Two years and tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of medical treatment have done their best to erase the tragedies of the past, but abused dog Dwayne will always bear the scars of his numerous traumas.
The dog was found wandering the streets of Tijuana in a horrendous state after suffering at the hands of both his owner and the local residents. He was picked up in May of 2017 and taken to a medical treatment facility in San Diego, California, for assessment.
Dwayne, a now-4-year-old Pointer mix, was taken under the wing of Helen Woodward Animal Center in Rancho, Santa Fe. After Dwayne received an emergency dose of the love and care he had gone so long without, center staff gave the sweet dog his powerful moniker; the stoic pup was named after wrestling powerhouse Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
The animal center regaled how Dwayne had been spotted by a concerned Mexican citizen who saw the dog being seriously abused by Tijuana locals. Local residents, scared and revolted by Dwayne’s physical deformities, were caught throwing rocks at the meek young dog and even scalding him with hot water.
Allegedly, Dwayne’s original owner had bound his mouth shut with wire, kicked him, and thrashed him with sticks to within an inch of his life. The dog bore the scars to prove it.
It was believed that Dwayne had been fending for himself on the hostile streets of the Mexican city since his previous owner was jailed on unrelated charges. To add insult to severe injury, the poor creature was also attacked by a pair of pit bulls on the street, inflicting head wounds and horrific damage to his ears.
It was at this time that Dwayne was noticed, picked up, and taken into care. Dwayne’s initial rescuer was unable to find a shelter in Tijuana that could help the dog; Dwayne’s injuries were too complex and too extensive. But a generous benefactor in Arizona caught wind of Dwayne’s condition and kindly funded his initial emergency treatment.
Dwayne’s rescuer, who remains anonymous, then contacted Dr. Patricia Carter, chief veterinarian at the Helen Woodward Center’s animal hospital, and pleaded for her help. Carter did everything she could.
Carter’s synopsis was bleak but not without hope. Dwayne needed to undergo extensive surgeries to fix a dislocated hip, dislocated elbow, and a plethora of facial deformities. Dwayne was also suffering breathing difficulties as a result of having his snout bound shut.
On Sept. 8, 2017, four months after the pup was found wandering the streets, Dwayne went home with a woman named Kelle. Kelle welcomed Dwayne into her home and heart at a moving adoption party held by animal center staff; the party was livestreamed on Facebook for the public, who had followed Dwayne’s journey to recovery, to enjoy.
All center staff had invested their time, skills, and hope in the beautiful, brave dog’s progress. It was the perfect end to a perfectly tragic tale to see Dwayne welcomed into the home he truly deserved.
“His mom thinks the world of him,” they said. We do, too!
