Dog News

Overweight dog getting a second chance

by ADMIN

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gusgusWhen Candace Christian rescued Gus Gus he was so overweight that he couldn’t even walk. He hung his head, depressed. Now his life is improving and he is also helping to improve Candace’s life as well.

Gus Gus, a 4-year-old Sheltie, was brought to the local Las Vegas vet’s office for seizures in the fall, but it was apparent that was only one of his problems. He had a horrible skin infection, was morbidly obese and had floating knee caps. His previous owners decided to give him up since they could not properly care for him.

Candace, a vet tech assistant at the hospital, couldn’t let him go to a shelter. She knew if he did that due to his condition he’d probably be euthanized. She was grieving the loss of her Chihuahua named Moo at the time and found comfort in the overweight dog. The two made a great fit, helping each other. “For some reason, I just kind of took to him when I saw him, and we actually kind of help each other, you know?”

When Candace first met Gus Gus he hung his head, clearly depressed. He needs surgery for his knees, but won’t be able to receive it until he slims down. Candace takes Gus Gus to the Las Vegas Veterinary Specialty Center twice a week for physical therapy where he works on an underwater treadmill, gets massage therapy and even does crunches to build up his strength. So far he’s dropped 10 pounds and 3 ½ inches. He still has a ways to go, but his quality of life is already showing improvement.

Candace is raising money to help pay for Gus Gus’ medical expenses through Fund A Pet Miracle. Gus Gus will need to be on seizure medication for the rest of his life on top of the cost of his knee surgeries. Candace knows that helping Gus Gus will be a long and expensive journey, but she won’t give up on him, “I want to give this little guy a better life than what he had.”

You can follow Gus Gus’ progress at his Facebook page.