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'Feral' Chihuahua Is Transformed After Rescue As He Slowly Learns To Trust
A senior chihuahua, named Toothless, has delighted the internet with his remarkable transformation, several weeks after being one of countless dogs rescued from a broken-down trailer.
Toothless was among the 47 dogs, most of which were chihuahuas, who was saved from the devastating conditions of the trailer, which was a bleak hoarding site inside. Toothless was one of the dogs discovered outside the trailer, so it's thought that he's had very little human interaction throughout his life, despite being 10 years old.
Just a day after the rescue took place, Madeleine Cantrell from Houston, Texas, heard about the dogs in need of love, and she couldn't resist adopting Toothless. "He tested positive for heartworm and he has dry eye, causing his eyes to become crusty easily. He had tapeworms and was infested with fleas," Cantrell told Newsweek.
While working for the Houston Humane Society, Cantrell has seen the plight of many stray and mistreated animals, so she was adamant that she would turn Toothless' life around in his senior years.
Toothless, the 10-year-old chihuahua pictured after his rescue and subsequent adoption. Toothless is now thriving in his new home alongside his four siblings. @theseniordogsquad / TikTokShe said: "The conditions were horrible. All the dogs were living in, or right outside, a broken-down trailer that was falling apart. It smelled so bad of urine that it made everyone's eyes water. Toothless was caught in the woods, so he likely lived right outside the trailer, amongst an outdoor hoard.
"There were 47 dogs in total, most of them were chihuahuas, but I believe there were three larger dogs. A lot of the chihuahuas went to rescue groups in the Houston area, and the others have been adopted."
The rescue of the cohort of neglected dogs is undeniably horrifying but is sadly not highly unusual. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals estimates that 3.1 million dogs enter shelters across the country every year, leading to around 2 million adoptions.
In the weeks since his adoption, Toothless has made an incredible transformation thanks to the medication he is now taking, and his trust grows with every passing day. Despite seeing his recovery first-hand, Cantrell is still left speechless by how far Toothless has come, as she said, "it's hard to believe given how feral he was."
Cantrell has four other rescue dogs, so Toothless has grown really attached to his new siblings, particularly 8-year-old Maltese mix Sunshine.
"Toothless is doing so well now. He is slowly but surely coming out of his feral shell and is such a Velcro dog. He follows me everywhere and loves to be held," Cantrell said.
"He is currently doing slow-kill heartworm treatment due to his age. He has been through his first round of Doxycycline to soften the worms and is now on a monthly preventative to slowly kill them off. He will also need an eye ointment for the rest of his life to treat his dry eye."
Cantrell regularly shares glimpses of her life on social media (@theseniordogsquad) to show people how rewarding it is to adopt a dog, senior dogs in particular. On November 20, she shared a post explaining the story behind Toothless' rescue and what he'd been through, much to the dismay on thousands of TikTokers. The post received more than 22,200 views and 2,400 likes in a matter of days.
By sharing more details about the horror of where Toothless came from, Cantrell hopes she can encourage more people "to adopt and work towards ending animal cruelty."
Images of the 47 dogs who were rescued from the broken-down trailer in Houston, Texas. The dogs were rescued on October 5, and just a day later Toothless found his new home. @theseniordogsquad / TikTokShe said: "So many people online have fallen in love with him, just like I did. Everyone seems to love that he got a happy ending. The city of Houston is notorious for our stray dog population, so it's nice to see a story that ends with so much love."
Many TikTok users took to the comments to praise Cantrell for her tireless efforts in helping these poor dogs, with more than 100 comments so far. One person wrote: "Thank you for saving him."
Another TikToker responded: "You're a beautiful person! Toothless looks so happy to finally feel the love he's always wanted and deserved."
While one person commented: "So adorable, I'm happy you now have your new mum, enjoy all the cuddles in the world."
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.Com with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Does Pet Insurance Cover Medication?
Nearly all pet insurance providers offer some prescription medication coverage. These are our top-recommended companies' policies for medication.
Spot Medication CoverageSpot Pet Insurance offers a low-cost accident-only plan, a more comprehensive accident-and-illness plan, and two wellness add-ons. All policies cover medications to treat covered conditions, provided the medication is FDA-approved and prescribed by a licensed veterinarian. Experimental treatments and over-the-counter medications aren't covered.
Unlike some other companies, Spot covers prescription food and supplements as long as they're prescribed to treat a covered condition and not for general health or maintenance. The company's Platinum preventive care add-on also offers $25 per year for flea and heartworm prevention, checkups and other routine vet visits.
Trupanion Medication CoverageTrupanion has a single plan covering accidents and illnesses, including medications prescribed for either. Prescription food is covered at 50% for up to two months. Dietary supplements qualify for coverage if they're prescribed to treat a covered condition and not for general health. Trupanion doesn't offer wellness coverage, but its Recovery and Complementary Care add-on covers homeopathic and herbal remedies plus treatments such as acupuncture.
Fetch Pet Medication CoverageFetch by Dodo offers a single plan for accidents and illnesses but no wellness coverage. Its plan covers all medication prescribed for covered conditions, including chronic conditions and congenital conditions. Nutritional supplements are covered, but prescription food is not.
Embrace Medication CoverageEmbrace Pet Insurance's single plan covers accidents and illnesses, including medication and homeopathic remedies prescribed to treat them. Embrace won't cover flea, tick or heartworm prevention, nutritional supplements or prescription food unless you purchase its Wellness Rewards for Routine Care add-on.
To learn more: Embrace Pet Insurance review
Healthy Paws Medication CoverageHealthy Paws' accident-and-illness plan covers prescription medication for all covered conditions. It doesn't cover herbal medicine or homeopathy, and there is no wellness add-on for preventive medications.
Figo Medication CoverageFigo offers one accident-and-illness plan with optional "power-up" add-ons, including wellness care. It reimburses all prescription medication for covered conditions. You'll need to add its Wellness Power-up for flea, tick and heartworm prevention coverage. Its Veterinary Exam Fees Power-up covers up to $250 of prescription food annually.
To learn more: Figo Pet Insurance review
Pets Best Medication CoveragePets Best's accident-only and accident-and-illness plans cover all FDA-approved, vet-prescribed medications for covered conditions. Some supplements and over-the-counter drugs are covered.You'll need to add the Essential Wellness or Best Wellness add-on for heartworm medication coverage.
Costco Pet Insurance Review 2024
Types of coverageAccident and illness
Wellness
Costco pet insurance through Figo offers an optional wellness plan and an optional add-on to cover vet exam fees.
Discounts
Costco pet insurance provides a 5% discount when you add more than one pet to a Figo health insurance plan. Each pet gets its own policy, so you can customize coverage to meet each cat or dog's unique coverage needs.
This multipet discount is in addition to the 15% Costco member discount.
Customer satisfaction
There are no Costco pet insurance reviews on Trustpilot, however, Costco pet insurance is administered by Figo pet insurance. Figo's Trustpilot rating is 4.1 out of 5 stars after over 1,680 reviews. Of the poor reviews, there is some frustration with slow customer service response and denied claims or having to provide documents more than once.
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