COURTESY POSTING FOR "CHESTER" ~ This is an AMAZINGLY SPECIAL little guy!
He was pulled and is currently in the care of Second Chance Dogs of Ashe
Please contact them about fostering, adopting, sponsoring & DONATING to help care for Chester!
I know there are hundreds of "normal" beagles looking for a home right now, why would anybody consider adopting Chester, our one year old special needs beagle???
I believe Chester can bring so much joy and happiness to your life and will enrich it.Chester was a stray and was hit by a car and Animal Control picked him up. Then we took him home. The x-rays show two broken spots on his spine and time will tell if his spinal cord injuries are permanent. He has become such a big part of our lives here at our rescue family and we just adore him so much and truly love him.We rescued him about five weeks ago and back then we had no clue of what we need to do to help him.We learned quickly and now it is not really a big deal to care for him.Chester has the sweetest temperament- he is very calm, laid back and is so full of love. He only barks if you confine him into a crate or kennel (he hates that), and he will go nuts and gets very anxious. So, we don't do that and he never ever barked again or shown any signs of distress. He earns his keep around here by caring for the smaller pups we rescue. They just absolutely adore him and he plays with them, he cuddles with them and bathes them. It is just the sweetest thing to watch. All the pups are so drawn to him.
Chester gets around pretty good- we purchased two different splints from Orthovet for him to help the healing process and prevent his feet from knuckling. We are not looking into purchasing a wheelchair because he doesn't need one. Maybe if he gets older or if somebody is very active and would like to take him for long walks or hikes or runs, he would need one. He runs and plays just like any other pup- just a little awkward in his movements, but it works for him.
We are still in the period of waiting to see if his spinal cord injuries are permanent or if he will regain control of his bladder and legs. We believe we have seen slight improvements in his ability to use his legs, but it takes a long time for these nerves to regenerate themselves. So, we don't know if he will ever get better or will stay the way he is. For us, we truly hope he will regain his funtions, but if not, he can live a very happy and fullfilling life the way he is right now. He is in no pain and he has brought so much joy to our lives:) A few days ago, I took Chester to my school. I am an Assistant Principal for a school for children with special needs. I thought my kids in wheelchairs and on crutches would enjoy meeting him, and what a super experience it was. The kids were blown away that a dog would need to wear diapers like them and has braces to walk. After this experience I believe that Chester would make an awesome therapy dog. He did so well, was very calm and sweet and loved the kids.
Taking care of him requires more time than if you a adopt a normal dog of course, but we have established a good routine and it works great. During the day he wears his splints and we purchased some male wraps and some panty liners and have to change him approx. 3-4 times a day. It just takes a minute to do that. During the night he wears a child's size diaper that we have to cut a hole in for his tail and he also weras some booties . That way he can sleep with us in his doggie bed next to our bed. That is where all the dogs sleep during the night and he wants to be around us. The good thing we have noticed during the past weeks is that he goes outside with the pups all the time and he squats down to pee just like them. That tells us he has sensations down there and that gives us lots of hope. But he tinkles little drops of pee here and there and the male wrap just catches that and keeps our house clean . He sometimes poopes outside and sometimes we find his turts in the house. (Mainly while he is sleeping)We lovingly call them chester nuts- they are hard and easy to clean up.
Chester is not neutered yet. We are waiting for his recovery- and if he doesn't get any better, our vet suggested to dock his tail to make it easier for us to care for him and easier on him too. We thought we would wait for his neuter surgery until we know if we want to dock his tail- and do it together.
I will attach a picture of him in his male wrap and splints. We truly hope that one day we will find a loving person, couple or family who can see beyond his disability- and can truly enjoy what Chester is good at- and he is good at so many things. He has taught us so much and when he looks at you with those beagle eyes and floppy ears, you just can't help it to just love him the way he is.
