Bear's story...

Bear is an incredibly sweet and loving Newfy mix that was found wandering and taken to the Mesa County Animal Services in Grand Junction, Colorado.

Heather Shelstad was kind enough to spring him from the shelter and bring him back to Denver. She had a very stinky ride home, so she generously took him to be groomed before going to his foster home. Bear was a whole new man after a bath, blow dry, and the removal of his mats!

After his arrival he went to see Dr. Winton for a full medical exam. Poor Bear is extremely obese and is approximately 30 lbs overweight currently. In addition, he had a large tumor on his front right leg. We took x-rays and they were quite remarkable. We aren't quite sure how this boy is walking and not in pain because most of the bone is gone as a result of the very sizable tumor. It is impossible to know what kind of tumor he has without a biopsy, but it is fairly apparent that this sweet boy does have cancer of some type. Typically, the next step would be amputating his leg in order to remove the tumor and cancerous area, but unfortunately Bear is not a candidate for surgery at this point as a result of his obesity. He could never support his body on only 2 legs and he is also suffering from arthritis in all of his joints due to his age and the weight.

At this stage, Bear is also not a candidate for adoption so we have decided to make him a permanent member of our foster program. He has fit in very well at his foster home with Kara and her daughters and they have generously agreed to open their hearts and home to this special boy for as long as he needs them!

Moving forward, our plan is to continue with a diet and short walks to slowly start getting some weight off. He was also diagnosed as Hypo-thyroid and is now on medication that should help as well. We are going to keep a very close eye on his condition and perhaps sometime down the road the situation will change and we can do more for him! Right now, he is happy and loving being part of a family and we'll keep him comfortable for as long as possible.