Inbred dog taken from backyard breeder adopted by woman who rescued her

By Tamara

A shockingly disfigured Chihuahua name Rosie was rescued from a backyard breeder on June 20th, 2012. Her rescuer, Cinnamon Muhlbauer, fell in love with the neglected dog and decided to adopt Rosie. Cinnamon says that given her history, she deserved a lifetime of love and adoration. "Rosie will need special care throughout her life, but she is worth the extra effort," Muhlbauer said in an interview with Dogster.

Rosie's Facebook fan page tells the following story:

Rosie disfigured Chihuahua Rosie was liberated from a Woodland Hills, CA backyard breeder/hoarder on June 20, 2012.

Rosie was born on Valentine’s Day 2010 – hard to believe she is not very old – but she is the victim of greedy and unethical behavior by a backyard breeder and dog hoarder in Woodland Hills, CA. Of all the dogs rescues workers got out of there, Rosie is in the worst shape.

I know that some find Rosie hard to look at right now – trust me when I say she is stunning on the inside. And, she has spirit, after all she survived two years of neglect in a filthy crowded house, so given the opportunity to thrive imagine what she can do. She is getting that chance because someone cared enough to contact me about her, I was crazy enough to respond, and hundreds of others have stepped up to send love, prayers, money for vet bills, and ideas on what I can do to help her.

This page is about her but it is also about me – Cinnamon Muhlbauer. Who am I? Why should you trust me with Rosie? That is not an easy question to answer because I can’t be everything to everybody – I can only be who I am – and that is a quirky, aging rocker chick, vegetarian that was born in CA, lived in WA for awhile, and now rents a house on a horse rescue ranch in the Santa Monica mountains of Malibu.

I suck at housebreaking or basic training of dogs but excel at nursing, rehabbing and providing care for the ones like Rosie. Google me, FB me, check me out on Linked In…I’m not ashamed of anything I’ve done, I’m only ashamed of things I did not do, like smack the woman who did this to Rosie.

Finally, about the Chip In for Rosie. This is the first time I’ve raised funds for one of my rescues. I initially asked that donations be sent to Malibu Vet http://www.facebook.com/MalibuVetClinic?ref=ts for the Rosie fund but after so many people asked for a chip in, I set it up. Getting Rosie started on the new life is the easy part. Her long-term care is what concerns me and why I asked for help.

Her teeth will need to be cleaned at least every month and must be done by a non-anesthetic process. Her little bent legs could benefit from physical therapy and I would like to give her that chance. All of her bills will be posted here. I will keep everyone updated and my vet knows her information is open to anyone wishing to have it. Any questions, any comments, any suggestions, please email me, I am happy to answer!

Update August 9, 2012: Rosie has a new video!

Like? (14)

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Comments on this Article

Mandy & Ben... People like yourselves are just disgusting and you should really watch what you put out there. I had to take my mother off life support because there was no quality of life, she was going through cancer and had a strike that left her brain dead. It was the hardest thing that I've ever had to do but I did it because there was absolutely no chance if her ever waking up. If the doctors had told me that she would wake up but she'd need constant care, would not be able to walk/talk/see/eat whatever the case may have been, but she was still there in mind/body & soul then I would have taken it in a heartbeat. Wether it's a human being it an animal, everyone has the right to survive and no one has the right to say that they cannot..

For the doubters, Rosie is thriving and doing wonderful http://www.everythingrosie.com/

Ben, Yes there are tons of animals that also need homes, but this sweet little Rosie also deserves to have a chance to experiance the love of a human. Good god man, have a heart and stop thinking about the money. Mandy,heaven forbid if you ever have a disabled child, who the hell are you to play God? I work with people with disabilities and ave learned more from them than anyone else in my life. Maybe you should find a local agency that provides services to these human beings and volunteer some time instead of watching your daily soaps! These people have special spirits and chose to come here with these challenges to teach insensitive people like you!

In all of my years I have never, ever seen such horrific abuse, too bad you can't put the person who did this in cage where she/he belongs!! Bless you and Rosie, Nala and I are praying for you both...Good job Cinnamon.

I am siding with Rosie!This dog survived with no intervention for longer than anyone could hope. I don't believe that Cinnamon is prolonging the inevitable. I do believe that she is making it as comfortable and wonderful as long as time allows. Isn't that what we do for all our pets both normal and handicap. Time is short and we enjoy it while we can. If Rosie could live miserable with no help, who are we to take that from her because of what we see and how we feel. I think we all assume she is miserable because of how she looks. But if you take time to look in her eyes in the before and after pictures, you can see she isn't suffering anymore; and in one of the pictures I could swear she is smiling. I guess I am rambling......if she didn't die of her own accord when she was living in hell, then I am all for giving her everything she wants until she is ready to cross over or till a vet says it is time! Congrats Rosie on your new life!

Rosie is beautiful and deserves the wonderful new life you are giving her. You will know when the time comes.....

I truly believe we shouldn't be to quick to judge "quality of life" and to insult the intentions of these heroic folks who took on a monumental task both emotionally and financially. Obviously those with the negative comments did NOT view all the videos. I'd say this little Rosie is having quite a wonderful new life. Watch the video with her and her playmate friend.

Thank you Deborah...

My feeling is that this dog, somehow, with little to no human attention (according to this), suckled at her mum's teet, learned to eat and drink on her own, and survived through total will power. She wanted to live or she wouldn't have. She now has care and love and you can see through the video, how much she is enjoying aspects of her life. I loved watching her play. May not be as rambunctious as "normal" dogs, but she doesn't know this. She knows her life. I have no doubt that if she didn't have the quality of life that she should have, as caring as Cinnamon and Eddie are to her, they would never let her suffer. And I am sure, that should that decision ever need to be made, they will make the right one for Rosie. What I think everyone should be getting from this are a few simple things. 1. Look beyond any deformities to see the real beauty. 2. Compassion should come before all else, and yes, compassion may at times mean making the difficult choices over life and death, but different does not equal death. 3. Backyard breeding should be illegal and everyone should be preaching against it, boycotting it, writing to their government about it, etc...

I think she is beautiful!

This is for Ben & Mandy- while I understand your concern about quality of life, unless you are personally connected to sweet Rosie, please don't judge. When my oldest daughter was 13 months old, I was told by a physician to have her institutionalized because she would never be able to function outside of a structured environment. My husband and I chose to disregard this advice and, now, at 31 years old, she reads at a 7th grade level, works in a sheltered workshop, and is my comic relief when I feel overly stressed. I also have 2 handicapped dogs, one of which was thrown in a dumpster as a pup because she was born deformed. No one should make judgments about anyone else unless it personally affects their way of life.

Probably because they don't make sense. If you end up blin are you going to kill yourself because no human would dare put another human down but this is not the case for dogs. When my dog was ran over, being a tiny jack Russell the driver either didn't see what he hit or didn't care so my tiny, injured blood covered puppy had to come home himself and just lay on the door step shaking. That must ov been painful and yet he still wanted to live. He showed that by his journey home that day.

Ladies and Gents--It's really a quality of life evaluation that comes into play here. A dog with a missing leg, with the right attention and possibly equipment, can have a very good quality of life. I don't know this rescue dog, so I won't judge it's particular situation. But if I were in a situation where I could barely walk, barely eat, and might be constantly uncomfortable without any possible positive prognosis for improvement, and I could not make decisions for myself, I hope that someone might employ humane, practical decision making skills regarding my medical treatment. It's not callous or ignorant, I'd like to call this measured and careful consideration of the whole picture. Why not try to put our emotional responses on hold, and make decisions that make sense in the big picture?

For anyone that thinks that deformed animals have a lesser quality of life, please inform yourselves and check out a wonderful book called "Homer's Odyssey." It is about a cat who had to have both his eyes removed. Animals overcome diversity, especially if things happen to them when they're young enough to not remember being any different. Homer has a wonderful life and can do things that nobody would think a blind cat could do. Instead of criticizing people who are willing to spend their own time and money, just let it go. They're not hurting you and they are certainly not hurting the animal (otherwise a vet would have spoken out against treating it.) Just as humans are resilient, so are animals. (Check out Kyle Maynard who has born without full limbs who is a champion wrestler, or Daniel Kish, who is completely blind but has developed a way to get around in the world that's so good, he can go mountain biking with other blind people.) Who are we to tell them they shouldn't have a shot at having a good life? And in response to Ben, I think that Cinnamon is not the person you should be chiding. The people that need to be educated are the ones that go out and buy pure-breed puppies when there are plenty of puppies, and older animals, being euthanized everyday in the shelters due to overcrowding. So, go encourage all your friends who are posting on their social network about wanting to go out and buy pure-breed puppies to help those dogs in Taiwan or their local shelter. Heck, encourage everyone that doesn't have a dog to go get one, because at the end of the day, they make our lives better. Just as Cinnamon is making Rosie's life better, I'm sure Rosie is making Cinnamon's life just a little bit brighter as well.

So Mandy... I will put the question to you... At what point should my level of tolerance to deformity stop. . . What criteria will you use to decide that this being survives but this one does not. It seems to me that the will to survive of the individual ( human or otherwise) should dictate.... If there is no hope there is no life.

well i actually joined to side with Ben. I am afraid that i am of the opinion that quality of life is better than quantity. and i would be concerned that this poor little mite would not be happy. but then who knows. i am also of the opinion that severely disabled newborns of any species.. human or otherwise.. should NOT be given the chance to live if that life is going to be just one constant battle of misery for them. its just not fair to inflict such suffering. however on saying that the lady who saved this dog gives me faith in humanity. Bless her and all of you who side with her. i can see both points in this view.

I made an account for the sole purpose of saying this directly to Ben. You have basically said that if a child is born disabled and disfigured that they will not live a happy life so just kill it and be kind. It's not right at all. My dog was ran over at 2 years old and had his leg shattered and now 8 years later can still not walk on it but I would never have dreamed of euthanising him as he is so happy and still acts like a pup. This dog deserves love and affection not death and with those things the pain will disappear. This woman did a very kind thing don't bring it down and act like she did bad.

I was just bawling at work, I think tears of happiness are allowed. :) My heart is so happy watching the new video. I love the picture frame pics of Rosie in her pretty dress. She looks like she's smiling. And I had to laugh watching her play. She doesn't know she's different, she just knows she's now loved. Rosie, Cinnamon and Eddie, when I get a job again (hopefully soon), I would love to be one of the sponsors to help with her hospital bills. Love to you all! :)

I was crying Rosie, but not for you, but with happiness that you found someone to love you just as you are. So many dogs who aren't perfect never find a decent home - probably because there are too many people like Ben in the world. I'm so happy for you and your family. I wish you many years of happiness!

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