The 6-year-old Daisy arrived at the Bay County Animal Control shelter on Tuesday, March 19, weighing 74 pounds, more than double the healthy weight she should be at of about 30 pounds. On Friday, March 22, a representative from the Detroit branch of the National Brittany Rescue and Adoption Network came to Bay County to pick up the lovable, yet tubby, dog.
A citizen on Sunday, March 17, was driving down Lafayette Avenue in Bay City when she noticed a skinny male Brittany spaniel walking down the road.
“She thought it was hit by a car because it wasn’t walking very well and then she saw it was foaming at the mouth, so she followed the dog home and found the owner,” said Animal Control Officer Brittany Barbeau.
The citizen convinced the dog’s owner to sign ownership of the animal over to her so she could take it to a veterinarian. “The dog was deplorable, conditions were terrible,” Barbeau said. “It had sores in its mouth, its nails were about three inches long.”
Ultimately, the dog had to be euthanized, but a better fate was in store for Daisy.
While the woman was at the owner’s house, she noticed Daisy. “She said the dog was so fat it couldn’t even get up,” Barbeau said. “It was just barking, lying on its side.”
On Monday, the woman contacted Animal Control, which visited Daisy’s house. Her owner relinquished the dog and officers immediately took her to Bay Valley Animal Hospital, 6015 Westside Saginaw Road in Frankenlust Township.
“They groomed her, they gave her the works, blood tests and everything,” Barbeau said, adding officers picked up Daisy from the veterinarian’s office the next day. “It was a completely different dog, besides the weight.”
Daisy had three infections that had been untreated, but the veterinarian informed Animal Control of the proper medications she needed, said Animal Control Director Mike Halstead. Staff such as Barbeau and fellow officer Olivia Shields have also been taking Daisy on frequent, brief walks and limiting her food consumption to a half-cup of food in the morning and a half-cup in the evening.
Despite her condition, Daisy has been quite the personable and affectionate canine, Animal Control staff said.
“She’s a wonderful dog,” Halstead said. “She has captured the hearts of everybody here. She really, truly has. While we’re sorry to see her go, she’s going to a place that affords more than what we’re able to offer here. ”
Bill Canney, of the National Brittany Rescue and Adoption Network, took Daisy with him on Friday.
“We’ll get her to a vet, get her evaluated and she’ll be with a foster home until we get her healthy, then we’ll be able to provide her with a permanent home,” Canney said.
Barbeau in particular said she would miss Daisy and her sweet disposition.
“You could bring her up front and she’d sit with you all day,” Barbeau said.
“At one time, we considered leaving her in the lobby on a blanket,” Halstead added. “Her comfort zone seems to be being around people. She’s a great dog.”
Halstead said no charges have been issued against Daisy’s former owner, who was allowed to keep a black and white spaniel-collie-Labrador retriever mix. Animal Control officers will be randomly checking on the dog to ensure his living conditions are up to snuff.
Barbeau said she spoke with Daisy’s ex-owner about her health.
“I asked him, didn’t it concern him that the dog could barely move,” she said. “He just said, ‘Well, yeah, but no.’ He said it was concerning but he didn’t really see it as a big issue.”
Having an obese animal is just as bad as an emaciated one, Barbeau said. The trick to keeping a pet at a healthy weight is to feed it responsibly, she added.
“Some dogs, if you leave the food out, they’ll just continue to eat it until it’s gone, then they’ll go looking for more,” Halstead said.
“A responsible owner has to regiment (food),” Barbeau added.
(MLive - March 22, 2013)
