Dogs with severely matted coats and overgrown toenails is sadly a regular sight for National Mill Dog Rescue. But some dogs suffer more greatly. Jack, a recently rescued Chow Chow is one such dog. He made it through medical intake and was found to have an “extremely matted coat”. It may not be too clearly visible in the video (see below), but he had tight, twisted mats throughout his thick fur.
“Mats like these are tremendously painful to the dog. Imagine having a too-tight pony tail that pulls, causing pain, every time you move. Now imagine this across your entire body…and imagine not being able to do anything about it,” writes National Mill Dog Rescue.
If the mats remain, they can be so bad that they cause injury. “Mats like these can actually cause bruising and sores on the underlying skin,” explains the rescue group. “When mats get this bad, the only real solution is a complete shave down.”
And so, Jack reluctantly (but calmly) lets the groomers shave him until only his head and paws remained furred.
His appearance is drastically changed, but the moment he is freed from his cage of fur, Jack is also rejuvenated and feels like a new dog!
Jack wasn’t the only Chow in the group rescued by the National Mill Dog Rescue. A few other Chows got their first taste of freedom (and snow) when the NMDR rehab team took them outside.
“It’s such a beautiful thing to see when dogs are finally living the lives they were meant to,” writes NMDR. Sometimes dogs come from tougher situations than others, and it makes their freedom that much more beautiful. Take a look at our Chows getting to enjoy their new lives. Our rehab team decided to get them all out at once, and it was a truly delightful time.”
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