Stray, emaciated Mundelein dog finds forever home
The dog, a pit bull mix who would later be named Maeve by rescue volunteers, was brought in by Mundelein residents on New Year's Eve.
The good Samaritans found the dog in Kracklauer Park and immediately brought her to Reach Rescue, a 501(c)3, not-for-profit animal rescue organization just down the street in Mundelein. Upon arrival, it was clear the dog had been neglected and abused.
"Every rib, hip bone, and skull bone was protruding. She was incredibly skinny," said Reach Rescue volunteer Marybeth Stone. "As if that wasn't bad enough, her tail was a horrifying mess."
The rescue shared Maeve on their Facebook page hoping for support in more ways than one, and the public seemed to fall in love with the sweet pit bull mix.
"People couldn't help but love Maeve just as much as we did," Reach Rescue Vice President Amanda Dziekanski said. "She was obviously put through a lot at the hands of humans, yet she probably has one of the sweetest demeanors I've come across in 10 years of rescue work. She made it easy to love her."
Over New Year's weekend, Maeve went to the emergency vet three separate times to have her tail cleaned and bandaged. Three days after Maeve's arrival at Reach Rescue, she underwent a partial tail amputation by Dr. Bruce Setlock at Ruth Helen Wolf Animal Hospital in Libertyville.
Although the entire tail would need to be amputated, infection was brewing in the open wound and a full amputation posed the risk of that infection spreading. After a couple of days of intense medications, Maeve had the remaining portion of her tail amputated and began showing her true personality: playful, affectionate, patient, and genuinely loving of everyone and everything.
Reach Rescue's Facebook followers couldn't get enough updates on Maeve, and adoption requests flowed in. She wasn't ready to be adopted quite yet as she continued on her road to recovery, but one family in particular was enamored with Maeve from the beginning.
A Reach Rescue foster family of many years, they waited patiently while Maeve recovered in her original foster home, and ended up seeing Maeve's recovery through in their own home.
On Jan. 28, almost a month since the day Maeve came through the rescue's doors, it was made official. Maeve has a new family that will never let her experience neglect again.
"All of us at Reach Rescue are so thankful for Maeve's medical team, her foster family, and her forever family. Despite how tough it can be, cases like Maeve's are why we do what we do, and it's amazing to see her healthy and thriving," Reach Rescue President Patricia Bianco said.
Members of the community are asked to use this story as an example of why safe animal rehoming is so important. A quick microchip scan allowed the rescue to find Maeve's original owners who had given her away two years prior.
When available, seek help from a rescue organization to avoid situations like Maeve's.