About an hour’s drive outside of the Houston limits in Cleveland, Good Samaritans discovered Jake at a deserted, broken down structure. He was lying there motionless. At first it was thought the four-year-old shepherd had already died, but he moved and his eyes opened; when the heartbreaking photos of Jake quickly picked up steam on social media early Tuesday, ThisIsHouston stepped forward and rushed over to help.
Rescuers rushed to Jake’s side.
“He’s on the way to Vergi 24/7 now. Should be there soon! This guy is in really bad shape and needs our help!
You can watch a video here of how we found Jake.
Although Jake did code twice, veterinarians were able to revive him, and he did make it through the night. Based on the first view of x-rays, Jake has gastric bloat, but because his grave condition, surgery was not possible.
“We decided to keep him stabilized overnight and assess this morning. We received no bad news calls overnight the vet on shift now has said he’s got gastric bloat, but his intestines aren’t twisted, they’re distended. He feels Jake’s biggest concern at this point is an l4 and l5 compression fracture. He will need an MRI and a consult with a neurologist when he’s stabilized.”
Fortunately Jake’s bloodwork is within normal range although he is anemic and remains in critical condition. Once his intestines normalize and his sodium count decreases, his prognosis will look better.
“We’d like to remind people that it’s okay to have your opinion on Jake’s care. We primarily focus on dogs like Jake because we are blessed to have the resources to fight for them. Most groups would have euthanized him, but we fight at TIH. If he’s meant to be an angel, he will be one. If he’s meant to be a miracle, he will be one. And we have seen a lot of miracles.”
We must stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. How could people leave him like this? We just don’t get it. Pray for Jake and please share!,” the group posted on Facebook.
Latest video for Jake’s improvement
Jake decided, after being syringe fed, that food is too good to pass up, and woke up to eat on his own – good signs he has the will to fight. He has lifted his head for brief periods and is able to move his feet and toes when stimulated. Both his blood pressure and blood sugars are improving, and the veterinarians attending to him are slowly weaning him off of intravenous fluids.
At this time he is also being treated for sarcopic mange and eye infections resulting from entropion.
“There is no evidence of bloat on repeat x-rays, which is great to hear! Thankfully we didn’t proceed with surgery as the first vet said. His sodium levels are still high, likely from dehydration. They’ve added IV fluid D5W which is formulated differently so that may help lower his sodium levels. They are ‘guardedly hopeful.’ He’s still not out of woods, and although we were planning to transport him to A&M today, we’ve decided to wait until he’s more stable and he‘s off IV.”
ThisIsHouston also reports the person who owns the property where Jake was found, as well as with the help of surveillance cameras, showed the dog showing up in the early hours of Tuesday morning with a pack of dogs, but Jake had been too weak to keep up with them and likely chose that particular area to die.
Jake is surely one of the lucky ones! Many thanks to the angels who rescue these innocent victims of cruelty and neglect.
