Franzisca Vet Clinic - Help us Help Them

Reporting Period: 01.01.2024 – 29.02.2024

In 2024 we continued our work with stray dogs and cats in Bulgaria, striving to help and find good homes for as many of them as possible. With the support ofthe donors of Animal Rescue Sofia, in the first two months of the year, Franzisca Veterinary Clinic admitted for treatment 46 dogs and cats, while the vets also took care of the animals placed in “The Farm” shelter. A total of 780manipulations, treatments and surgeries were performed in January and February of 2024 and 19 dogs found their forever homes.

Here are just some of the stories of the dogs and cats that we helped during the reporting period:

Tobby and Smallina

Tobby is a very young dog, just around a year old. He is probably the son or brother of Smallina. We found them together, living in a large pack of big-sized dogs amidst a deserted field. As both of them were tiny dogs, not more than 4 kilos each, it was not easy for any of them to get enough food in the competition of the other big dogs in the group.  The person who was feeding them in the field, brought them to our shelter in an attempt to rescue them.

From the very beginning, it became clear that Tobby and Smallina did nt have much trust in people. hey both needed time to become confident in their new surroundings. After their arrival, they were both tested for infectious and vector-borne diseases, also vaccinated, dewormed and deflead. The behaviorist at the shelter had to work with them on a daily basis, so that they could learn not only how to trust people, but also how to be pets.

Smallina found a new home very quickly. Tobby is still in the shelter, waiting to meet adopters. He is very cuddly and enjoys human company more and more. 

 Bear

Bear’s story is one of those stories that are difficult to tell. She is a sweet and kind giant girl. She is also a young dog, around 3 years old. She was found in a town in southern Bulgaria, lying on the ground, not willing to stand up. People in the area told that she had recently had puppies that were all run over by passing cars. When she came to us, Bear wore an enormous tumor under her belly. The tumor had huge ulcers from being dragged on the ground and was obviously causing the animal a lot of pain and discomfort. Bear was also suffering from severe parasite infestation. Despite her condition, she was a kind and cuddly dog when we first saw her and it was not long before every staff member in the shelter adored her.

At admission, Bear’s vector-borne tests came back positive for anaplasmosisand her bloodwork showed that she was also having an additional infection. We started the anaplasma treatment and also referred her for X-rays. It became clear that she had very recently suffered from bronchitis, but also that the tumor was operable and had no metastasis in other body organs.

As soon as her blood results were stable, the vets at the shelter performed a mastectomy and the tumor was removed. There were no complications in the post-operative period and Bear recovered well from the surgery. Afterwards there was also a persistent ear infection that we needed to take care of.

Now Bear is fully recovered from the mastectomy and she enjoys the care and attention that she gets in the shelter. What has changed is that she also added gratitude and love to the kindness that she was giving to everybody.  Not many adopters in Bulgaria are willing to look after big-sized dogs, but we are all patient and hopeful that somebody will see what a special girl she is.

 Odin

Odin was found shivering and unable to move in the last freezing days of this winter in Bulgaria. He looked absolutely shattered and confused. His old body utterly incapable of dealing with the cold. We had no doubts that we had to find place for him in the shelter, as the chances for survival of elderly dogs in such freezing weather conditions are very slim.

When Odin came to us, one of his eyes stuck out of its socket very badly, as if it had been long injured. During the initial examination, the vets were worried that Odin’s eye condition eye was not the result of a trauma or infection, but of something much worse.

He was referred for a CT scan which confirmed the vet’s suspicion. It revealed that Odin had multiple malignant tumors – on both of his jaws, of the liver, also in the brain right behind the eye, as well as on the skin.  

We were devastated to find out that there was nothing we could do to cure Odin. We will only give him love and care for the time he has left, until it is time for him to go.

 Lenny

Lenny is a very young female dog. She was adopted as a puppy from a municipal shelter in Sofia. A year later Lenny was found, roaming alone in one of the city parks. As she was visibly an owned dog, people brought her to our shelter, hoping that by tracing her microchip, we will be able to find her owner. Indeed we managed to contact Lenny’s owner and she promised that she will come to take her dog the following day. Unfortunately, the owner never came looking for Lenny, so she had to wait in our shelter until the legal period for re-claims was over, and we could officially take ownership over her. We did not lose time sending her for an orthopedic examination, as Lenny was walking awkwardly and it was clear that she needed one.

The orthopedic examination revealed that she had two hereditary diseases – elbow dysplasia of the front legs and patellar luxation of the two hind legs. She went through two corrective orthopedic surgeries. Since both conditions were in their initial stages and also because Lenny was a young dog, she recovered very well from the operations. She is already meeting potential adopters at the shelter and we hope she will soon join her new family.

Links:

• Animal Rescue Sofia Website
• Animal Rescue Sofia Facebook
• Animal Rescue Sofia Instagram