While heading home in a taxi late Friday night, we just happened to glance out the window as we sped past a black dog, lying hunched and looking scared at the edge of the elevated expressway. This is one of the most dangerous places to try and rescue a dog—dangerous for both dog and person—so a rescue in such a situation can only be performed by a professional. Or someone stupid. So I decided to try.
We stopped the taxi as it came down from the expressway and dodged cars to get to the same edge, though a good half a kilometer away from the dog. We then spent about ten minutes slowly walking up along the kerbside, stopping to hug the crash barrier each time cars and trucks got too close. To those speeding past, it must have looked as though we were considering jumping.
No one called the police, however, and we finally made it to within about ten meters of the dog, who was precariously close to the wheels of passing, speeding vehicles.
The danger in this situation is that, while trying to rescue the dog, it's very likely that he or she could get spooked and run into the speeding traffic. There is also a very real danger of either the dog or rescuer being clipped by a passing vehicle.
We put our bags down on the kerb and waited for a break in the traffic to run up the middle lane and around to the other side of the dog—the idea being that, this way, if spooked, he would stick to the edge and, if he could run, he would head towards the closest exit.
We slowly edged towards him, again hugging the barrier, and it soon became apparent that the dog was calm—and badly injured. And also very happy to see us. As we got closer, he dragged himself closer to us and lay his head on my foot.
He had visible injuries to his head and back legs, including a bloody eye. We had to get him to a vet as soon as possible. A leash was put over his head, but, when he tried to stand, he yelped in pain and collapsed again. So we very carefully wrapped the leash around his muzzle to stop him biting and lifted him up to carry him back off the elevated expressway. He was heavy—about 26 kilograms, but thankfully not struggling too much.
But progress was extremely slow and very scary, as we had to try and walk forwards while constantly watching behind us so we could stop and lean against the barrier each time vehicles got too close. It was while turned and looking at the oncoming traffic that we heard a kind voice behind us: "Are you OK? What's happened?" The young driver of a minivan full of his sisters and friends had stopped in our lane just ahead of us, with their hazard lights on, and they were coming to help us. It was an incredibly welcome sight, and I explained what had happened as they guided me into the safety of their van, insisting on changing their plans so they could drive us to the 24-hour emergency vet in Neihu, about 25 minutes away. They were all animal lovers—some with many dogs of their own—and wanted to do whatever was necessary to help this poor black Lab, who they decided to name Lucky.
We finally arrived at the vet, and Lucky was examined immediately, with blood tests and x-rays taken. His injuries are extensive: his face and legs are scarred, he has concussion and air in his chest cavity, a dangerously high liver count . . . and a badly broken pelvis. But he cannot undergo surgery until his liver count is down.
We are hoping to move him to our regular vet, YangMing Vet Hospital in Tienmu, to have the surgery performed once it is safe to do so. We will do all we can to bring Lucky back to health. But his vet bill is already high because of using an emergency vet service, and we desperately need some help to pay for that.
If you would like to support Lucky's recovery, please contact Anri Sung (tagged in this album) to learn how you can go about that. You are also welcome to visit Lucky and pay the vet yourself, though do contact Anri to find out if Lucky has been moved yet if you want to see him. (Update: I've added donation info below.)
Huge thanks to 龍也 and all the pretty ladies in his minivan for being kind enough—and brave enough—to stop and rescue us!
We'll be posting updates about Lucky's progress, so watch this space. You can also join the Taiwan Animal S.O.S. page to learn about other animal rescues. :)
http://www.facebook.com/Ta
Thank you!
Street view of rescue location, thanks to Google Maps:
http://maps.google.com/map
UPDATE 3/JUL/2011: The vets at National say that Lucky's kidneys are OK, but his liver count is still very high, though lower than yesterday. He is no longer vomiting, so they will now try giving him liquid food. Dr Yang at YangMing Vet Hospital will examine Lucky's x-rays tomorrow in preparation for performing the surgery to repair his smashed pelvis.
To donate directly (and only) to Lucky's medical bill (our other expenses are minimal and we fund-raise separately for those):
宋安莉 Anri Sung
paypal: Anri0408@gmail.com
Acct.no: 124-20-046128-9
Bank code: 008 (華南商業銀行 Hua Nan Commercial Bank)
東台北分行 Tung-Taipei Branch
Lucky thanks you!
UPDATE 5/July/2011: Dr. Yang at YangMing Vet Hospital did more x-rays and found that Lucky's spine is broken. It's likely he'll not walk again. But we will keep trying, and we'll get more opinions to see if anything can be done. If not, then Lucky will become a wheelchair dog, that's all.
UPDATE 6/JULY/2011: Lucky has a future—maybe not the future he envisioned, but a future nonetheless. As someone with disabled dogs myself, I can tell you that they accept their new situation and simply get on with enjoying life any way they can.
WE NEED TO RAISE FUNDS TO PAY FOR LUCKY'S SURGERY. Although he will probably not walk again, we decided to fix his pelvis to give him greater comfort and prevent further problems down the line. Our vets did an outstanding job, and the surgery went well. If you would like to contribute, we really need your support, and every little helps—it really does.
We have created a ChipIn account so you can see exactly how much we need and how much we have raised. The total may change from time to time to take into account other expenses or donations received through other channels, but we will always notify of the changes on the ChipIn page, which is right here:
http://luckthelab.chipin.c
Again, every little helps, and we are working hard already to find Lucky a home for life no matter what his physical limitations. He thanks you!
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