Blog Archives
Turtle Likely Hit By Car, Sustains Trauma to Shell
A red-eared slider showed up in a box at the medical clinic of the San Jose Animal Care Center with a note indicating that it had been injured. I opened the box to examine the turtle and determine a course of action.
The turtle was a good size and the damage was obvious. It had sustained trauma to the carapace (shell) around the tail.
There was an area where the carapace was missing a large chunk, just over the tail, and a few other fractures in the carapace in that region.
While there was no way to know for sure what happened, it looked as if this turtle’s shell had an encounter with the tires of a vehicle.
Jonah – Puppy Surrendered by Owner for Euthanasia, Shelter Vets Reach Out to Specialty Practice for Life-Saving Surgery
One morning, a two-month old pit bull puppy was brought to me in the clinic. The front desk staff indicated that the owners claimed he was hit by a car and had a broken leg. The owners surrendered him to the shelter for euthanasia.
As if that wasn’t sad enough, I was also told that while the owners were waiting, they were on the phone with a dog breeder, arranging to get another puppy.
My heart sank.
I must give the owners credit for at least taking the dog to a veterinarian before bringing it to the shelter. However, paying a large sum of money for a pure-bred “special” breed of pit bull only to not be able to afford the care that it requires is irresponsible.