Diary Of A Rescued Bully Named Cash

by Davidh

Cash came to us by way of a member Robin (@Polotat ) on this site. To make a long story short, she got Cash from a friend of hers, that got him from a neighbor, that did not want him any longer and was not caring for him. Cash was being left outside and not being fed properly. Robin knew she could not keep him, but she wanted to get him out of a bad situation, so she brought him home. Cash was in sad shape when Robin received him. Robin posted on English Bulldog News that Cash needed a new fur-ever home. Robin already had a new puppy, an older dog, and a feisty cat. Adding Cash to the clan would have been too much. She wanted to concentrate on raising the pup, plus Cash and her cat did not like each other. Robin posted on EBN and I responded to her post. We made arrangements to meet so I could bring him home. Here is our diary:

Aug. 29, 2011:

I picked Cash up today from Robin and took him to the vets office for a checkup. He was not in very good shape, way under weight, skin issues, and favoring his left rear leg. We also noticed he had a mark around his neck from a collar that someone had on him that was too tight and too narrow. The vet checked him out and said that, "Besides the fact he needs to gain some weight, he is pretty healthy, no intestinal worms, no heart worms, eyes are clear and ears are a little dirty but look good." He also scanned Cash for a micro-chip, which he did not find one. Cash received all his shots and we started him on his heart worm preventative. We imagine he is about two years old. The vet also put him on Rimadyl for his leg. The people who had him was feeding him Purina Pro, which may explain his skin problems. Robin, who we got him from, switched him to Holistic Select. We feed FROMM to our other bullies, so we will be switching him to FROMM.

We get home from the vet, I took him straight to the back yard for a bath because he smelled and needed some medicated shampoo for his skin issues. We bathed him with Chlorahexidine shampoo to help his skin. We noticed that someone had shaved his hair short so we will be glad when that grows back out and all of his color will show. He is a beautiful bully and will be more so when we get some weight on him and his skin clears up. He has a raw spot on his right front paw, probably from him biting it. His back by his tail is very red, but his tail and tail pocket look pretty good considering. Cash also had some scabs on both sides of his butt by his tail that I scrubbed off during the bath so I could see just what was going on under them. I put some Neosporin on his paw, and the spots on both sides of his tail, then sprayed the red area on his back with some Chlorahexidine spray.

I brought the other dogs out side for a meet and greet. That went OK- sort of, Buddy and Cash would bow up to each other so I had to get between them so they would not fight, after a few minutes they settled down a bit. Then we brought him inside to explore the indoors. He had to sniff everything and check out every room. We keep the back of the house closed off to the dogs and our bedroom door shut, so they only get access to the living room, kitchen, and dining room.

That night we fed them and they finally settled down. Buddy and Cash would bow up to each other every once in a while, but I would tell them NO and they would settle down. Cash loved the Cooleroo that Buddy likes to sit on. I knew this would be trouble and we had an extra in the garage. I brought it in, this way they both could have one. They would lay there chewing their Nylabones and were being pleasant. I could tell the way Cash would sit that he is a very handsome boy.

Beverly put some ointment on his red spots on his back and about 30 minutes later he started to itch bad and it turned redder. We took him back outside to gave him another bath with some medicated oatmeal shampoo and that seemed to help. He is a trooper and let us give him a bath or do whatever we needed to do to try and make him feel better. It was like he knew we were trying to help him. He was itching on his rear legs so we sprayed him with some anti itch spray and that worked so he finally settled down to take a nap. Bed time came, we let everyone outside to do their business and back in for the night. Cash is crate trained so he went right in his crate. Robin gave me his blanket that I put in his crate, and he knew right where to go.

The next morning I got up and let them out to potty, they all did their business and came back in. I ate breakfast and they were just hanging out in the living room. Buddy was in his usual spot on the couch were I sit, and Cash was on the Cooleroo chewing a bone. I left for work and called my wife later that morning to see how everyone was. She said everyone ate except Cash, so she put some FROMM down and he gobbled it up! So I guess he is on FROMM now with no transition. She gave him some pumpkin to help his belly adjust. She was fixing her breakfast when Buddy and Cash got into a fight so she had to separated them. No one was hurt, no blood shed, so all was good. Buddy just does not like having another male bully in the house. He has always been the king of the house and does not want to share the title. They should settle down in a few days. We have Cash an appointment next week on Sept. 8th to be neutered. So we’ll see how that goes.

September 3, 2011:

Well Cash is doing well, he is feeling more at home, and is playing more with his toys and the other dogs, except Buddy. Yesterday and today he was outside with Lucy and Missy and they were running around and playing together. It is so wonderful to see him frolic and sprint around! He is a wonderful boy and such a sweetheart. I am glad to see his personality finally starting to show. When he is in the house he does not get into anything. He likes to lie on his pillow we gave him, or he will get in his crate to take a nap. His hair is growing out some and his skin problems are getting better. He is gaining weight slowly and looking better every day. We gave him another bath today to help with his skin problems. His left eye is watering some so we will get the vet to look at it this Wednesday when he goes to get neutered. While he is under the vet will check his left rear leg better to see what is going on with it. He is looking better, and is a very handsome boy.

September 7, 2011:

Well today we took Cash to the vet to get neutered, and have his knee checked out. Come to find out his knee cap was dislocated and his knee joint kept coming out of socket. Dr. Dykeman neutered him and performed the surgery on his knee. He reworked the socket to keep it in place and fixed the tendons in his knee and knee cap. He said after about 4 to 6 weeks of recovery and healing he should be fine and as good as new. If we did not fix his knee, it would just keep getting worse and eventually would not be able to use that leg. We felt we owed it to Cash to have it fixed so he could have a better life. They said he came through the surgery fine and was doing great this afternoon. They kept him overnight so my wife will pick him up tomorrow afternoon as I will be in class and cannot go. We will be glad to get him home, get his leg healed, so he can run and play with no pain.

Cash is on an antibiotic, some pain medicine and more Rimadyl, and the rehab on his leg begins. I am nervous giving him the Rimadyl, as it is not very good for their systems and can even cause death. We will monitor him closely for side affects and stop it immediately if we see just one. We have to ice his leg twice a day and after icing it we have to work the joint so it will not stiffen up. We also have to take him for short walks everyday to work his knee. He loves this because he loves to go outside and go for walks. If you put his leash or collar down where he can get it, he will put it in his mouth and look at you as to say “Lets go!” It’s too funny. He is a trooper and is letting us do the rehab on his leg. As I have said before, he is such a good boy and a sweetheart. He just wants to be loved and to give love back. It’s amazing to me how these beautiful animals can be so mistreated and still have love to give.

September 12, 2011:

Took Cash to vet this morning because his leg was swollen for the last couple of days. The vet drained his knee and put a bandage on it to keep the swelling down. He said everything else looked good and to keep doing his rehab on his leg. So that was good news that he is healing okay so far. My wife took him to work today after the vet visit and he is just hanging out in the conference room being a good boy. He does not bother anything and just hangs out and minds his own business.

Cash is already looking better than when we first got him.
September 16, 2011:

When I got home today Cash was walking a lot better. However, as the day went on, his leg started to swell and he started limping bad. I could not figure this out because he did not run or play, he was just walking around. Saturday morning it was a little better, so we are just watching it. Monday he goes to the vet to get his stitches out so the vet will look at it and may drain some fluid out again. I was bragging about how Cash never bothers anything, and we have been leaving him out of his crate at night so he could move around and stretch his leg. Well, last night he decided to chew the window ledge in the breakfast room which is about 15” off the ground, perfect height for chewing. We have our house on the market and we have a showing today. I’m at work so my wife is trying to figure out a way to hide it. I guess when I get home Sunday morning I will have a job to do. This poor window ledge has been fixed so many times, because Snowflake loved to chew on it too. So now he will sleep in his crate at night, so much for being nice. We have to keep him and Buddy separated because as soon as they see each other they want to fight. I can not work with them on this issue because I do not want to take a chance on hurting Cash's leg. So we just keep them separated for now until Cash’s leg heels. We may have found him a new fur-ever home, but don’t know for sure yet.

September 19, 2011:

Took Cash to the vet this morning to get his stitches taken out. His leg is swollen some on the inside also. The vet said everything looks good, so he drained it again. He said this is normal for bullies to swell with this kind of surgery. He watched Cash walk, said everything is okay and he looks good. Jason and Toni (@Sugarsmama ) want to take Cash to see how he does at their house and may want to keep him permanently. When I left the vets office I then took Cash to their house. Toni and Jason were kind enough to take him into their home for a trial to see how he does with Sugar and their boys. Sugar was one of our babies, formally Snowflake. Jason wanted a bully for himself but Sugar fell in love with Toni, so now she is Toni’s bully. So Jason STILL wants a bully for himself and he heard we had Cash. When I got to their house, I told Jason to bring Sugar outside to meet Cash. That went pretty well so we took them inside. Cash came in going into the kitchen and living room checking it out. He found Sugar's crate went in, found her bone, brought it out and started chewing on it. He was feeling more at ease, so I stayed for a little while to see how he would do. A few times Sugar and he would start to play then try to fight but I think they will settle down. Sugar has always played hard and aggressive and Cash may not be used to that. I decided to leave, said my goodbyes, gave Sugar and my boy Cash a hug goodbye. It was good seeing Sugar again as she has become a beautiful girl. We talked to Jason later that night and so far so good. Their boys like him and he and Sugar are getting along OK. Cash was on the Cooleroo in their bedroom and Sugar is in their bed in her usual spot on Jason’s side of the bed. We will see how the week goes, but I’m sure he will do fine. He will get plenty of love and good care with them. They just love Sugar to death and she is looking great. No doubt they will love Cash just as much. We talked to Jason a few days later, he said Cash is doing OK and their boys just love him. Cash and Sugar are getting along OK, but still have not become buddies yet. So we will see how that goes. I miss Cash, he was a very sweet and wonderful bully. I’m sure Jason and Toni will just love him and give him a wonderful fur-ever home.

September 24, 2011:

Yea, Cash is in his fur-ever home! Jason and Toni have had Cash all week. They have decided to keep him! He is doing very well at their home, and even more good news is that his leg is getting better. Their sons just love him and he and Sugar are getting along very well. Toni said Sugar and Cash have become great buddies and are playing with each other very well. Toni works his leg every day and Jason will take him for walks in the evenings. I am so happy he is doing well, he is in a very good home and will live out the rest of his life being loved and well taken care of. So a big thank you to Jason and Toni for opening up your home and your hearts to such a sweet and loving boy. I had no doubt they would love him, because the short time we had him, he has stolen our heart. He is just a big beautiful bully with a heart full of love to give. So good bye big boy, we love you and will miss you, but I know you will enjoy your new fur-ever home.

Below is a picture of Cash and Sugar, looks like a happy ending!