CHIQUITA

When Multiple rescues, advocates, and the community work together amazing things happen!  This sweet girl was found by 3 amazing women in a local neighborhood in Rosarito, MX.  Over the next week they told everyone about her, begging for her to get help!  Originally they thought she had been attacked or beaten but when we went out to evaluate her it was discovered that she had TVT (Transmissable Veneral Tumors) covering her body.  Unfortunately the treatment she needed would be highly specialized because her disease was extremely advanced.  We do not have access to any vets in our area who were able to treat this, so we reached out to another rescue in San Diego, CA, The Animal Pad (TAP).  They responded immediately and said to bring her in, they have a vet trained for exactly what she needed!  But now the real trial began, Chiquita was not an easy dog to catch.  She had been on the streets, fending for herself, and what human interactions she had were abusive.   So with the help of her advocates and many others in the neighborhood they finally tricked her to going into a neighbors front patio.  As soon as she was inside they closed the gate and with lots of carne asada convinced her to let them touch her.  Once she was comfortable they were able to help her into a crate and load her into one car that could take her into central Rosarito.  From there another advocate picked her up and brought her into HPRMX.  She waited here 3 days while her space at TAP and her border crossing were arranged and then we took one last car ride together over the border and into the US.

She is now with TAP and has been responding beautifully to treatment.  But this is not the end of her story!

edSo many in the neighborhood where she was had seen her that when they found out her wounds were not from an attack but from a treatable and preventable disease they were curious.  We provided all the information about TVT to the advocates.  TVT is essentially a type of Sexually Transmitted Cancer the dogs transmit by sexual contact or licking the exposed tumors.  Its easily preventable by fixing your animal, lack of hormones to encourage sexual contact equals very little chance of transmission.  In addition, when the tumors are caught early its relatively simple to treat with a few rounds of chemo.  So, armed with this information the advocates went and told everyone!  Immediately people who previously had not wanted to alter their dog were flooding to the advocates finding out where and when they could take their dogs to get sterilized!  Her story got so much attention she even made it into our local newspaper, raising awareness for the importance of sterilization to prevent these things!  A local Spay Neuter organization picked up the momentum and are holding free vaccine and sterilization clinics in the neighborhood!  All of this happened because of Chiquita and her Advocates.  They never gave up on her and now countless lives will be saved and changed because of her Story!  Chiquita is still undergoing treatment as of November 2022 but make sure to keep up with her story on The Animal Pad's website!  She has a bright, beautiful life in front of her and we are so thankful we were given the opportunity to be part of her story!