“I can’t find her vein.” The doctor glances at the wall-clock. “The anaesthesia is wearing off. Let’s stitch her leg up.”
My eyes are transfixed on pitch-black blotchy skin of the 30-pound dog on the operation table. The tag around her collar reads ‘Rielley’. Her leg is swollen up to three times its size.
The doctor complains, “There’s no skin to suture the wound. I don’t see how this dog is alive.”
“Inner strength, doctor,” I think to myself.
The vet peels off his gloves: “I think we should have put her to sleep. Those wounds are too big. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
He tears off his face-mask. “Somebody picks up a homeless dog with mange and puts her in a vat of motor oil...”
“Motor oil? Why?” I whimper.
“It’s an old wives’ tale. Motor oil doesn’t cure mange. It burnt this dog, seeping through her body. Her stomach, face and legs are 90 per cent burnt.”
“But she has spirit,” I say as I run my hand over her soft, bald head.
“Absolutely. She has more pain-tolerance than any dog.”
“Doctor, she greets each and every one of us with her tail wagging in glee. So happy to be alive.”
“Amazing.” He runs his finger on the bandaged legs. “We’ll be using an old method of treatment called wet-dry compress for these wounds.”
“So the person who poured motor oil on her caused her the most harm. An old wives’ tale almost killed her and an old method of treatment will save her,” I say.
Today, after six weeks, I take off Rielley’s collar. She lifts her paw and shakes my hand. We beam over the first patch of fur she has on her almost healed body. Today our help has paid off. This has been the roadmap of her journey. The roadmap of my own journey has been shown to me by an abandoned dog. Rielley — thank you your gift of inner strength. A nine-year-old mutt abandoned in the dark and dingy underbelly of Houston gave me courage that beats any story, any parent or any preacher’s help.
One day someone will give you a home, Rielley — and you will help them in ways they don’t even know yet.
( The author is a volunteer who helps rescue dogs like Rielley and find them adoptive homes in Houston, Texas. Rielley, pictured here, has made a full recovery)
