A dog who was so weak from being starved she couldn’t stand for longer than half a minute without falling over has made a heartwarming recovery.
Nala, an 11-month-old American Bulldog was found emaciated in a filthy cage at a property in Gateshead by police last August. She was given a body condition score of just one out of nine and had, according to the vet who examined her, been suffering from hunger for ‘weeks to months’.
“Her legs and back end were stained yellow with a strong smell of urine and she was unable to stand for longer than around 30 seconds or so without falling to the ground. I could see pressure sores on the pads of her feet and on her elbows. She was friendly despite being visibly very weak.”
“It is likely she had to lie in her own faeces and urine for a prolonged time. This would have caused physical discomfort and mental distress. Her body condition would lead me to think she hadn’t been fed appropriately and suffered from hunger for weeks to months.”
On 29 August Inspector Keogh-Laws visited Leeming Gardens to speak to Rowland about what had happened to her dog. The garden was overgrown, the blinds were closed and there were rubbish bags piled up to the side of the property. A card was left urging her to get in touch. Two further visits were made before Rowland responded. She confirmed she was Nala’s owner and that she wasn’t currently living at the property.
Luka Atkinson from Felledge Animal Centre, said when she first arrived Nala would urinate on the floor when they called her name, so they stopped using it. “Despite what she’d been through, she was so lovely with everyone she met and such a good role model for the other dogs at the centre.