Barrymore

The frail old dog was wandering aimlessly in the middle of the street, wondering how he got there.

It was getting dark early on this freezing afternoon in Brooklyn. Horns were honking, but the dog’s hearing isn’t great. Neither are his eyes. He narrowly avoided, more than once, getting crushed under the wheel of an automobile.

Another day with no food, no water and nowhere to go.

It would seem that time was running out for this kind and gentle soul who did nothing to deserve this.

A police officer on the scene was able to scoop the dog up and carry him back to the patrol car. The dog sat perfectly still as they drove to the Humane Society of New York.

When they arrived, Barrymore, as we named him, was clearly disoriented. He had no collar or identification. His tail was firmly tucked between his legs, but it slowly swayed side to side when we quietly introduced ourselves. Barrymore didn’t hesitate when we led him to his new quarters. We thanked the police for bringing him to us.

Why would anyone just put an old dog outside?

We offered Barrymore food and water and he lapped up both bowls. Given his poor body condition, the kennel staff gave him a new, comfortable orthopedic bed. He lay down beside it as if he had never seen a bed before. We picked him up and gently placed him on top of it. In minutes he was sound asleep.

The next day our doctors gave him a complete medical workup and placed him at around 8 years old. The terrier-mix was severely malnourished and dehydrated, so much so his ribs were sticking out. His hearing is compromised, and his eyes are cloudy in appearance. Barry yelped loudly when they examined his ears, both bright red and infected. It was obvious by his foot pads and nails that he had been standing on hard cement for a long time.

Barrymore’s hair was coated with soot and grease and had become heavy matted clumps that pulled and irritated his skin. We shaved off what we could and gave him a warm bath, the first of many. Each time we dried him off he was a completely different color until he got back to his natural silver and white.

Once we built him up to a normal weight, we were able to neuter him. We also removed many cysts, luckily all benign, from his neck and back, and repaired what was obviously a prior injury to his lower eyelid. It was torn and we didn’t want the tear to get larger or become infected. This sweet dog remained good-natured even after all those surgeries, daily ear treatments and baths.