Melody-A New Lease on Life!

Melody 

 It's hard to forget the courageous story of Melody Victoria, the sweet pit bull mix whose owner abused her by sticking her in an oven.  This blog carried two stories on her fight and progress as she healed.  Melody has since found a wonderful home and is happy, content and loving life!  Mostly Mutts recently spoke with Melody's new owners and wanted to bring our readers an update on where things are with this amazing little doggie!

Melody at her favorite spot, Bark Station!

It's great to hear that Melody is adjusting to her new home and did so very quickly.  She is on a schedule that she enjoys and her and her older sister love to play together.

Her "dad," Nick, says that her favorite thing to do is go for car rides....especially to the place she loves to play, Bark Station!  Melody also likes to chew on her bones and nurse her blanket.

The good news is that Melody is completely healed and needs no further care for the injuries she so cruelly sustained.  She has gone to the vet for her checkup and received her bordetella shot.  She almost earned the nickname "tee tee terrorist" but a quick visit to the vet discovered that she has a urinary tract infection.  After a round of antibiotics she is doing much better!  Nick says that she is almost completely healed from her injuries.  Although her pads are healed, she limps somewhat  due to the fussed toes on her rear paw.  She is scratching a lot right now because of the hair growing back over her scars.

We asked Nick if Melody ever seems frightened or if it appears that she remembers what she went through.  Nick says that at first she would have loud dreams, whimpering and twitching but that those are happening fewer and fewer these days.  She does barks at strangers and takes time to warm up to new people.

Melody does plays well with other dogs.  She loves going to doggie day care at Bark Station!

Best thing about Melody?  She is very much a love bug, loving to cuddle and sleep all over her new family who she always seems to want to be touching.  Nick also says they discovered the reason for her name being Melody; she actually will sing to you to get your attention.

We asked Nick why he and his wife specifically chose Melody to adopt.  He says that they were looking for a companion for Issa, their other dog,  when they read the story about Melody. "We knew she would be a dog that would need a lot of love and we had a lot of love to give. We were just drawn to her -  we knew that she was the dog that we had been searching for.  I told my wife months before meeting Melody that I wanted a blue pit with the light colored eyes."

Nick adds that Melody has taken to training well and has already learned sit, stay, lay down, come here, leave it, etc.  Melody has a new lease on life and finally has a home that loves and adores her.  Mostly Mutts loves this happy ending!

 

Mostly Mutts Shelter Needs

Mostly Mutts is very grateful for the calls, emails and postings that we get for donations.  We could not do it without the many GENEROUS donations we graciously receive!  We are often asked at adoptions or on our Facebook page what we need.  What better way to get the word out than through a blog post? ONLY with the support of the community is Mostly Mutts able to continue its mission to rescue dogs, many with special medical needs that can eat through a budget in very little time.  Cash donations are always appreciated, however, there are many other ways to help. 

WHAT WE CAN USE/NEED:

• Blankets-cut blankets to fit kennels (best if sides are sewn.)
• Beach towels-especially thick, thirsty, water absorbent towels. 
• Kennels-We prefer collapsible kennels but we can also use plastic travel kennels.  Donated kennels should be clean and rust free.  We prefer plastic kennels to be broken down with the hardware in a baggy.  Extra kennels are donated to animal control facilities who need them to transport animals to rescue groups.    
• Collars-any kind but especially in the sizes of XS, S or M.  Please be sure they’re clean!
• Leashes-any kind except retractable.  Please no choke chains or Halti collars.  Gentle Leaders are preferred.
• Cleaning supplies-Clorox and paper towels are always needed at the shelter!
• Treats-we love to reward our doggies but we want to be sure they are receiving nutritional treats.  A bag of Chef Michael's dog food seems to be a shelter favorite.   
• Food-We use specific dry food but we accept any canned food, although we prefer Pedigree.  Canned chicken is given to dogs who first arrive to stimulate their appetites.  These are always accepted and appreciated.  
• Gift cards-We'll take these over gold nuggets!  We do most of our shopping at Pet Smart and Acworth Feed Store.
•  Food or water bowls-stainless steel bowls preferred....always nice to have extras on hand.  
• Plastic doghouses-Clean and in good condition.  We do not accept wooden dog houses.  
• Landscape Materials- Any rock, tile or wood chips you need to dispose of?  CALL US FIRST!! 
• Doggie items for our silent auction-Mostly Mutts is always looking for high quality dog items for our big fundraisers...even non dog items can sell in silent auctions.  
• Medicated shampoos or quality flea control- please contact us for specific name brands we desire.

If you want to know more about what we will accept or where you can drop it off, please send us an email to MostlyMutts@Comcast.net.

What We CANNOT Use:

• Fencing materials-we finally have all the fencing materials we need for right now. 
• Rawhides, pig’s feet or ears-too smelly and attracts bugs.   
• Toys NOT made specifically for dogs-We only give toys that were designed for dogs; no children's toys....even better if they SQUEAK! 
• Opened dog food in cans OR dry dog food-due to storage concerns, we cannot accept these. 

Please know that any items donated that we cannot use are passed on to other rescues or animal control.  Thanks for your help! We could not do it with you!

Mutterings From the Mutts

Wow, what a week it has been at Mostly Mutts!

First, Melody Victoria was on the news and Mostly Mutts received a nice plug as well.  You can click here to see the latest on her story and where things are with the man who cruelly injured her.

Secondly, we lost one of our sweet babies this week.  Mango, a precious little doggy who was in a wonderful new home, had given birth recently to three puppies, two of which passed away.  Last Saturday Mango slipped a disc in her upper back and was paralyzed in the rear. She went in for emergency surgery on Sunday and had been at the Cobb Surgical Center and Cobb Emergency but was still having problems.  She was in a tremendous amount of pain and had to be put to sleep last night.  We wanted to give her time to recover from her back surgery but she was actually getting worse with the paralysis so she really left us no choice.  Her mommy was with her till the very end and gave her lots of hugs and kisses.  We think we love them when they are alive and with us but we realize just how much we love them when they leave us.  She’ll be well cared for in heaven alongside of the other Mostly Mutts dogs there.

Mostly Mutts has had a lot of medical bills in the last few months;  Mango's surgery alone was $5000.00.   Each day she was in the hospital was a minimum of $300.00.  Along with her orthopedic bills, a Mastiff named Bella had a $1600.00 knee surgery.  Bama’s broken leg cost $3500.00 and after spending on Woodstock’s two surgeries, his leg had to be amputated for $700.00.  We are in desperate need to raise $10,000 and we need your help.  We are asking everyone to give whatever you can to help Mostly Mutts keep giving back to the animals that need us out there fighting for them.  You can give to a specific dog through our Chipin links of our Facebook page  or mail a donation to  2774 North Cobb Parkway, Suite 109 #189, Kennesaw, GA  30152.  We also have a Paypal account you can donate through on our website at Mostly Mutts.

Last but not least, we have two special angels who are new to the shelter who have been badly starved.  They  are playful, beautiful dogs who have enjoyed all the hugs, kisses and attention lavished on them at their stop over at Mostly Mutts.

 Meet Paula Sue and Paul Joseph!  Paula is thought to be about a year and half old and sort type of American Bulldog.  Very loving and enjoys people!  Paul Joseph is roughly four 4 years old, male and is probably some type of Beagle mix.  These little sweet hearts lived in a yard together and were starving.  A kindly neighbor took them in to animal control.  The owner signed them over to animal control and received a citation.  They have certainly been blessed to end up at Mostly Mutts!

Keep your love and support for the mutts coming; it never goes unappreciated!  And anyone is interested in helping to organize a fundraiser, please email us at MostlyMutts@comcast.net.

Update on Melody Victoria

Good news: Melody continues to improve at record speed!  Being out of the vet clinic and with her six new friends at the Mostly Mutt's director's home has allowed her to be a puppy again.  She enjoys playtime but then loves to get into her bed for a nap.  The burns to her nose, mouth, top of the head and back have almost completely healed.  She may always have scars but the hair is starting to cover those areas.  Her belly wounds are improving daily but are still rather red.  The pads on her front feet have grown back but she wears booties because the pads are thin and sensitive to most surfaces.  Her rear legs suffered the worst burns but miraculously, they too, are healing.  She still returns to Cobb Emergency every third day for bandage changes for the left rear leg.  Her feet will have permanent damage and two of her toes have fused together but she’ll be fine in the long run. 

Melody loves other dogs and enjoys companionship.  She is very loyal to those she loves and a little fearful of strangers.  Saturday, she spent the day at Petsmart adoptions and she met many people.  She did well and found a new foster home who will get her to her spay appointment on Monday and her bandage change appointments during the week.  Once she is spayed, Mostly Mutts will be accepting adoption applications for her. 

A heartfelt thanks to all of those who have asked about her and who care about her.  Her previous owner is still in jail and you will see Melody on the news again when he goes for his hearing.

Donations can be made to Cobb Emergency stray fund (they have not charged Mostly Mutts a penny).  

Melody Victoria-What a Fighter!!

Most local Cobb county residents have by now heard the horrible story of animal abuse that recently occurred in May involving a beautiful pit bull mix puppy.  Good news and better news?  She is now with Mostly Mutts and is receiving lots of love and support!

Melody while at the vet 

Melody the day she arrived at Mostly Mutts!

Melody was the victim of one of the worst cases of animal abuse.   She was placed in an oven where she suffered second degree burns to all four paws.  She has multiple burns to her head, tail, tummy, legs and nose.  Not only did she suffer physically and psychologically but she did not receive medical treatment for four days after her injuries occurred.  The doctors and techs at Cobb Emergency saved her life and even though she is not housed there any more, they see her every day for bandage changes.  They also picked up the tab from their stray fund.  (Donations can be made to Cobb Emergency Vet Clinic)
Melody is now with the director of Mostly Mutts and lives in her home along with six other dogs.  She is recovering very well and has started to play.  Even though she is out of immediate danger, she has a long recovery period ahead of her.  Once her wounds have healed, Mostly Mutts will start taking applications to find her a GREAT home.  She has some trust issues that will have to be worked with, and some puppy behaviors that will require training, but she is loving and will be your best friend.   She came to us named Melody but we've added Victoria because she was so “victorious” in overcoming her abusive owner.  He is now in jail on two felony charges…one for causing her injuries and one for not seeking medical attention.
Cases like this can be used for education purposes and maybe Melody Victoria can be the perfect teacher!