Titan

Titan’s journey is a long and amazing one. We received a call in September of 2020 asking if we knew of a rescue that could help a dog who had shown up on a good Samaritan’s property outside of Tucson. The dog was described as being covered in cactus with eyes that were swollen shut. We reached out and learned that the nearby rescue had picked up the dog and everything was fine. The next morning we received another call. This time the homeowner said the dog is still there and that the other rescue had picked up the wrong dog. We could not find anyone else to help so we dropped everything and left for Tucson. When we arrived we discovered “Titan“ who was seizing. We had to travel 23 miles to the nearest emergency vet and did not know if he would be gone by the time we got there. His head was so swollen that we could not even check his teeth. His eyes were swollen shut. Titan had thousands of cactus needles in him, many infected and filled with pus. In addition, we found out he was positive for tick borne illness. His seizures were caused by a dangerously low level sodium level. Titan spent two nights at the Tucson emergency hospital. We transported him home to Prescott where he spent another eight days receiving loving care at Prescott Animal Hospital.

Titan’s first weeks came with a lot of ups and downs. One day he would do well eating and voiding. The next day he might refuse food. His prognosis was guarded and ongoing testing was necessary to figure out what was going on. He was severely dehydrated, starving, and fighting numerous infections. Abnormal liver function was detected and he was found to have chronic tick disease. Titan slowly began regaining strength, his swelling started to dissipate. After a few days we actually got to see him open his eyes! He was released to a loving foster home. Months of follow up care ensued. By December he was recovering nicely and was healthy enough to be neutered.

Titan found his forever home in January of 2021. He is looking better than ever, although he still suffers from PTSD. This sweet boy is frightened by loud noises and is a little jumpy at night. His foster parents love him dearly, and are dedicated to continuing his healing and confidence building. He has made amazing progress.