A dog which was shot in the neck and abandoned in a rural area is looking for a forever home to continue her recovery.
Sweet pooch Eva, three months, and her sibling Enid were found outside an animal shelter in early March, but staff immediately realized she had a large lump on her neck.
Workers at CARES Animal Shelter in Clarksdale, Mississippi, believed the lump was a result of an infection but when it did not go away with antibiotic creams, they decided to bring Eva to the local vet.
Shocking X-rays revealed that Eva had a 9mm bullet casing embedded beneath her skin, which had become infected.
Veterinarians worked to remove the bullet in surgery and thankfully Eva, a catahoula mix, is making a recovery.
Paige Daugherty, who is on the board of CARES, said although she was outraged to see Eva’s X-rays, she isn’t the first dog they’ve cared for who has been shot.
“We found Eva and her sibling Enid near our shelter. We think they had been abandoned but it’s hard to know.
“She was a submissive, sweet little thing. We estimated they were about three and a half months old.
“Right away we noticed a lump on the right side of her neck. We thought it might be an infection from a little nick or a bite but it just wouldn’t go away, even with creams.
“We brought her to the local vet – Cleveland Pet Clinic – where they did an X-ray. It revealed that there was a 9mm casing lodged in her neck.
“I’m not a gun person obviously but it was clear that it had come from a high caliber pistol. It was a large shell.
“I was outraged and it made me feel sad but we felt relieved that we found the problem.
“Unfortunately we see cases like this so often. Eva is definitely not the first, sadly.”
After the procedure, Eva had to have a tube placed into her wound to drain fluid, but she is now recovering well.
Paige said the staff at CARES were disappointed to say goodbye to Eva earlier this week, when she was moved to the Humane Society of West Michigan.
Paige said: “They have a wider pool of potential adopters so Eva is more likely to find a family and a home by moving over there.
“We were sad to see her go but so happy she’s made a full recovery.”
For more information on Eva, please visit http://www.hswestmi.org/ or http://www.caresclarksdale.com/
