Rescuers think dog starved for a month won’t survive, but he makes a miraculous comeback

The 16-month-old mastiff mix was found tied up outside a house in Laurens, South Carolina, and was rescued by animal control officers. Facebook | Justice for Champ

When rescuers arrived to save a starved dog tied outside a house, they thought it wouldn’t survive. But to the surprise of everyone, this dog beat all odds.

The dog, later named Champ, had purposely been starved for at least a month. The 16-month-old mastiff mix was found tied up outside a house in Laurens, South Carolina, and was rescued by animal control officers, according to The Dodo.

He had not been given any water or food while under the care of a woman named Elizabeth James, who was later charged with ill treatment of animals. The pup’s original owner was James’s ex-boyfriend, and he had left Champ at her house for at least a month.

“She intentionally did not feed this dog,” Sheriff’s Captain Chris Martin told 7News.

“This dog was on her property. She sees the dog everyday and sees his conditions are worse. She could have stepped up, contacted law enforcement, animal control, she could have put this dog on Facebook and tried to find a home for the dog. She just chose not to.”

Champ was on the brink of death and covered with maggots and worms when rescuers saved him.

The 16-month-old dog weighed only 50 pounds when he was rescued and should weigh 110 pounds, Animal Control told WYFF.

Jackie O'Sullivan, co-founder of Rescue Dogs Rock NYC, told The Dodo that Champ was in terrible shape and needed an immediate blood transfusion.

“He had no muscle mass, he couldn’t regenerate red blood cells on his own, he was anemic and his gums were white,” said O'Sullivan.

“He probably wouldn’t have lived another 12 hours. It was that close.”

When the rescue shared his photo, the post immediately garnered a lot of attention.

“I think his story really resonated with people because there was somebody living in the home who watched this happen to him day after day,” O'Sullivan said.

“He was purposely starved while the other dogs in the home were fed. I think that people are really really angry about that.”

Despite being mistreated, Champ hasn’t been traumatized.

“[The vet staffers] say he has an amazing disposition and is a very sweet dog,” O’Sullivan said. “He doesn’t seem to hold any grudges. He’s just happy for every little bit of attention, love and support he gets.”

With tender loving care and also his fighting spirit, Champ is on the road to recovery with his journey documented on the Justice for Champ Facebook page.

“I think he’s really nothing short of miraculous,” O’Sullivan said. “When we posted that first picture people were saying, ‘Come on, get out! That dog is dead.’ And we were saying, ‘No, he’s not dead. He was very very close to the end.’”

“We hope that he will go on to have an amazing, happy life,” O’Sullivan added. “[And] that his story will go on to help other dogs and encourage people to speak out when they see or know of abuse in their area.”

After three weeks, Champ was finally on the journey to recovery in a medical foster, where he could feel happy and be himself again.

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