Duke's Story:

Abandoned and hurt, Duke gave his trust to RCHS volunteers

A local realtor was troubled by the sight of a dog and cat who were always together near an empty house for sale. She had a feeling the two had been left behind to fend for themselves, and upon closer look, noticed the dog had a terrible wound that left him limping. She called the Rutherford County Humane Society, who immediately dispatched volunteers to the house.

At first the dog and cat were too distrustful to let our volunteers get very close, so for several days we made sure they had plenty of food and water while we tracked down the house's owners. These efforts led to the brother of the homeowner coming to get the cat, but no one wanted the dog. We also learned from the homeowner's brother that someone had once shot the dog with an arrow. The homeowner had pulled out the arrow, but never took the dog to the vet for follow up.

Our volunteers were eventually able to coax the dog to get into a car, after which he was taken to the vet. In addition to his untreated wound, "Duke," as we called him, had a terrible case of heartworms.

After an extended medical treatment regimen at the Rutherford Veterinary Hospital, Duke went home to livein a secure and comfortable environment with new guardians. There he was able to become strong enough to endure extensive surgery to remove the metal spring from the arrow that had caused his wound to fester for over a year.

Today, Duke is living a satisfying life with two other dogs and people who love him and give him the tender care he requires – thanks to the realtor who refused to ignore Duke's plight, RCHS, the kind people at Rutherford Veterinary Hospital, and a foster couple willing to take a chance on a seemingly hopeless dog.