One of the things I love about shelter medicine is the ability of a shelter and its staff to take an animal that would easily be overlooked or considered for euthanasia and give them a chance to heal and get a second shot at life.

There are many animals that come into the shelter broken, malnourished or with various medical concerns that need to be addressed. Oftentimes we become so enveloped in caring for the animal that we forget to recognize how far the animal has come in its recovery. We often think back to the grainy image stored in our memory of the animal when it first arrived in our care but have no actual image to reflect back on to remind us and show others how much of a difference we made. That is why I am going to make a concerted effort to take photographs of animals early on in their treatment so that I can share with you the many success stories that we see in animal shelters.

To start off the Before & After series, it is only appropriate that I share the story of Vinnie.

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