“We don’t deserve dogs.”
We often stumble upon this comment on various social media posts about dogs and how they are capable of giving their loyalty and unconditional love to us hoomans – even at times when we don’t deserve it.
The internet world is filled with wonderful, heartwarming, and at times, tear-jerking stories about them. And since we can’t get enough of these pooches (guilty!) – let’s meet this 2-year-old mix breed canine.
Sometime in March 2017, a brush fire near a homeless camp was reported to West Palm Beach Fire and Rescue. Captain Gregg Gordon, along with his team, responded and went to the location. When they arrived, they were shocked to find a small brown and white dog tied to a tree.
Unable to escape to save his own life, this wretched dog had excruciating open burns that covered his whole body. In this concerning state, firefighter Marcos Orozca cut him free to save him from further danger. The dog’s situation was extremely severe, that the team wasn’t confident about his survival.
Gordon told The Palm Beach Post: “The little guy was burned up pretty good. Even when we grabbed him, he was very distressed. I was concerned whether he would live.”
The Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control took in the badly-injured pup and rushed him to the Peggy Adams Animal Rescue. With the huge amount of burns on his body – specifically on his hind legs and torso – it was expected that he will need extensive medical treatment and rehabilitation.
Gordon said that the pup was originally named Bologna by his previous owner, but they later changed it to Smokey, believing that it suited him better.
Smokey was transferred to Jupiter Pet Emergency and Specialty Center (JPESC), where he was provided with thorough care and necessary treatments such as multiple blood transfusion, daily baths, bandage/wrap changes, and hyperbaric chamber.
Under Dr. Federico Latimer and his team’s care, Smokey began slowly warming up to his vets and nurses. These amazing people not only treated his physical wounds but also showered him with lots of love, curing his emotional and mental pain.
JPESC shared Smokey’s progress on Facebook: “Eventually, he started to eat again (with the help of his “friends,” aka our nurses). In time, he became less fearful, more trusting, and finally began to realize that he was on the road to recovery!”
When Smokey got better and became ready to leave the hospital, Gordon and his wife volunteered to foster him until he finds a forever home. For a while, Smokey will share a home with two labs and a mutt.
“We’re keeping our fingers crossed that he’s good with other dogs,” Gordon told The Palm Beach Post.
One day, Gordon took Smokey back to JPESC for his checkup, and boy oh boy, he was ecstatic! Seeing his heroes once again, he could not be more happy and thankful.
When he saw Dr. Latimer, the dog immediately ran towards the vet who saved his life, jumped into his arms, and showered his face with licks. It’s as if he was saying that he missed everyone, and that he’s grateful for all that they’ve done for him.
One more great update! During that heartwarming reunion, one of JPESC’s vets, Dr. Katelyn Thomas, decided to become his official fur mom. She renamed him Fen, and the pair have been together for about two years. The duo is definitely having a blast together!
Fen and his mom go on lots of adventures together, and the pooch discovered a newfound love for swimming!
Despite the hardships that Fen went through, it’s nice to know that everything went well. And we, your internet fur aunts/uncles, couldn’t be happier for you.
JPESC shared the clip of the heartfelt reunion on their Youtube. A bit of warning though: you might need to grab some tissues for this!