On 8/10/17, TAF was contacted about a senior maggot-infested dog with urine scalding and severe eye trauma that had just been dropped off at an open access shelter in a cardboard box. When we went down to the southside of Chicago to pick Grohl up, the description provided did not do the severity of Grohl’s abuse justice. The shelter manager had tears in her eyes and pretty much everybody was speechless. Upon picking Grohl up, you couldn’t tell where his face began or where it ended. When you lifted up the matted fur around Grohl’s eyes, maggots were feeding off the infected skin on his face. In fact, they had already bore a hole through his sinus cavity.
Once at the ER Vet, Grohl’s medical team could only shave his belly and groin area. His heart rate was so erratic that they couldn’t risk him going into cardiac arrest. Grohl’s doctor believed this was due to the high infestation of maggots. Besides his face, the damage caused by the urine scalding on Grohl’s belly, groin, testicles and backside made for a maggot feeding frenzy.
An Ophthalmology Specialist would go on to diagnose Grohl with a stromal corneal ulcer in his left eye, which left him with no vision. In the days to come, his eye would go on to rupture and needed to be surgically removed. At the time, Grohl’s right eye had limited vision and it appeared that he had suffered with chronic ulcers for quite some time. With medicated eye drops, multiple times a day, Grohl’s right eye was saved. However, he will need to continue on this treatment protocol for the rest of his life. In critical condition, Grohl would go on to be hospitalized for days receiving IV antibiotics, topical antibiotics, fentanyl pain medication, Dextrose (for low blood sugar), facial ice packs and medicated baths. It would take a dream team of ER Doctors, Ophthalmology Specialists, a Surgeon and a Cardiologist to put Grohl back together again.
Once Grohl was back in TAF’s care, we worked with him, nursed him back to health and introduced him to our team of therapy dogs. Before long, he began to flourish and learned what it was like to be loved and feel safe. With that… TAF is thrilled to announce that Grohl has found his forever home!
Never again will he go without or wonder what it is like not to feel pain. Grohl’s new owners are going to keep up with his daily eye drops and are 100% on board with all of the responsibilities and expenses that come with his medical condition. A truly selfless family will now pick up where we have left off…Grohl is a very lucky boy. It is ironic that Grohl’s unthinkable abuse would be the very thing that led him to his forever home, unconditional love and a happily ever after. TAF would like to thank everybody that donated towards Grohl’s medical care and kept him in their thoughts and prayers. There is absolutely no way that we could have done it without you!
