Residents of Columbia, South Carolina were shocked when they came across a one-year-old pit bull named Roxanne who had a 6-pound chain tied around her neck. The bulky chain made up more than 10 percent of Roxanne’s body weight, and it was so tight that her head swelled up. The poor dog was hours away from death.
The people who found Roxanne rushed her to a local animal shelter, Pawmetto Lifeline. The shelter requested help from another rescue organization, Rescue Dogs Rock NYC. The group quickly brought the poor pit bull to their veterinarian partners in South Carolina. Once Roxanne arrived at the veterinarian’s office, they immediately began doing emergency surgery to save the dog’s life.
The veterinarian put Roxanne under anesthesia to keep her comfortable during the painful surgery. The veterinarians carefully used bolt-cutters to remove the chain. After they removed the chain, they noticed that more than 95 percent of the skin around Roxanne’s neck had been damaged by the chain. They also saw that one of her major arteries was exposed.
“This was one of the worst embedded collar cases we’ve ever seen, and we’ve seen many,” Stacey Silverstein, the co-founder of Rescue Dogs Rock NYC, told InsideEdition.com.
Roxanne had to endure many hours of surgery, but the brave pup pulled through and survived the ordeal. In the days after the surgery, Roxanne began to recover. Her energy levels went up, and her true, upbeat personality started to shine through. The swelling in her head also went down, and it was soon a normal size.
“We were shocked she survived,” Jackie O’Sullivan, co-founder of Rescue Dogs Rock NYC, told InsideEdition.com. “She is recovering now and doing quite well!”
Thankfully, Roxanne’s story has a happy ending. Rescue Dogs Rock NYC announced on their Facebook page that the pup had found a wonderful foster home where she had lots of space to run around.
We’re thrilled that everything is working out so well for Roxanne after everything that she went through. It looks like this brave pup is going to have a wonderful, happy life!
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h/t: Inside Edition, Honest to Paws
