Each week, UK Spain Life will be featuring the story of a special pet belonging to someone living here in Spain. First up is Mobi, a cuddly rescue pup who really doesn’t understand how big he is.
A quick note – Mobi was very thin and unwell when he was first found. Some of the ‘before’ pictures of him are upsetting for us animal lovers. Luckily, this story has a happy ending!
A Real Lucky Pup
Mobi was found on Valentines day 2016 by a local dog-walking group. He wasn’t in good shape, as he was very thin and had a nasty wound on his tail. He was also outgrowing the chain that had been fastened around his neck, which left a deep rust mark that took months to fully disappear.
It was lucky for Mobi that the caring group of dog owners found him in time and took care of him. He was taken in by the rescue centre S.C.A.N in El Verger, where he started the long process of recovery.
Everyone who found him, and the vets who took care of him later, agreed that he really was found in the nick of time. He was very underweight and dehydrated, but it was clear from the first that he was a sweet dog despite everything he had been through.
Sometimes, the Dog Chooses You…
Finding a dog in such an awful state wasn’t easy to forget for the group. They felt responsible for him, and in April, they took him along with them on one of their outings to get some exercise. He stuck very close to Anne and Paul, who would become his new family, for the whole walk, even though he had never met them before. They took it as a sign – Mobi was going home with them, even though they already had a Labrador and a greyhound-cross taking up spots on the furniture!
Mobi still had a lot of recovering to do at his new home, as he was diagnosed with the skin disease leishmaniasis. Part of his tail had to be removed as his sores wouldn’t heal. He still had a lot of weight to put on at first, and a few more inches to grow as he was still a puppy (a very big puppy!) He was fed a lot of starchy foods along with his normal food to help his weight gain. Happily he ate everything that was put in front of him, including a few pairs of flip-flops and some cushion covers, and the road to recovery wasn’t as bumpy as it could have been.
New Life
Now, Mobi is like a different dog. He is a real character, and his difficult start doesn’t seem to be affecting him at all. He also doesn’t realise that he’s absolutely gigantic, and can often be found sitting on people’s laps (especially when they’re trying to watch TV..!) His days are spent napping on furniture he’s not supposed to be on, playing with his ‘sisters’ Luna and Poppy, and chasing around the family’s 3 cats. He also loves going for dips in the pool. Anne and Paul take their three dogs out every Sunday with the same group who first found Mobi, and everyone loves seeing him and how far he’s come.
Unfortunately, his family have to hide anything that is small enough to fit in his mouth or can be spread around…
…but on the whole, he’s a pretty good dog.
The family are truly grateful for the amazing work S.C.A.N did saving Mobi. He’s a real poster-pup for choosing rescue dogs. You can find out more about S.C.A.N, how you can help, how to adopt an animal, or how to donate on their website.
Are you living in Spain and have a lucky puppy, or a kitten who’s a real character? We’ll be featuring real pets with great stories every week, so get in touch with us on Facebook, Twitter, or send an email to stacey@ukspainlife.com.