Chance is a 4-year-old male who may be a Golden Retriever that was left in an abandoned home in Globe, Arizona.

He was starving to death and has some major medical problems. This case is not just about the will to live but also humans intervening and making a difference in God-awful cases.

A neighbor saw Chance and called animal control in Globe. A rescue with a veterinarian treated him with Bravecto for his suspected mange and vaccinated him, as Distemper was going around in Globe. He came to us the next day through Northern Arizona Animal Search and Rescue , and I was horrified at his appearance.

He had very little fur and was covered in thick yellow crusty scabs from the mange and pus in both eyes.  I scraped some of the crust, put it under the microscope, and noted that he had Sarcoptic mange, which is contagious to humans. The mites were already dead or dying from the Bravecto treatment, so I gave him a warm medicated bath to gently soak off the crust and flush out his eyes. He has beautiful brown eyes under all the mess. I put antibiotic eye ointment in both his eyes and towel dried him. He seemed much happier, and he was hungry.

We got him a case of Proplan EN canned food to go home, which will be easy to digest. The next mange treatment is not due for 12 weeks , but thankfully the first dose took care of most of it.  I also ran blood work, which showed he was anemic and he had Tic Fever (Ehrlichia). His white blood cells and platelets were low, most likely from chronic illness and the Tic Fever. I started him on Doxycycline for the Tic Fever and will need to monitor him closely, as he could develop immune-mediated disease and destroy his platelets and red blood cells from the Tic fever infection.

I also got him some pain medication, as his feet were swollen and red. The foster that brought him did not flinch about all his problems and was committed to giving him a loving place to recover. I was impressed. I have seen animals given up for much less. It took all of us to work together to save Chance.

This is after just under a week of care and his hair is already starting to grow back and he’s putting some weight on

He is doing very well so far, and I can’t wait to see his progress. He won’t be recognizable when his hair grows back and he puts some weight on. No one will believe it is the same dog. It takes love, commitment , and teamwork to pull off a case like this. Thank you to everyone who helped save Chance!