Thursday, January 31, was a lucky day for a severely emaciated stray pit bull being held at Orange County Animal Care. The Pet Rescue Center, a Mission Viejo non-profit animal rescue group, saved “Bruno”, who was covered in ticks and labeled ‘unsocialized’, from unnecessary euthanasia when they rescued him from the county shelter in Orange.
Once Bruno arrived back at The Pet Rescue Center, Director of Operations Casey Oliver, began to clean him up and get him as comfortable as possible. Bruno was bathed, had his fly strike ears cleansed, and had more than 20 ticks removed. He weighed in at a mere 41 lbs., but should be in the 70 lb. range.
“Although we wanted to feed him everything and anything, it is not wise to over-feed an emaciated pet. His stomach is very small and he is not used to consuming a normal amount of food for his weight,” explained Oliver. Bruno is on multiple medications and has gained a few pounds in his first days at The Pet Rescue Center.
Bruno was one of 22 animals saved by The Pet Rescue Center that day, including a pregnant cat and her unborn kittens, which are due to be born next week. Most of the dogs and cats will be ready for adoption at The Pet Rescue Center within the next 10 days. Pictures and information about the animals, as well applications for adoption, will soon be available online.
Blythe Wheaton, Executive Director and Co-Founder of The Pet Rescue Center stated, “We are doing everything we can to manage Bruno’s care, but he has a long road ahead of him.” Funds are being raised for Bruno’s medical expenses through FirstGiving.com. https://www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/thepet-rescuecenter/emaciated-pit-bull-bruno-needs-help
The Pet Rescue Center is a tax-exempt charity under IRS code section 501c3, and is located at 25800 Jeronimo Road in Mission Viejo. For more information, for an online application, or to make a donation, please visit www.thepetrescuecenter.org or call 877.277.7938.
