I'm ready for my new Family!

We are incredibly impressed at what a champ Rocco has been overcoming two significant medical issues. He never complains and just accepts the love and various treatments or physical therapy. Rocco is a super cute 3 year old poodle mix from the Napa Shelter euthanasia list. He needed intensive treatment for untreated perianal fistulas that were badly infected. Thankfully he has responded well to antibiotics and a special diet so he won't likely require surgery as long as he keeps it up. He was just about ready for adoption when he suffered a blown disc in his lower back that partially paralyzed him. You can imagine our relief when he began to move his hind legs again and walk short distances after 9 weeks of crate rest. Now it has been 12 weeks since his injury and he no longer needs a wheelchair to move about his foster home or go on short walks! We are optimistic he will continue to gain strength in the coming weeks. For now, Rocco is doing daily stretches to loosen up his stiff legs, swimming with a life vest, and his foster mom treats him to red laser sessions each day (he's got his own at-home laser that will go home with his adopter). He's no longer taking any pain meds and the vet is really impressed by his recovery. He could go home today with the right adopter who doesn't mind continuing to monitor him (with our support). Rocco is looking for a cautious adopter who will understand that he needs to take it easy going forward so he can keep a healthy back for the rest of his life. Using a ramp to get up and down from couches and beds is ideal and jumping down could aggravate his back. A single-level home and/or an adopter with a strong back is best since this little guy shouldn't be climbing stairs. Thankfully he only weighs 15 pounds! This pooch will need to eat a prescription diet for life to ensure his perianal fistulas don't return, so his adopters should keep this in mind as well. WCAL offers TONS of support to our adopters, so if you are on the fence, please email or give us a call to chat. 707-800-5058 or [email protected] is a good way to reach our volunteers. We believe in full transparency, supporting our adopters and making great matches for the special dogs we rescue.