Violet was spotted by a woman driving by an abandoned property in Miguel County, New Mexico, where it’s illegal to keep dogs chained with no one present. The dog’s neck had turned black from a heavy chain rubbing against it, and it was obvious she’d been on the chain for a while — possibly even her entire life. NMDOG, an organization that deals with chained dogs, was alerted about the situation.
When found in December of 2016, Violet was only two years old and had most likely been on the chain her whole life.
The woman called the Animal Welfare Coalition of Northeastern New Mexico, and the county sheriff department took Violet into custody. That’s when they learned her owner was in jail on unrelated charges.
NMDOG rescuers then took Violet to the vet. Her skin was badly sunburned, and she had flystrike, a condition in which maggots eat away at the dog’s flesh.
Other than that, Violet was relatively healthy. Understandably, she still had some fear issues to work through.
Sweet Violet started to come around and trust people a little bit. She’d duck and cower if you moved your hand too quickly, so they took things slowly and gently with her.
She became more comfortable in her new environment with the help of a blanket and a raccoon squeaky toy. Then they discovered her love for going on walks!
It’s a big world out there, and Violet was just starting to learn about it. She never really had a puppyhood, so it was time to show her what it was all about.
Violet needs to be spayed and has some healing to do, but she’s well on her way to having a normal dog life.
You can contact NMDOG here regarding adoption or to make a donation.
h/t The Dodo