A severely malnourished dog is now receiving proper care after his owner chucked him over the 6ft gates of an animal sanctuary.
Staff at the Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary in Merseyside had been settling in new puppies on the evening of Halloween when a car pulled up outside.
To their horror, a person then exited the vehicle and flung an emaciated lurcher over the gates. The neglect was so severe the animal’s bones were clearly visible beneath his skin.
Fortunately, the dog – who staff have named Casper – didn’t appear to have been injured by being thrown over the gates. However, in the cold light of morning, he was found to bear many marks of unimaginable mistreatment.
Completely skeletal in appearance, poor, sweet Casper has been described as ’emaciated and battle-wounded’ with ‘pressure sores and overgrown nails’ on the shelter’s Facebook page.
Luckily, Casper was abandoned at a place of kindness, with staff now having promised to ‘spoil him rotten’. The beautiful boy was fed what they believed to be his ‘first decent meal in a long time’, the moment captured in a devastating photograph.
At the time of writing, £526 has been raised to help Casper on his road to recovery, with the sight of his painfully thin body reducing many animal lovers to tears.
Thanks to the caring individuals at the Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary, Casper has made some significant progress, and reportedly had a ‘settled’ first night at the shelter following his trauma.
He was also gifted a ‘lovely bed and a big teddy to cuddle up to’ by a thoughtful donor called Jan, allowing him to feel comfortable and at home after so much upset.
On November 1, Save Our Scouse Cats tweeted the following update from Rescue Me Animal Shelter:
Safe, comfy and on two hourly feeds, the vet is coming out to Casper tomorrow to avoid even more stress for him. Dear Casper, you’ve seen the worst of humanity, now you are seeing the best.
The shelter then tweeted to confirm:
Casper has seen the vet today & had bloods taken. He is getting regular small meals & a huge duvet to snuggle up on.
As of yet, it’s unclear what the next steps for Casper will be. Here’s hoping he will find a forever home where he will be treated like the precious boy he is.
Find out more about how you can help other dogs like Casper via the Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary website.
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Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.