I Rescued A 2-Legged Stray Dog That Spent 10 Painful Years On The Streets

Amaze-Bobb lived 10 years of torturous neglect on the streets of Los Angeles. He was taken by animal control in January, and went to Synergy animal rescue in San Diego. The years of abuse had resulted in two of his legs being self-amputated due to extremely matted fur that cut off circulation. His teeth were rotten too and he only has 4 left.

My husband and I fostered Bobb after he was rescued by Synergy. We fell in love with him and his indomitable spirit. After moving out of state we made the adoption official at the end of June when Synergy director Carla flew with Bobb to bring him to us. Bobb joined our family of two Siberian Huskies and two cats.

More info: Facebook | animalsynergy.org

Amaze-Bobb lived 10 years without a haircut on the streets of Los Angeles

On January 22nd, 2015 I received an email from Synergy animal rescue. Synergy specializes in helping special needs dogs, especially seniors, in southern California. Their motto is, “Love to the forgotten; comfort to the sick; care for the blind, deaf and dying.” Their mission is incredible and so worthy, as are the dogs they care for. In the email, I was told about a senior toy poodle who had experienced horrific neglect and his tightly matted fur had become so extreme that it had self-amputated two of his legs.

When shaved, Bobb’s rear left leg came off. It had been completely self-amputated due to the tightly matted fur

He had been owned by homeless people who hadn’t ever groomed him (we don’t know much about them, but we hope they are getting help too). Normally poodles need grooming every 4-6 weeks and this dog had gone 10 years without a haircut.

Bobb’s rotten teeth were pulled

Bobb lost his front right leg just above his paw, his back left leg just below his knee, and also had most of his teeth pulled as they were rotting.

He was taken from the shelter into the loving arms of Synergy on January 29th

We told Synergy that we were interested in fostering him. The Synergy rescue director, Carla, named him Amaze-Bobb.

After two days, I took him home to let him rest and recover

I picked him up on February 2nd. Bobb spent a week with us, as well as our two Siberian huskies and two cats. We gave him a calm place to rest, recover, and be loved and spoiled.

He got back to Synergy for a week of vet appointments

Then we got him back for another week. His fur was already growing back in nicely!

We were about to move out of state, so Bobb went back to Carla again until we could work out travel plans

My husband and I had fallen in love with Bobb but we were getting ready to move to Colorado. Bobb went back to Carla. We visited them a few times and talked to her about how we wished we could adopt him. She said we’d work something out, and the excitement began.

Bobb visited people with special needs

Carla kept Bobb during our moving process and settling in. During that time with her, Bobb continued to heal and recover. He began to play, run, and was well on his way to a full recovery. He visited people with special needs to spread his message of strength, love, compassion, and understanding.

In May, Bobb got very sick due to an abscess and we almost lost him

Bobb was also set to visit kids at the child oncology clinic but then became suddenly ill himself. He spent several weeks at the vet as they ran tests and discovered a large infected abscess in his mouth. For a while we thought it may be the end of Bobb’s journey, but thankfully he is a fighter and refused to give in. He made a full recovery, though he did lose even more of his teeth.

We had to push Bobb’s flight date by a couple weeks to make sure he was healthy enough again to travel

The day finally came on June 29th. Carla flew from San Diego to Denver with Bobb.

Bobb remembered us, was excited to see us, and Carla said her bittersweet goodbyes

It is always hard when a dog leaves to go to their forever home, but by us adopting Bobb it allows Carla to have room to save another dog.

He started going on adventures with our huskies, Kaytu and Denali

Everywhere Bobb went we made new friends and shared his incredible story

Unfortunately, Bobb cannot get prosthetics because it would cause him pain

We are fully committed to Bobb’s care and quality of life so looked into getting prosthetics for his front and back nubs from OrthoPets in Denver, CO. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to be possible as a prosthesis would cause him pain. His back left knee dislocates so he would first need surgery and recovery to even consider it and that’s not something we want to put him through. He did go through an in-depth analysis and even had his front nub casted but the expert team was very reluctant to move forward, giving him only a 25% chance of success but a significant risk of it being uncomfortable or painful due to the shape of his leg- also there is simply not enough leg to attach a prosthesis to. Thank you Dr. Dusty of OrthoPets!

Bobb was pretty fluffy and scared of grooming tools

I’m a professional dog trainer and I work with him almost every day, at his own pace with lots of treats, to get him used to grooming.

We’ve made a few short visits with a professional groomer who let me help hold him and give treats

His very first visit was to trim his nails and trim his fuzzy Hobbit feet, and a little on his face.

During his next visit a couple weeks later he did much better and got most of his body shaved, along with getting a mohawk and his face trimmed

Bobb went for another visit a few days later to get his belly, neck, and shoulders, and to touch up his legs and feet again

Thanks to the animal control officers, the shelter, the vets, and especially to Synergy, he is not miserable, and he is not suffering anymore

For some it is hard to understand why the time and resources would be used on a senior dog with 2 legs. Let me tell you, Bobb doesn’t deserve to be euthanized because he is old and was neglected so severely. He did have a miserable existence but that is behind him now.

Special thanks to Jaala at A Cut Above for doing such a fantastic job grooming him gently and with patience!

He is down a couple legs but there are very few things he can’t do

Bobb plays every day. Bobb goes on short walks. Bobb runs, and quite fast considering. Bobb is not in pain. Bobb is happy. Bobb loves dinner time. Bobb loves belly rubs. Bobb doesn’t feel sorry himself, and neither do we. Bobb, and dogs like him, deserve a second chance and to know what love is and how good life can be.

His story is about strength, survival, fighting, and making the best of what you’re given

Bobb is looking forward, not dwelling on his past. He does some things a little differently, has some limitations, and needs help with some things, but when you look at him you don’t feel sorry for him.

You feel inspired, and you feel love. Bobb, and dogs like him, deserve unconditional love without pity

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