After 34 Days Missing, Smithville Dog Found

"THE BEST UPDATE EVER! SADIE IS HOME!!!!!!! Today I got a call from three different amazing people all saying they think they see Sadie. Shortly after, Peter called me and said that they were able to get a leash on Sadie and send a picture that confirmed it was 100% Sadie!!!! Six amazing people stopped today and as a combined effort were able to get Sadie girl!! They even blocked traffic so no cars scared her off!! This was nothing short of a miracle- and I can never thank the six of you enough! I was FLYING there from my office in EHT, but luckily Pj was closer and was able to get there!! Pj was so happy, but also very alarmed by how skinny she looked. Sadie is normally around 40-43 lbs, but she was skin and bones.

When I pulled up, he had tears in his eyes out of happiness and also concern. He had left our door open when he ran out the door, so I took Sadie girl with me to the vet and he went home to lock up and meet us there. Everyone at Absecon vet was there waiting for us! They ALL were aware of Sadie and all hugged me because I was just sobbing. They got me right into a room, and the vet was in within 2 minutes. The first concern was hydration. We got her nice and hydrated. Next up was getting her some food. She clearly was starving. However, she has not been eating so she can’t be allowed to just gorge or she’ll get very, very sick. So they gave her some wet food formulated for sensitive stomachs which she devoured. The next issue was the ticks. She was COVERED in ticks. Hundreds of them. They began the slow process of removing them. Her skin is very, very irritated and she has a skin infection and some open wounds. They treated them, and then did a full panel blood test. They wanted to test for everything to make sure kidney levels were okay, blood cell count, etc.

She was then dewormed. The bloodwork came back that she has a very low red blood cell count, which makes sense due to the amount of ticks on her. She also has lymes which she is on an antibiotic to treat that (starting in two days). She also is on an antibiotic for the skin infection. They then weighed her, and she’s down to 25 lbs- so she lost 15 lbs. Her back legs are very weak, and she can’t walk up steps right now. They give out easily, so we’ve been carrying her around. Overall, there’s nothing crazy out of the ordinary for a dog that has been living in the woods for 5 weeks. Now, we begin the process of nursing our girl back to health!

She’s exhausted, so tonight will be spent cuddled up on the couch with her. We’re trying to limit the amount she moves around so she can heal and rest. She’s taking down the food great, and has been drinking water. She’s very clearly traumatized, but she is HOME and will be on the road to recovery!! We will have some more vet visits to continue checking her blood work and make sure she is recovering properly. I will not be leaving her side as we nurse her back to health!!!

This 5 weeks have been the hardest of my life. I truthfully was so afraid I would never see my girl again. However, all of you kept my hopes alive! Because of all of you spreading the word, everyone knew to keep their eyes out for her. That is the reason why Sadie is home today- ALL OF YOU! I can never, ever begin to thank everyone the way you all deserve. Thank you all for being the best support system. You all are now family to us!!!! Once this little lady has recovered, she wants to meet everyone!!!! There’s so many special thanks I have to write, and I will, but I wanted to make sure I got this update out and let you all know just how grateful I am to all of you. Sadie is home because of you guys! I love you all so much!!!

Here are some pictures from today - and I’ll update more as she gets stronger each day! She is very skinny right now, but she will put that weight back on soon enough!!!

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR BEING THE GREATEST PEOPLE IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. OUR GIRL IS HOME!!!"