When horror can be happiness...

At first glance, this photo might just fill you with absolute horror and sadness, but it really is a glance of happiness and joy yet to come... Rooney (whose butt you see) was pulled out of a high kill shelter about three weeks ago... Not only did he he have demodex, he also had kennel cough and was severely emaciated... 

For three weeks, he has barely moved out of his cushy bed... Not even to pee... He'd widdle on himself, lacking the physical strength to walk or move very much at all... Dutifully, he'd allow us to give him medications, syringe feed him to keep up his strength and sit in a nebulizer once a day for twenty minutes... Just hacking and coughing throughout the day and night seemed to sap all the strength out of him... 

Last night, he got up and walked across the floor... We just sat and watched him - totally amazed.... 

Tonight, Rooney heard the feeder being refilled.  He got up from his spot on the blankees, trotted across to the feeder and with his unorthodox manner, proceeded to eat on his own.

Granted, his position is not something we can explain - why the food closest to him was not what he wanted, and choose to perch on the edge like this is remarkable if nothing else!

The feeder sits in a tray because another foster digs through the food in the feeder with her paw, picking out specific pieces she wants... And she can easily empty out the entire feeder and have it across an area 5' away in a matter of 5 minutes or less... So the tray catches her 'discarded' pieces of kibble... 

Maybe it is easier for him to stand like this?

Dunno, but it sure was unique and different!  (smile)... 

And Rooney proceeded to eat until he was full, protecting the entire feeder from any other dog that ventured too close to his side of the kibble...   Amazing stuff... From being so close to death's door and then after three very long weeks, to see him do these things is very heart warming!

We are not so sure the other dogs appreciated Rooney deciding to step all over the kibble before he was done, but they didn't complain too much!

Hence the photos we could not resist taking!  Yep, truly photos of happiness!