In the spring, volunteers with St. Louis Stray Dog Rescue (SRSL) received a distressing call about an injured pup tied to a fence. The team was instantly concerned, but it wasn’t until they arrived on the scene that they realized the magnitude of the situation.
They had gone out to rescue a dog, but the sweet animal they found looked nothing like one.
“His face was swollen about [five] times more than it should be,” SRSL wrote in a Facebook post. “His wounds were left untended, and he was just sitting there in the sun suffering.”
The team was stunned when they finally saw the poor defenseless boy, and they acted immediately to save him.
The pup, who would later be named Marco, had been waiting for days for someone to find him. He was excited to see the rescue team, but was in too much pain to show it.
“His whole body was riddled with infection,” SRSL wrote. “We told him to suck it up and fight.”
The team freed Marco from the fence and gently lifted him into their arms. They took him straight to their animal shelter to begin a long and uncertain treatment process.
“He had become septic,” SRSL wrote on Facebook. “He was in our clinic for months on IVs, antibiotics and other medications to get him back on track.”
The team had no way of knowing what Marco’s life had been like before he was abandoned, but his injuries suggested he had been subjected to dog fighting.
Despite his terrifying past, Marco still seemed to be filled with love. And as he struggled to survive, he made sure his new friends knew how much he appreciated them.
“[T]he most amazing thing is that he still loves and trusts humans,” SRSL wrote. “He still looks for love in them and gives love.”
Thankfully, Marco made a full recovery. Once swollen beyond recognition, the pup’s true face finally emerged. Finally, Marco looked and felt like himself again.
When he was deemed healthy enough, Marco was placed into foster care. His foster mom, Katie, fell in love with Marco and adopted him shortly after.
Today, Marco is living his best life with his amazing new family of humans and other SRSL dogs. And the pain of his past is thankfully far behind him.
“Marco is spoiled to no end… like, really spoiled,” Katie wrote in a note to SRSL that she later shared on Facebook. “Overall, he has a huge personality and is the perfect combination of mischievous and sweet, smart and protective.”
From stealing blankets before bed to keeping an eye on the neighborhood from his favorite window, Marco’s days are now filled with excitement and comfort.
And his new family wouldn’t want it any other way.
“[H]e’s still the cutest boy with his nods,” Katie shared on SRSL’s Facebook. “We love our baby boy, Marco!”
