# Mona



## ChickenKitten (Sep 19, 2009)

<span style='font-family: Comic Sans MS'> Unlike others who have had there dogs for nearly their entire lives, I have only known Mona for six weeks, and have owned her for half that. In this incredibly short amount of time, she has captured the hearts of everyone who has had the pleasure of meeting her. I was just the lucky one who got to take her home. She has such a sad story, yet her attitude about life does not reflect this. Most of the time she is a bouncy, happy dog. 

When I first laid eyes on her it was Augest 3rd. I had just taken one of the adoption dogs out for at the beach to give her an afternoon of fun. My Dad was driving me back to home. It was a road that we have taken nearly everyday for years. It is not an area that has a lot of houses, only a long closed ski hill and occasional wedding hall. Meeting anything other than another car along this stretch of road is nearly unheard of. Yet there she was. Limping along the side of the road. I didn’t even recognize her as a dog at first, she looked almost reptilian. Despite her long coat, her bones poked through. Her one back leg was hanging as she limped along. As we approached her, she stopped and stared. Although we whizzed by her at 80 km/hr I could get a good look at her and it was her eyes that caught my attention. They were so sad, but so hopeful. My Dad continued driving. 

“Oh Dad! We have to go back!” I begged. My Dad just responded by sighing and turning the car around. He has learned that he isn’t going to win a situation by arguing. He pulled over about 15 ft from the dog.

He warned me to be careful when I got out of the car. I just nodded. She walked around the car and stopped in her tracks when she saw me. She quickly ran back around the car and started running in the same direction she was going. I followed. I could see that she wasn’t putting any weight on her one hind leg. She got really nervous and tried to go faster. Her bad back leg caught on weeds and she saumer salted twice before resting by sitting on the spot right above her tail. I was able to approach, but when I was only a few feet from her, she growled. I wanted to save this dog, but I didn’t want to risk any fingers. Still, being this close I could see that she was wearing a choke collar, so she was somebody’s dog. I retreated back to my car with a new plan. 

I went home and called my boss who told me that if I caught the dog I could take it to the clinic. She told me to get dog food, a slip lead, and a blanket. Patiance is key. My last dog died 3 years before, so the only dog-related food that we had was an old box of dog treats. I grabbed those, a can of tuna (I figured dogs like smelly food), cat food, and some leftover chicken from the night before. With the food, blanket and slip lead, we were back on our way. 

The sun had set and it was getting dark. I’m not sure if I would have even saw her if it wasn’t for a couple who had stopped their car. They had seen my Dad and I leave earlier and had stopped to check up on the dog. With food in hand it was a slow but simple task to catch her. She had such inner conflict. All of her senses were telling her to run away, but she was so hungry. It took nearly every piece of food I had, but I had looped the lead around her neck. I stood up and walked away. She just followed. There was no hesitation from her. She knew she was safe.

She weighed in at a mere 34 lbs. She looked like death. Yet she was as sweet as could be. The next few days she licked everyone who did anything with her. Even when stretching her legs for xrays to examine her bad leg. After pulling and prodding, it was discovered that she had broke her pelvis in two places, likely from being hit by a car. She unfortunately has nerve damage from it. She cannot feel her toes. She still may have to have a leg amputation, but right now the limb is getting stronger and she is now able to support her weight on it. My vet saw it today when I had brought her to work for a bath and has said that the difference in her leg is remarkable, so lets keep our fingers crossed that it will continue to heal.

She does have an ear tattoo, which traced back to someone 2 hours away. Over a week after we first contacted the number we heard back. She was owned by some elderly lady who had a stroke and was put in a assisted living centre. She had given the dog to someone local. 

And here is where it gets weird. We called the next owners repeatedly. Another week and a half later, we got a response. At first they admitted that the dog had run away over two months before. When informed of her broken pelvis, they changed their story. Apparently she kept running away, so they gave her away to a random man outside the local corner/beer store. They had no clue who the person was or whether he was local. Although I cant say whether I believe this story or not, either way, they abandoned her. There is an old adage that you can tell the worth of a person by how they treat those that are lesser than them. Their actions speaks volumes to their worth.

About a week after that, my bosses emailed me. I had been given the go ahead. She was mine. Within a very short amount of time we were attached at the hip. She would respond to only my whistle and would only listen to me. We are working with trying to respond to the rest of my family and to socialize her with other people, but we are just taking it one step at a time for now. She is a very nervous dog and takes even the slightest of reprimands very personally. The first time I asked her to sit, she peed herself, same goes the first time I asked her to lie down. Yet she is as sweet as can be with me. She always has to come up and bump my hand with her nose, just to make sure I’m still there. 

There are a few photos of her below. In case you are wondering why her eyes look kinda cloudy, she has pannus. She is on meds so hopefully they will clear up soon.

Like I said, I have only known her for 6 weeks, yet everyday she gives me hope that even those who are the most broken are just shining stars that need to be polished. 

First Picture of her. This was the day after she had come to the clinic. </span>










Here is a photo of her side. Her bad leg is towards the camera. She had absolutely no muscle mass.










And here is a photo from behind. I was standing on a stool. Again, you can see the unevenness of her hip. 










Here is a side picture of her about a month after the first. She is filling out, but still has so much further to go. She was only about 50 lbs in that photo. 










Her leg doesn’t slow her down at all. She love running for sticks and balls. 










And a cute one of her










Sorry this is so long and I hope at least one person got through it!


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

What a beautiful girl, so glad you found her! BTW, with longer posts it's really helpful to leave a blank line between paragraphs. Those of us with "older" eyes sometimes have a hard time keeping our place in a long post, even if we enlarge the font.


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## Sigurd's Mom (May 12, 2009)

Wow, what an amazing person you are, she is so gorgeous and is so very lucky to have you in her life. She looks so happy in her latest pictures, her eyes look so sweet.







Thank you for caring for this wonderful girl.

Where in Ontario do you live?


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## ChickenKitten (Sep 19, 2009)

Oops! Sorry Cassidy's Mom! Is there a way I can edit the post to make it easier? This forum is so foreign to me! 

Sigurd's Mom -I live in a small town about half an hour west of Peterborough. I am about an hour and a half east of Toronto.


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## SunCzarina (Nov 24, 2000)

She's lovely. Poor girl, she's been through some terrible times. I used to do foster care before my children were born. The last of my rescues is now 8. It'll take some time for her to trust but under your care, she'll blossom into a wonderful dog.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

> Originally Posted By: ChickenKittenOops! Sorry Cassidy's Mom! Is there a way I can edit the post to make it easier? This forum is so foreign to me!


Actually no, you only have about 15 minutes to edit a post and that's it. Since this is my forum I could do that for you if you want, just let me know.


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## Karin (Jan 4, 2008)

What a pretty girl, and such a nice story. Thank you so much for saving this sweet girl. Mona is so lucky that you happened upon her.


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## Sigurd's Mom (May 12, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: ChickenKittenOops! Sorry Cassidy's Mom! Is there a way I can edit the post to make it easier? This forum is so foreign to me!
> 
> Sigurd's Mom -I live in a small town about half an hour west of Peterborough. I am about an hour and a half east of Toronto.



Before I moved to the USA, I lived in a small town about an hour and half north of Peterborough.







My parents still live there, the area is so gorgeous!


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## AngelJ (Aug 24, 2009)

What a lucky girl that you found her. She's beautiful. I wish her a full recovery. I'm sure she will have a good chance for that with a special person taking care of her. She is looking better already!


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

ChickenKitten~Mona's mom, thank you for taking a chance on her. She will repay you many times over, I'm sure.
She found her angel on earth, a very lucky dog!
I hope the rest of her time here will be peaceful and full of the love she deserves!
Welcome to this great site, BTW!


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## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

Thanks so much for saving this dog! She sounds wonderful and so do you. I wish you a wonderful and long life together.


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## katieliz (Mar 29, 2007)

she looks WONDERFUL in the "after" pictures. the "before" pictures are heartbreaking. looks like she's a german lines girl. thank you for helping her and for telling her story here. and welcome to the board!

many blessings to you and mona!!!


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## Myamom (Oct 10, 2005)

I read every word...and am sitting here in tears...but tears of joy...what a beautiful story. 
Thank you for saving her...and loving her......I wish you both many, many years of happiness together!


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## Qyn (Jan 28, 2005)

Thank you and your Dad (plus the people who also stopped) for helping her. She is lovely and has a beautiful coat - despite her condition - and I am sure her issues will resolve when she feels totally safe and with your good care.

All the best and thank you for sharing Mona's story.


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## Trina (Sep 11, 2009)

I cannot begin to imagine what kind of life Mona had before you, and how scared and in pain she must have been these last couple of months.

Thank goodness you found her and were able to help her. 

What an amazing story. You and Mona both sound like incredible beings!


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## FredD (Jul 5, 2009)

Beautiful story, beautiful outcome! May you both enjoy happiness together...


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## Metalsmith (Mar 25, 2009)

Bless you for saving this lovely girl! How lucky for you both to have found each other. It's such a great story too. I hope miss Mona recovers quickly from her injuries.

She is just a beautiful girl.


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## ChickenKitten (Sep 19, 2009)

Thank you everyone for your kind words and warm welcoming. She really is such a special girl. I'm looking forward to having her in life and continuing her story. Hopefully it will be much less dramatic from now on!

Cassidy's Mom- If you have a moment it would be wonderful if you can make spaces between the paragraphs.


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## elisabeth_00117 (May 17, 2009)

What a heart warming story... it is great to hear the 'after' stories.. 

I am so happy you two found eachother.. 

She is beautiful!


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## Sammy J. (Sep 7, 2009)

God Bless you for going back, and now you have a friend for life!

She is so beautiful and I am so happy for both of you!


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## Anja1Blue (Feb 27, 2008)

A wonderful story with a very happy ending - the beauty of dogs is that they live in the moment, so whatever went before is something they don't dwell on: if she is happy and loved now, that is all that matters. You are a caring and compassionate person who has saved a life - thank you from me and my pack, (1) is a Rescue.
Mona is a gorgeous girl - have a happy life together!

_____________________________________________
Susan

Anja GSD
Conor GSD - adopted from this Board
Blue GSD - waiting at the Bridge


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## Bridget (Apr 5, 2004)

She is beautiful. Bless you for being her guardian angel.


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