‘The worst we have ever seen:’ Badly injured dog saved by Modesto rescue

Nicole Kisela found the 2-year-old Collie during what likely would have been the last moments of his life.

The dog was severely dehydrated, had gaping wounds all over his body hidden underneath matted hair; a chain was embedded in his neck, and he was walking onto Highway 99 in the middle of the night.

Kisela, who fosters animals for the Modesto-based rescue Pupz N Palz, found the Collie on the Mitchell Road onramp at 1:30 a.m. Wednesday. She said other motorists were honking and swerving around her as she picked up the weak dog and put him inside her vehicle.

She brought him home, gave him food and water and named him Mitchell.

The next day, Kisela took Mitchell to the veterinarian. The extent of his injuries became apparent when nearly his entire body was shaved. More than a dozen holes covered his neck and rear end, surrounded by abrasions and bruising. The holes were not only infected but infested with hundreds of maggots.

Pupz and Palz president Karri Husman, who opened the rescue in 2009, has seen here share of injured animals.

“I have had a couple dogs with foxtails, we’ve had them with bullet holes, we have had them with embedded chains but this one, by far, is the worst we have ever seen,” she said.

Mitchell received IV fluids and his wounds were flushed. He had to come back the next day, and a few days later for more of the same, Kisela said. He has many more vet appointments ahead of him and could need skin grafting for his wounds.

Husman first met Mitchell after his initial visit to the vet.

“At first I started tearing up, then you just get this feeling in your gut and then you just get angry like, what happened to this guy?” Husman said. “We will probably never find out, though.”

Kisela said the vet couldn’t be sure what caused the injuries. It could have been a severe case of foxtails, a barbed weed that can bore into a dog’s skin, or Mitchell could have been attacked by a wild animal, drug by a car or severally abused or neglected.

Given that most of the holes are on the dog’s rear end, along with scratches, Kisela and Husman speculate that Mitchell was used as a bait dog to make fighting dogs aggressive. Husman said that would explain the injuries, embedded chain and teeth that are ground down, which dog fighters do so the bait dog can’t fight back.

Husman said they have searched for an owner on Craigslist, lost pet sites, veterinarian officers and shelters, but to no avail. Mitchell’s wounds have been documented with the vet and the Stanislaus Animal Services Agency in case an owner is ever located.

While Mitchell has months of healing before he will be available for adoption, Kisela brought him to an adoption event at the Petco on Evergreen Avenue on Saturday to “bring awareness.”

She set up a Facebook page called Mitchell’s Fight to document his recovery and already hundreds of people follow it. Husman said people from all over the county and even beyond, including Sweden and Mexico, have sent well wishes for Mitchell. Several local people who follow the page even showed up to Petco on Saturday to meet Mitchell.

“I honestly didn’t know if he was going to make it or not,” Husman said. “But he is a fighter, he wants to continue.”

To donate to Pupz N Palz for the care and vet bills for Mitchell visit www.gofundme.com/45iaiwo or email info@pupznpalz.org.

This story was originally published July 22, 2017 at 4:16 PM with the headline "‘The worst we have ever seen:’ Badly injured dog saved by Modesto rescue."