Animal sanctuary plea after bull mastiff left abandoned

The 50kg mastiff cross, Humphrey, was left tied to the gates of the Todwick Road Animal Sanctuary on Sunday May 29.

Thornberry’s vet partner, Wildbore Vetstop, inspected Humphrey, who is thought to be around 5 years old, and discovered that, not only had he undergone an operation to one of his ears but he was underweight, has a lot of muscle wastage to his back legs, pressure wounds and also an extremely bad ear infection.

Thornberry Animal Sanctuary Yard Manager, Hannah Briggs, said: “Humphrey is a huge dog who has a range of medical issues that he needs some help with.

“Although we never condone abandoning a dog in the way his owners did, it was obvious they cared for him and possibly just couldn’t cope with the expense of such a large dog any more.

“We don’t want to cause Humphrey’s previous owners any more distress, but, if anyone out there knows his medical history or what sort of lifestyle he has been used to living and would like to contact us anonymously via phone or email, it would make it a lot easier to plan his road to recovery.”

If you know anything about Humphrey’s history, please contact the sanctuary on 01909 564399 or via email [email protected].

Despite being close to capacity with needy and neglected animals, Thornberry is celebrating a success story with poorly Shar Pai cross pup Buttercup.

Adorable Buttercup, who came into the sanctuary on May 18 as a stray with all her fur missing due to a severe case of demodetic mange, is on her way to recovery thanks to kind donations from Thornberry’s many supporters.

Hannah added: “It was heartbreaking seeing Buttercup when the Dog Wardens brought her to us, she is such an affectionate pup that just wanted cuddles, but was in agony due to the mange.

“She’s only 16 weeks old but it’s obvious that as soon as her skin condition appeared she was abandoned, either by the breeder or new owner, which is such as shame as she’s such a loving little dog.

“We’ve been treating her with medication for the mites, daily medicated baths, antibiotics and food supplements to reduce the mange and help encourage her hair to grow back.

“We’ve also made sure we’ve shown her lots of love, care and attention so she can grow up and become a loving member of a family when she’s ready for adoption.

“The special shampoo costs £10 per bottle and we’ve been going through a bottle a week. As a small, local independent charity we wouldn’t be able to care for animals like Buttercup.

“She’s not out of the woods yet and the vet has said she still has possible a few months of treatment left, but, she’s got to the stage where she can now go for walks in the sunshine, which has meant the world to her. Her little tail was wagging and she was so giddy when I put the lead on her to take her out for the first time.

“From all at the sanctuary, and from little Buttercup, we’d like to thank everyone for their kindness - it means everything to us, and all the animals we look after.”

If you would like to donate to the continued care of and recovery of Buttercup, and her friends in the sanctuary, you can do so by texting VETS19 followed by £1, £2, £5 or £10 to 70070.