A two-year-old dog named Tawny was found lying in a stranger’s yard in a Fort Lauderdale neighborhood, so emaciated that her ribs were visible beneath her skin. She is now recovering at an animal hospital in Deerfield Beach, where rescuers say she may have gone without food for weeks, possibly months, before she was discovered.
According to WSVN, iHeart Animal Rescue volunteers received a call last week about Tawny being found in the yard, and they described her as starving with her rib cage visible. Cindy Mucciaccio, the rescue’s founder and president, said Tawny was “just one of the skinniest dogs I’ve seen.” Animal safety advocates have described her case as a disturbing instance of animal abuse.
Tawny is now being nursed back to health at Deer Run Animal Hospital in Deerfield Beach. The rescue says she is expected to regain weight before eventually being put up for adoption, though for now the priority is simply getting her stable and healthy.
Rescue Says It Needs a Medical Foster
iHeart Animal Rescue is asking South Florida residents to help with Tawny’s care, both through donations to keep her at the hospital longer and by stepping up as a foster. “We’re going to need a medical foster, somebody to make sure that they feed her the same way or whoever fosters can also adopt her possibly,” the rescue said, per the same WSVN report. That foster could ultimately become Tawny’s permanent home if things go well…