Another day, another stray

No time of year is acceptable for an animal to be abandoned, but especially in winter. On one of our recent bitterly cold and misty evenings, our Lincoln Farm team received a little dog who had been found wandering in and out of traffic. Lost and alone, this poor girl must have been very frightened.

 

Possum when she arrived into our care

 

It was immediately obvious that her fur had been neglected for a long time – so matted together that she couldn’t fully open her mouth, move her legs or toilet properly. It was impossible to even guess at what breed of dog she might be underneath all the mess.

We made her as comfortable as we could, and immediately started to work our way through the tightly-wound, filthy matts of fur that pulled on her skin. We had to do this in stages, to avoid overwhelming our new little friend.

 

      

 

The first hour was spent on freeing up her face, and as she was so exhausted, she started to fall asleep with her head in our hands. As we started to be able to see her lovely eyes and gentle nature, we were inspired to name her ‘Possum.’

As we made progress with Possum’s coat over the next few days, we could start to see that she was a beautiful, dinky Cocker Spaniel. The matted fur we removed had accounted for nearly 15% of Possum’s overall body weight, which must have been a terribly uncomfortable burden for her to carry around.

 

Possum at the end of her first day of grooming

 

Bring our strays to safety

Now that we have taken care of Possum’s health and welfare, her personality is starting to sparkle. We are amazed at what a sweet and cuddly little sweetheart she is. In spite of all that she must have been through, Possum likes nothing more than to receive affection from her carers. She’s even started to relax enough to show her cheeky, playful character.

 

Finally in safe hands

 

Taking in stray and abandoned animals, like Possum, is becoming a rapidly increasing part of the rescue work we do. We simply couldn’t turn these desperate situations into the happy stories that we do without the help of our incredible supporters, like you. Possum’s ‘before’ and ‘after’ photographs clearly show what an incredible difference can be made with the care and attention that these animals need and deserve.

 

Cosy in the comfort of her warm jumper

 

Your support means everything to us, and to the rescue animals in our care. If you would like to donate towards our work, to enable us to continue to be there for emergency situations like this, you will be directly helping the next animal with a story like Possum’s.

Please use the reference 'Strays' in the comment box provided

 

If you are interested in offering a forever home to beautiful Possum, please contact our Lincoln Farm centre directly.

To find out more about how your support will make a difference to our stray animals, please click on the button below. 

If you are struggling to provide care for an animal, please get in touch with us by clicking here. We are here to offer support and advice in any way that we can.