The Deluca family recently rescued a 2-year-old German Shepherd named Haus from a Florida animal shelter in Tampa. On the afternoon of May 11, he took a chance to return the favor, and it nearly killed him.
Haus is currently suffering from life-threatening snake bites after saving the Delucas’ 7-year-old daughter, Molly, from “an extremely venomous Eastern Diamondback” rattlesnake.
“Molly and Haus were looking for his toys he likes to put outside, when a large rattlesnake appeared. Haus stood his ground, protecting my daughter and was bitten three times before the snake slithered away. Molly is fine, just shaken up and upset. Haus is fighting for his life,” mother Donya Deluca wrote on her Facebook account.
“He kept jumping back and then forward... and he did it three times. He had every opportunity to run but he didn’t,” Deluca told CNN affiliate WFLA. “He was just, kind of, holding his ground.”
She believes the dog was protecting Molly, thus calling him a hero for the courageous act.
“Next thing we know is, there’s blood and he was limping and crying,” Donya told Fox 13.
Haus is currently being treated in the Intensive Care Unit at BluePearl Vet Hospital in Tampa.
The Deluca family has since set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for Haus’ medical costs to remove the venom from his blood. As of Monday, May 16, the page has raised a total of $52, 549—far more than the requested amount of $28,000.
The family wrote on the fundraising page:
“PLEASE Stop and read before you donate!!!!!!!*****Update - we are blown away by the response in the past day! We cannot thank you enough for your support! PLEASE - we feel we have plenty to care for Haus’s needs; if that were to change we will let you know. Please INSTEAD of donating here donate to Heidi’s Legacy Rescue - http://heidislegacydogrescue.com/donate/so others can find their own Haus. You can even do it in his name. We don’t want to take this page down so you can see the story. Any monies above his medical bills will go to Heidis Legacy Rescue and other charities.”
Haus is being treated with painkillers and anti-venom medication, and is improving overall, the page states.
