CHEATHAM COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) — A local nonprofit saved a puppy found shot along the side of a country road in Cheatham County a little over a week ago.
“He was found by a good samaritan driving by and saw three dogs. There were two other dogs that would not leave his side. I don’t know why people would shoot a puppy,” said Robin Lapre, founder and president of Saving Cheatham Animals: Mission PAWsible (SCAMP).
The 8-month-old puppy, Milton, was found injured and unable to walk.
Once the Cheatham County Animal Control took over, they noticed Milton was hurt pretty badly with birdshot and immediately took him to Kingston Springs Animal Hospital.
“His whole backside was injured. His tail was very injured, and he also was found to have a broken hip, a broken femur,” Lapre said.
“He was obviously running away because it got him on his back end. He was running away from somebody, from something because he was just all attacked on his back end,” said Dr. Morgan Wilters, a veterinarian at Kingston Springs Animal Hospital.
By looking at Milton’s X-Ray, you can see at least 30 pellets that were lodged in his backside.
“He smelled like infection, just a lot of oozing, and just really, really rough. Even as we had to sedate him to clean that wound, and you could just hear the BBs falling out into the tub,” Dr. Wilters said.
SCAMP is covering vet bills for Milton.
After sharing Milton’s story on Facebook, community members raised over $2,200.
“That will cover a portion of his bills. Obviously the longer he’s in the hospital, the more it’s going to be. It’s probably going to be close to $4,000, but we’ve had good support from the community, and has let us care for Milton in a way that we could not before,” Lapre said.
Milton’s gunshot injuries are unlike anything Kingston Springs has seen before. They said it will be at least weeks to months before everything heals, then his hind leg will need to be amputated.
“It’s definitely the worst I’ve seen since being here for almost five years,” Dr. Wilters said.
Thankfully, the 8-month-old puppy is healing quickly given everything he’s been through in such a short amount of time, and is expected to fully recover.
“We don’t give animals enough credit. He’s just happy to be alive, happy to be here, happy to please, and he’s a fighter for sure,” Dr. Wilters said.
If you’d like to help support Milton, SCAMP is accepting donations on their website.
