Buford T. Pi'Bull, in memoriam - Democratic Underground

B3Nut

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Sun Jan-28-07 06:56 PM
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Buford T. Pi'Bull, in memoriam

Last year our rescue had a group of dogs (3 Pit Bulls and a Brittany mix) surrendered to us that were living in an apartment basement in Milwaukee. A certain individual, who was of all things an elementary school art teacher(!), had inherited the dogs from his late brother. According to this person, the dogs "was fully growed(sic)" when his brother "got killded(sic)." I'll paste the story from the Dogster page my wife had put up for him ( http://www.dogster.com/dogs/370991 ):

"Buford, along with 4 other dogs (3 other pits and 1 brittany spaniel mix), were kept in a basement for the better part of 5 years by their previous owner. Buford lived on a 4 foot chain to a workbench; the same chain that was so deeply embedded in his neck it looked like a part of his body. Another dog lived on a 1.5 foot chain, one dog lived in a tiny kennel and two others each lived in their own closets. The dogs never went outside, never had attention and were only fed when the owner could afford to buy an 8# bag of food - which often was once every 2-3 weeks. They lived in their own waste most of the time. When the owner would clean, it consisted of scooping up the stool, pouring undiluted bleach onto the cement floor that was soaked in urine, then sprinkling baking soda on top to cover the smell. The dogs were surrendered to rescue after the owner decided they were just too much work, but he said his love for them made him hold onto them so long. They were all in horrible condition, quite under weight and malnourished and starved for attention. They didn't know what a loving touch was and would duck and drop when someone would go to pet them. One of the dogs had so many huge mammory tumors it was hard to tell one from the next and she also had a very deep, untreated wound on a rear leg that prevented her from even using it. She, unfortunately, only lived a few short weeks after being taken in by rescue, but died in the arms of a dedicated volunteer that showed her more love in those few weeks we knew the dogs than she had probably ever seen in her life."

Buford (originally given the charming name "Hoodlum" by his original owner) had fallen ill (hardly surprising given the appalling conditions the dogs lived in!) and was diagnosed with bladder cancer. We kept him as comfortable and happy as possible, and he had been unofficially "adopted" by a coworker at my wife's vet clinic. Sadly, yesterday was the end of the road for Buford as the cancer had almost completed its grim work. The clinic staff had a get-together for him and let him go peacefully.

I still am angry about the whole mess as the city of Milwaukee did NOTHING, I repeat god-damned NOTHING!!!!!!, to the individual who kept these poor animals in such staggeringly inhumane conditions. It is a testament to the heart this dog had that despite all those years of horrific neglect and near-starvation that he found it in himself to love humans, when up to that point humans had done absolutely nothing to merit such. Once he discovered human contact, he couldn't get enough; he was one of the cuddliest dogs we've had. Buford was a truly gentle, soulful dog with an amazing personality that blossomed once he received proper care. I'm saddened that he had to be put down, but at the same time I'm glad he had at least a year of kindness, it was the least he deserved.

RIP boo-boo... :cry:

Todd in Cheesecurdistan