Success Stories

Blake, February, 2000

Blake was brought to the attention of a Southern California Labrador Retriever Rescue volunteer after a person with Doberman Rescue spotted him in the Baldwin Park Animal Shelter. This big black boy had been brought to the shelter with injuries more than likely due to being hit by a car. The shelter took him to a vet clinic for emergency care where he was provided with a temporary splint and returned to the shelter. This poor boy was in considerable pain.

SCLRR took Blake under their it's wing and had him examined by a vet immediately. Blake's injuries included a luxated hock, fractures to two bones and extensive damage to the ligaments and tendons in the right rear leg. A blood test revealed that Blake also had hypothyroidism (low thyroid levels) which explains his weight: though fully grown at approximately 5 years old, Blake was overweight at 100 lbs. It wasn't clear before the surgery if the joint could be repaired; the vet explained that he might have to "freeze" the hock. But Blake was lucky; the damage wasn't too bad and the surgeon was able to reconstruct the hock joint so Blake would be "good as new" with minimal likelihood of developing arthritis due to the injuries. Blake was also put on Synthroid to control the hypothyroidism; he will have to take that medication for the rest of his life.

SCLRR asked LABMED to fund Blake's orthopedic surgery and we were happy to help. He went to a SCLRR foster home to recuperate. Blake was so well behaved at his foster home that his foster dad considered adopting him. But since there are already 3 other rescued Labs in residence and getting a fourth one would mean having to stop taking in foster dogs, it was decided to find a different forever home for Blake.