Annie’s Song: In Tribute

Annie’s Song: In Tribute

More of Annie’s Song

Last updated 5/18/2001

© 2001 – Collie Rescue of Mississippi

I chose “One Man’s Dream” by Yanni because it would be my dream that all cruelty, neglect and abuse would never again fall upon our beautiful, beloved, and proud breed along with all the other creatures on this planet that we hateful humans bestow upon them.

Text Box: On May 3rd, I met Annie. On May 4th, I said goodbye and sent her to the Bridge. This is Annie’s story. Once young, happy, healthy and a gleam in her eye with show quality beauty, now much much older, blind and in heart failure, she was discarded on the side of the road like an old worn out toy by the people she thought loved her. Confused, frightened, hungry and alone, she wandered the streets for weeks perhaps even months due to the horrific state that she came to me in, nothing but skin and bone and full of mats. She wandered the streets seeking shelter, perhaps even a caring person to lend her a helping hand. Then she was picked up by Animal Control and brought to the local pound where she was placed in a small, wet concrete holding cage. Collie Rescue was then contacted and informed of her old age and that she had severe arthritis and would I take her in as a foster home for the 8 day holding period under the special circumstances, stating that she would be better off in my setting rather than the pound’s environment. Upon my arrival, I was taken to a restricted area where she was being held. When I first laid eyes on her, I wondered why such a beautiful old gal wound up in a place like this and what happened to her. During the next 12 hours, I would piece everything together and realize that she was left on the side of a road to fend for herself. The people she was so protected of and loyal to over the years did not want to be bothered with her anymore. Once the kennel door had been opened, this poor gal just laid there, weak and frail, unable to get up. The supervisor then forced her to get up and started to drag her out of the cage. As he was doing this, I noticed that she could not see very well. Once out of the cage, I also noticed that she could not support her hind quarters. I informed the supervisor that she may be blind and possibly have been hit by a car. As she was being dragged down the isle, I realized that she was walking very strangely, walking on the tips of her hind leg paws. After seeing how difficult it was for her to walk, I told the supervisor let me carry her to my truck. After getting her settled into the back of my vehicle, she was immediately taken to my vet, Dr. Kirby, who then examined her. His diagnosis, sadly enough, she was totally blind in her right eye and very close to being totally blind in her left eye, she was not hit by a car but rather had a substantial amount of fluid in her lungs and was in severe heart failure. Dr. Kirby had explained to me that she could not support her hind quarters and had difficulty walking due to oxygen being cut off to her hind quarters and that her arteries had been cut off not allowing blood flow to her hind region.