Case Report

On June 17, 2004, Heartland Great Dane Rescue retrieved a female Dane puppy (named "Grace") from Tanya Jo Dodd (also Towe or White), because of a phonecall they receieved from a woman who said was was concerned about her sister's dog. The dog was in such an emaciated state that they pursued cruelty charges against her.

The caller reportedly stated that the dog was skinny and that they were feeding her a lot more food than she should need but she wouldn�t gain weight. She reported that the dog had begun vomiting that afternoon and she was concerned. She also stated the dog had only been with her sister for a month or a month and a half and that they had contacted numerous rescues for assistance but had been turned away.

Heartland Great Dane Rescue was unable locate a single rescue that had been contacted about this case.

Once photos of the dog were sent to Heartland Great Dane Rescue and they realized how critical the situation was, they left immediately to pick-up Grace.

They arrived at Tanya�s home and could not see the dog. They asked her to sign the dog over to us so that we could seek immediate medical care. She told us that Grace was a special �Scottish Dane�. This led HGDR to believe that Tanya was the original purchaser of the dog and she was more than likely purchased from a disreputable back yard breeder who will say many things of this nature to sell their puppies. Heartland Great Dane Rescue was not allowed into the home, nor were they allowed to see Grace at that time.

They were told that they had attempted to feed the dog the chicken and rice as we directed and that Grace had refused it. Heartland Great Dane Rescue was also told at this time that the vomiting had been occurring for more than a week. They asked her about previous vet care and she told us the dog had seen the vet at the age of 4 months, had been fully vaccinated, was clear of any internal parasites and had received a Pro-Heart 6 � injection at that time.

She signed the dog over to Heartland Great Dane Rescue, Inc. and told us that her children were heartbroken that they were �giving the dog away�. Heartland Great Dane Rescue did not see the children and they were not allowed to tell their dog goodbye. We were then able to see Grace for the first time and were again shocked. They were able to encircle her entire waist with our hands overlapping on her abdomen. Gracie had several sores on her body and a lot of her body hair was missing. She was very weak and had to be lifted into the vehicle for transport to the emergency vet clinic.

Gracie weighed 46 lb. and her body temperature was only 98.4 � Normal is 100 � 102. He ran some tests and found that she did have worms. HGDR could find no other medical conditions that could have caused her appearance. The sores on her ears appear to be serious and numerous fly bites. She still had not vomited the sno-cone. HGDR wanted to also evaluate her skin condition, but it was determined that her hair loss was due to sarcoptic mange. HGDR then gave her an entire can of dog food and she ate it ravenously and did not vomit. She continued to look for food and was very anxious.

Through it all, Gracie was well behaved and well mannered, appearing to enjoy the human contact and attention.

On November 10, 2004, she plead nolo contendre to one count of Animal Cruelty in the Oklahoma City Munincipal Court and received a fine of $400 plus court costs of $102.

Grace is now available for adoption - to find out more, call  Heartland Great Dane Rescue at (405)260-0026 or visit their website at