FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A dog is in dire need of help after enduring what rescuers said is one of the worst cases of animal abuse they’ve seen.
Officials believe that dog, Baxter, was being used as bait.
Baxter, the one-year-old pit bull mix, is up and walking despite the abuse and neglect that left him on the brink of death.
“He couldn’t even stand, he was completely emaciated, he had the open wounds that were oozing and his snout his nearly gone,” said Alison Lopresti who heads animal rescue DD’s Senior Sanctuary. “This is the worst that we’ve seen.”
Lopresti’s rescue stepped in to foster the severely malnourished dog that only weighs nearly half of its normal size.
The injured and weak dog was found abandoned Saturday on the streets of Broward County and rushed to an emergency veterinary hospital.
“The first night it was sort of touch and go,” said Lopresti. “We think he was a bait dog, so he was used in dog fighting for other bigger dogs to come in and attack him.”
After Baxter’s story was posted online by the group there has been plenty of love and attention pouring his way, and the four-legged resilient rover has been consistently returning the favor.
“He’s still very loving and trusting,” said Lopresti.
For more information on DD’s Senior Sanctuary or to make a donation, visit their website by clicking here.