We have a female GSD puppy that needs more help than we can give her. Blue Girl (that was the color of her collar when she was born) was born on October 18, 2021 along with four siblings. She is the only girl and is so sweet while being feisty with her bigger brothers. Unfortunately, she has an abnormality in her right leg/forepaw. The leg is approximately 1 inch longer than the left and her middle toes are fused together as well as a couple of her wrist bones. The picture of her on the coffee table shows the issue in her right foreleg. If you look closely you can see the two middle claws fused together.
Our vet consulted with an orthopedic vet as she had never seen anything like this before. It turns out the orthopedic vet has never seen this either. Bottom line was either amputate the limb or “humanely euthanize” her. The ortho vet said the problem will get worse as she grows and gets heavier and is currently walking/running on her wrist which will cause other issues as she grows. We already have three other dogs and cannot keep her nor can we afford the surgery that will be required. Neither my wife or I want the other option for her.
We don’t know what to do or where to turn.
Hey there, thanks for sharing her story here. You’ve come to the right place. Do tell more about her! Like what part of the country she is in, and photos would be awesome too!
She is located in Prattville, Alabama. Prattville is in the center of the state, near Montgomery. I’m trying to figure out how to add a picture of her as I am unskilled in blogging. I will get it though.
Oh my DOG! What a sweetie. So glad you figured this out.
We sent you an email last night, please check your spam folder and get back to us as soon as you can.
Oh my! Blue Girl is adorable!! If I didn’t live in California I’d be over in a heartbeat! I have a couple of ideas:
1. Our sister organization, The Tripawds Foundation, has a couple of programs that could be of help. First is the ASAP Fund (https://tripawds.org/2016/12/tripawds-asap/) that will pay $500 towards an amputation to qualified applicants. Granted that would not cover the whole cost but its a step in the right direction.
2. Have you looked into GSD rescues yet? I did a quick search and there is one in Montgomery that looks well established. I used to volunteer for a GSD rescue and puppies are like gold for them because everyone wants one. I also see they currently have a tripawd up for adoption so they are not afraid to take on special needs pups. Here is their website (https://www.helpingshepherdsofeverycolor.com/) and their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/HelpingShepherdOfEveryColorRescue/). The Tripawds Foundation has another program called the Tripawds Rescue Fund (https://tripawds.org/rescue/) that will match up to $500 for a qualified rescue that has a dog in need of amputation.
I agree with you and your wife, Blue Girl deserves a chance at an awesome life. Until recently I had three tripawd GSDs and they all had awesome lives on three legs. Travis just turned 13 and has been on three since he was 10 months old. Please let me know if you have any questions or if there is anything else I can do to help and please keep us posted!
Martha, Travis Ray, and the Oaktown Pack