How could Faith live after the severe attack? 

      Pain lanced through her left eye every time she moved her head.  There was no vision in that eye, only pain.  Puncture wounds in her right ear and the sides of her neck throbbed as well.  It hurt to breathe, not only because of the growing bruise on her abdomen but because her neck was ripped open, exposing the muscles underneath.  She curled herself into as small a ball as she could on the cold concrete floor and trembled, every breath torture, every shiver causing new waves of pain.

      We don’t know exactly what happened to little Faith.  We know she was attacked savagely by a large animal, barely escaping with her life.  The shelter to which she was taken did not have the facilities to handle her injuries and a kind rescuer called us to see if we could help.

      It is one thing to be told that we were getting an 8 pound Chihuahua that had a neck injury, it is another to see her neck muscles exposed, her eye clouded and leaking fluid, her ribs poking through her dull coat and her whole body tensed and miserable.  The medical staff immediately started her on antibiotics in preparation for the round of surgeries necessary to put this little life back together again.  One of the staff volunteered to take her home so she wouldn’t have to spend one more night alone.

      The next day we cleaned and closed the wound on her neck.  While she was under the anesthesia we also spayed her.  She was not strong enough to undergo the eye surgery at this time, so we put her on pain medication and let her gain a little strength.  The next surgery was to remove her eye.  We also scaled and polished her teeth. 

      Recovery was hastened by her being fostered by a staff member.  She has a special love for Chihuahuas and Faith received the best care and love.  You might even say she was spoiled.  Her foster was the one who gave her the name of Faith which she thought suited her gentle, kind nature.

      The stitches in her neck were removed 10 days later and the wound had healed well.  Her eye was healing too and she was regaining her strength and perkiness.  Soon we were receiving reports of her starting to play with the other dogs and cats in the household.  Her coat became glossy and her body filled out.  When she came in for her check ups, she pranced and enjoyed everyone petting her.

      Faith fully recovered from her earlier trauma and is now in her forever home where she plays happily with the other pets in the family and snuggles under the bed covers at night.  We hope that she dreams only of her wonderful future filled with love and play and we are so grateful that we were able to have a part in that future.

Update!

See current information we received from her adoptive family!