Niko and Daizi's Rescue Beginning

Niko and his sister Daizi (see Daizi's pictures below) came in to Weimaraner Rescue of Texas via Brownsville Animal Control. They were dumped in the shelter's outside kennels after hours. Both were emaciated, full of ticks and fleas, and almost bald from such horrible skin conditions. Since they were dropped of anonymously there is no way to hold anybody accountable for what these two have been through. We are just thankful that they weren't dumped in the middle of nowhere. They most definitely would not have lasted very long on their own. I am very thankful to our volunteers and the good people at Brownsville Animal Control for their joint efforts in bringing these two in to Rescue and all the way up to Dallas.



Niko and Daizi are both posititve for heartworms and erlichia (a tick borne disease). They are on antibiotics for the erlichia and will be treated for heartworms after they have both gained some weight. Hopefully in about 3 to 4 weeks. You may notice from their pictures that they both still have natural tails. An obvious sign of a bad backyard breeder that is only breeding to make a quick buck. A weimaraner's tail is usually docked when the puppy is 2 or 3 days old. At this age, to have their tails docked would be very hard on them and would only be done if medically necessary (i.e. the tail is always injured from hitting hard surfaces and can't heal because there is no fat to cushion the tail bone).



I am fostering Niko. He is one of the sweetest dogs I have ever met. He is great with other dogs and kids. It always amazes me that a dog can be so neglected and mistreated by humans, yet still love so unconditionally. I bathed him as soon as we got home but his skin is so bad and so scaly that you can't even tell. The poor guy smells bad too. But that won't stop me from loving on him as much as possible. : )



Niko is having some tummy issues (he is on medicine for this). Hopefully this is from the introduction of new food, but it is pretty severe so we are waiting for some lab results just to be sure. He has decided that he doesn't like his prescription canned food (pretty picky for such a skinny boy)!! We are trying to keep his diet bland until his tummy issues are over. This boy cannot afford to lose ANY weight. I boiled some chicken this morning and it seems to be a hit. His hunger and his energy both come in spurts. He has been laying on a dog bed in the kitchen all day. He'll get up when he is thirsty or hungry. He is sleeping again as I am typing this.



I can't wait to see how much more handsome he will be when his hair grows back and he puts on some weight.



Please check back for updates on Niko's progress.