face and mouth were swollen, and she was breathing very hard. Flies were swarming around her and the puppies. She managed to breastfeed them as best she could, but was too weak to clean them.
They were all taken to the veterinary clinic Rolling Hills has Bethel. “ It was very difficult for him to breathe. You could definitely hear the effort she was putting into each breath, and she had a lot of bloody discharge coming from her nose. “, tell Katherine Weathersveterinary assistant.
“ Once the x-rays were taken, they were able to see several perforations in her face and understand that she indeed still had projectiles lodged in her skull. “, she continues.
“She’s a real fighter”
Mercy was operated on Monday August 30, but some bullet fragments could not be removed. She suffered a broken jaw, and a projectile is still lodged in her jaw bone. Veterinarians are waiting for his state of health to improve before carrying out a new operation which would allow the remaining balls to be extracted.
“ She did very well. She's a real fighterassures Katherine Weathers. This helps us enormously in our work when animals want to fight and want to survive. »
The puppies were entrusted to 2 employees of the veterinary clinic who bottle-fed them, their mother being unable to breastfeed them at the moment due to the medication she is receiving.
A convalescence of several months
“ We don't know what its future will look like or how much permanent damage has been done. But after everything this female dog has already been through, we gotta give her a chance », Indicates the veterinary assistant.
Once recovered within a few months, the dog can be placed in a foster family or directly put up for adoption. “ She is very confident. She is very sweet. This female dog has absolutely no malice in her “, said Katherine Weathers.
There Brown County Humane Society launched a call for witnesses to try to identify the author of this despicable act, as well as for donations to finance the care of Mercy.
Woopets advice: how to help a traumatized dog without necessarily adopting him?
You can help a dog suffering from physical and/or psychological trauma without necessarily adopting it if you are not able to do so.
Becoming a foster family can be a solution: the animal is temporarily accommodated in the name of an association, while it recovers or finds it a permanent home.
Before committing, however, you must make sure you can offer him a calm environment, time and sufficient presence.
The association remains the preferred contact to define the needs of the dog and support the host family. This formula also allows the animal to gradually find its bearings and a secure family environment.