Paws and Prayers Rescue Blog

There is no way to tell the story of Russell from beginning to end as a short story. His story is far too long; and far from over. So I will do my best to keep it as short as possible. I'll divide it into chapters so it doesn't have to be read all at once. The 7 chapters of Russell's Story will be posted semi-monthly.

Melanie, victim of BB gun shot wounds

From August of 2011 to September of 2012 our family fostered fifteen dogs for Paws and Prayers. Most of them, ten to be exact, were Beagles or Beagle mixes. Each had its own level of affection that made it easy for us to get attached to them. From the extreme response of jumping in your lap and licking your face, to a simple nudging of your hand for a gentle pat on head, each had their own distinct personality. Each also had challenges that needed to be worked out. These included, but were not limited to: two “diva” Beagles that barked loudly at every dog they saw, a Beagle puppy that only pooped in his cage, a Beagle that had to spend hours a day hiding and retrieving toys all over the house, a German Shepherd mix that needed to sit in your lap every minute, a Redbone Coonhound that was scared of me and most likely had never been in a house, and a small Beagle with a dislocated hip and twelve BB’s from a gun scattered throughout her body (including one in the neck). Each dog was adopted to a loving home.

On Sunday, September 23, 2012, the Paws and Prayers voicemail system received a message from Russell’s owner. Most voicemail messages are sent out to a group e-mail system that transcribes them into print for easy retrieval. Every person in the group can see the transcribed messages. Most never apply to me and I delete them after just a glance. As I was glancing through a transcribed message, I saw Russell and S’s name. I stopped immediately and was shocked to read that Russell was in the care of the Humane Society of Greater Akron. S wanted to know if I could get him out. I called her and found that Russell had been staying with a friend of S’s. That friend, who lived alone, needed to be taken to the hospital and Russell was taken to the Humane Society for care. S wanted me to get involved because the Humane Society needed proof of her ownership of Russell and how she had adopted him. She had never gotten him a license for 2012. S also told me that she had been living with her daughter because of frequent hospital admissions and recovery periods that prevented her from taking care of Russell properly. Her daughter could not have pets at her house. I told S I would help her any way I could.

On Monday morning, September 24th, I called the Humane Society to inquire about Russell. I was put on the phone with a Humane Society Officer who related to me a story I was not prepared to hear. It seems the Humane Society Officer was involved in removing Russell from S’s neighbor’s home because of “deplorable conditions." The neighbor also had two other dogs, two cats, and a bird that also needed to be removed. The Officer stated that there was little chance any of the animals would go back there.

When I told the Officer that I had fostered Russell last year, his first question, much to my dismay, was: “How much did he weigh the last time you saw him?” I told him that Russell weighed about 33lbs, but should have weighed about 25-30lbs The officer told me he weighed about 60lbs now! I could not believe what I heard. They hadn't weighed him yet, but I could hear a woman in the background over the phone telling the officer that she could pick up dogs up to 50lbs and she could not lift Russell. The Officer said that Russell could hardly walk, had trouble breathing, and could barely get up after laying down. I wanted to rush right out there to get him, but I was at work, so I told the Officer I would pick Russell up the next day.

Russell, just over 60lbs, back at Beagle Bob's home

I called S and made arrangements to meet her with Russell on Tuesday at the Banfield Pet Hospital that Paws and Prayers takes their dogs and cats to. I also contacted Jen, the Paws and Prayers Executive Director, and asked her to come with me. I wanted someone to help me get to the bottom of what happened to Russell.

Early in the afternoon of September 25th, I arrived at the Humane Society to pick up Russell. I was both excited to see him and scared of what he might look like. I felt that his weight might have been somewhat exaggerated. It seemed impossible that a dog that small in stature could weigh 60lbs. When they brought Russell out to see me, my jaw dropped. He was huge! As I approached him and called out his name, his tail slowly wagged as he strained to lift his head up to look at me. The face, the ear, and especially the eyes were the same, but the rest was practically unrecognizable. I bent down and let him smell me as I gently stroked his head. He seemed to remember me. Most dogs that I have fostered usually don’t remember me after being adopted, especially if they were only with us a short time. Russell seemed to have at least a little memory of me. The scene must have been somewhat comical as I struggled to lift Russell into the back seat of my truck. He was very heavy and very awkward to lift.

Jen met me at Banfield about 15 minutes before S was set to arrive. She was as shocked as I was to see Russell’s condition. After I struggled to get Russell out of my truck, I started to walk him into the Banfield building. He could only walked about four or five steps and had to stop to catch his breath. He didn’t really walk. It was more of a waddle. The 30ft. walk from my truck to the door of the building took a solid five minutes. Along the way Russell lost control of his bowels twice. It was pitiful.

Stairs were quite the challenge for Russell

Once inside Banfield, we took Russell to the scale to get weighted. He could not go up the five inch high platform without help. He weighed 60.5lbs! Jen began to tell me that Russell would most likely have a host of health problems from this obesity. She wondered if S was going to be able to afford the type of medical care he would need. We both were very anxious to find out how this had happened. While we waited for S to arrive, I told her I wanted to take care of Russell myself or at least help S get him the care he needed.

When S finally arrived Jen and I were shocked to hear that she had not seen Russell in over six months! Her frequent admissions to the hospital had prevented her from taking care of him and she had entrusted him with her a neighbor. A decision she seemed to regret. S told us that she was glad Russell was not at the Humane Society any longer. As she gently petted his head, Jen and I exchange glances. Both of us knew that Russell should not go back to her. I couldn’t come up with the words, so I was glad when Jen finally spoke up and asked her it she would allow Paws and Prayers to foster Russell again. Without ever looking away from his face, she sighed and agreed to release him back to us.

After S signed Russell over to us and left, Jen had a Vet take a quick look at Russell. His obesity had taken a toll on his body. He would need a full exam and blood work soon to determine how dangerous his health had become.

Because my current foster, Dotty, was being adopted that evening, Jen offered to take Russell to her house for the night and I would pick him up the next day. As I struggled to get Russell into the front seat of Jen’s car, I wondered how this had happened to this poor dog. I was very angry with myself for not following up enough with S to see how Russell was doing. I was, however, determined to do everything I could to get Russell healthy.

To be continued . . .


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Content By:  Beagle Bob

"Beagle Bob" Dietrich is a foster parent for dogs along with his wife Vicki and son Robert.  Bob is a full time Fire Fighter/Paramedic, Vicki is a high school math teacher, and Robert is a full time college student.  They have two Beagles, Mandy and Buddy. 

Images: Provided by Beagle Bob