Rusty's Road to Recovery
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Rusty, a big, goofy, 5-yr-old Plott Hound trotted through the doors of Mt. Pleasant Animal Shelter with an infected bullet wound in his muzzle. He was transferred from an overcrowded shelter that had him slated for euthanasia that same day. Mt. Pleasant gave him a second chance through our Shelter Partnering program - not aware of his serious health condition. Rusty greeted Mt. Pleasant staff with kisses to all, and scars that tell a story of a sad, neglected past. Staff thought at first that he had a cold, due to his runny nose and snorting. After examination, we discovered that Rusty has an oranasal fistula on the right side of his mouth. A gaping infected hole, left by a bullet that traveled through his snout, after clipping a chunk off his floppy right ear. Rusty’s infection was so severe, he needed immediate surgery. Rusty’s story captured the hearts of thousands of local newspaper readers. Donations were made to cover not one, but two surgeries to repair his muzzle. Thanks to Community Animal Hospital in Morris Plains for providing wonderful care and compassion to Rusty, who now is fully recovered. With such a sad start, we are happy to report that Rusty found his forever home on March 10th with a wonderful family- The Martens of Vernon, NJ, who have another recently adopted Plott Hound puppy. It couldn’t have been a better match. Rusty now has wonderful people to love and care for him, and a four-legged little brother to run, play, and howl with every day.

Michelle
East Hanover, NJ