Roxanne, an adorable 18-month-old pit bull, was hours from death when she was found wandering around the streets of Columbia, South Carolina.
As soon as police officers saw the poor pup, they couldn’t believe what was wrapped around her neck as they rescued her – a 6.3 pound metal chain that caused severe swelling to her face.
Roxanne is a 1-year-old pit bull who was found wandering around Columbia, South Carolina, all alone with a 6-pound chain wrapped tightly around her neck.
No one knows exactly how long Roxanne had the chain around her, but her head was insanely swollen from dragging it around. Roxanne weighed only 50 pounds when she was found, meaning the chain weighed more than 10 percent of her body weight.
The chain had been on her neck for so long that it had cut into the skin, causing what must have been incredible pain. The graphic nature of her injuries was relayed by South Carolina animal shelter Pawmetto's Lifeline's rescue program to Rescue Dogs Rescue NYC co-founder Jackie O'Sullivan, who decided everything would be done to save the pup's life. On a Facebook post sharing Roxanne's story with followers, Rescue Dogs Rock posted the following statement:
"we were absolutely STUNNED and stopped in our tracks. It's as if everything stops when you view something this awful & you have to take a minute to regroup and take it all in. You are in shock & cannot speak or act for several seconds."
"This was one of the worst embedded collar cases we've ever seen, and we've seen many," Stacey Silverstein, co-founder of Rescue Dogs Rock NYC, told InsideEdition.com.
Instead, doctors began to break the chain with bolt cutters. Once the skin became visible enough to operate, the doctors noticed that one of Roxanne's major arteries had become exposed.
Roxanne's neck was cut open and exposed from the chain, and she was in critical condition for a while. Doctors were worried that she could bleed out at any moment. No one was sure if she would make it but the little fighter somehow pulled through.
To everyone's surprise (and as a testament to the sheer strength of a dog who's been through indescribable abuse), one-year-old Roxanne survived the surgery. With her neck wrapped in a yellow bandage, the swelling in her face started to come down.
Now, Roxanne is still recovering at the vet, but is doing worlds better. Amazingly, the swelling in her head has gone down completely, so her head is back to a normal size. Roxanne has shocked everyone with her speedy recovery and how calm she's remained through it all.
Now that the swelling has gone down, it's easier to see that Roxanne is emaciated, and still has a long way to go in terms of recovery. However, all other issues seem pretty small compared to the chain she had carried around her neck.
Stories like Roxanne's highlight the importance of humans who work tirelessly to undo and help prevent the unspeakably tragic mistreatment of animals like her. Organizations dedicated to being the voice for the voiceless often solely depend on donations from kind humans.
