Bullet

Bullet is a small dog who very wisely chose IPPL for his home.

He reached us on 17 November 1998. Our two Great Pyrenees dogs, Patou and Ivy, started barking one day. Patou and Ivy love the sound of their own voices but this time it was different.

We went to check and found that the two dogs had their eyes fixed on something against our back fence. My assistants Paula and Donetta went to see what was there. They found a tiny emaciated dog lying against the outside of the perimeter fence. The dog was whimpering nd distressed.

Our grounds manager went into the woods and picked up the little dog. He was infested with ticks. There was an open wound on his right side. He was disoriented and his eyes were red and inflamed. He was obviously starved and dehydrated - his ribs were projecting. After we had fed and watered him, we took him to our vet.

The vet found that the wound on his side was caused by a shotgun pellet. He had every parasite in the book. We were given various medications and eye drops. Throughout his ordeal, our new dog was sweet and loving. The two big dogs were so pleased to have a new family member one third their size!

We named our new friend Bullet.

The next stop was the spay neuter clinic. The neutering went smoothly. Then on to the ophthalmologist to check his eyes. We were heart-broken to learn that our little dog is totally blind, probably as a result of shotgun injuries. We also learned that, if medication did not keep the eye inflammation under control, Bullet might need one or both eyes removed.

Bullet has really settled in well. He is very intelligent and gentle. IPPL has a blind gibbon called Beanie and he and Bullet play nicely together. When Beanie eats a banana, Bullet licks his hands clean as he likes the flavor!

We took Bullet to "Basic Obedience" class and he "graduated" at the end of February. We use a "Gentle Leader" collar to have better control of him on walks as he tends to bump into things!

Teacher Val Masters summed up Bullet when she said, "He's too cute."

THANKS TO IPPL'S E-MAIL LIST

When Bullet reached us, we realized that restoring his health would be a challenge and that it would also be very expensive. We told our E-mail list members about him and they kindly donated the funds that covered his initial medical bills. Thank you, Charlene, Joe, Nancy, Donna, and everyone else who helped.