Bertie

No introductions are necessary for this beautiful boy – anyone who has been following AAPS for a while knows that Bertie is quite the celebrity around here!

Bertie boy has had quite the journey since arriving here at AAPS over 100 days ago. This poor pup presented to us with a severe conformational deformity in his hind legs that our vet’s determined was likely due to abnormal bone growth/development as a result of very poor nutrition. They also noted that he suffered from hip and stifle dysplasia. These conditions severely affect and restrict his mobility, however despite his struggles, Bertie is one of the happiest, most loving dogs our staff at AAPS have had the pleasure of meeting.

Over the past few months (and with the amazing support of our very generous community of donators) we managed to raise enough money to begin Bertie’s journey of invasive surgeries in the hopes of giving him the best quality of life we possibly could. We were incredibly optimistic and had incredibly high hopes for his recovery – but unfortunately, we did not achieve the result we hoped for.

Our team of vets and specialists had to go back to the drawing board to try and find any other way to treat his condition and offer him the mobility and the life we wished him to have, but due to the rarity of his specific condition, any future surgeries would be purely experimental, with no guarantee of success and high possibilities of painful complications or the risk of the surgeries failing all together. Without any surgical intervention, however, at some point the pressure on his legs will tear his cruciate ligament – an injury which in his case is inoperable and will inevitably result in him crossing the rainbow bridge. Unfortunately, we don’t know if this will be next month, next year or in a few years’ time.

We have been assured by vets and specialists that Bertie is not currently in pain. He loves his life. He loves his humans, he wakes up each day with a wag of his tail, so excited to find his next adventure. The idea of putting him through months of unimaginable pain and discomfort with no assurance that it will improve his life breaks our hearts. A life of pain is not the life we want for our Bertie.

After tireless deliberation, we decided that the safest and kindest option for Bertie is to allow him to live his life as he is – free of pain, free of surgeries, and allowing him the freedom he deserves after an early life of confinement and neglect.

In order to keep him safe and protect him from potential injury, his family would have to ensure he does not overexert himself. This means that he will not be the kind of dog that can wrestle with other dogs in a dog park or run around in densely populated off-leash areas. He would ideally continue hydrotherapy as this the safest way for him to exercise and strengthen his muscles.

Bertie needs a quiet home without young children. He has happily lived alongside a low-energy dog and a dog savvy cat but wouldn’t be suited to living with young and overly active pets as this would put him at risk of overexertion.

He needs a home with a family who can be home with him as much as possible to give him unconditional love for the rest of his life. We know that finding the perfect home for Bertie may not be easy, but he deserves the world, and we will search for as long as it takes to find his forever family.