Rottweiler was close to death in Taiwanese dog pound until British expat rescued him

By

Wills Robinson

|

Barely skin and bones, this emaciated dog was abandoned on a street and left to die.

As the Rottweiler, called Tiny, lay in the pound, his carers thought he had given up hope.

But a British owner took him in, helped him recover, and now this once decrepit animal has won the title of ‘Best Dog’.

These staggering images show the miraculous transformation he made after he was picked up from a Taiwanese dog’s home by Sean McCormack.

Before and after: The Rottweiler was left for dead in a Taiwanese dog’s home, but has since made a staggering recovery after a British expat took him in

Skeleton: He was virtually skin and bones and covered in cuts when he was rescued from the pound

Rescued: British expat Sean McCormack’s (pictured) charity took the dog in and took him to the vet for treatment

His amazing recovery was recognised during The Ruffs, the RSPCA’s alternative to Crufts.

Mr McCormack, 46, said: ‘When I first saw Tiny he was big, clearly very sick and, we were told, aggressive so we we agreed to take him in.

‘At first, I thought he was a mastiff, because he was in such a bad state that it wasn’t clear to me what breed he really was.

‘But my friend Jeff, who has two very lucky rescued Rottweilers, knew right away that Tiny was a Rottie.

‘His progress was slow but obvious to see, and he turned out to be one of the lucky ones who don’t relapse into full-blown mange from time to time.’

Despite fears Tiny was an aggressive animal, he was ‘one of the sweetest’ animals they had encountered at The Sanctuary.

In pain: Mr McCormack, 46, said Tiny was clearly very sick when he first saw him at The Sanctuary dog’s home

Health: The staggering images show how successful the transformation has been. Laeila Pereira, a volunteer at the shelter who is looking after him

said: ‘He looked like he had given up on life.’

Dr. Yang at YangMing Veterinary Hospital in Taipei was the vet who helped with Tiny’s recovery.

Mr McCormack said: ‘Dr Yang is the one to thank for Tiny’s amazing recovery, though we also believe that the natural, happy environment we provide and the healthy, raw diet we feed all our animals played their part in his speedy recuperation.

‘We knew we could cure him, but were astounded at what a fantastic dog had been hidden beneath the disease and depression that riddled him when he first came in.’

More than 300,000 people logged onto the RSPCA’s Facebook page to vote for Tiny in The Ruffs awards.

Given up: Tiny had a drawn face and deep eyes when after he had been cruelly abandoned on the street. He required extensive treatment to get him back to full health

Mr McCormack said: ‘We are all over

the moon that Tiny was crowned Grand Champion of Ruffs 2014 and hope it

serves as food for thought for all those rescue organisations that kill

animals like Tiny in order to “end their suffering”.’

He is now being looked after by Laeila Pereira, a volunteer at the shelter.

Miss Pereira said: ‘He looked like he had given up on life. I fell immediately in

love with the large, loveable Rottie with an ironic name.

Personality: Initially, volunteers feared he would be an aggressive dog, but he turned out to be ‘sweet’

‘I moved into a new apartment just so I could adopt him. He is now a beautiful and very well loved dog.’

Mr McCormack, originally from Folkestone, Kent, moved to Taiwan 15 years ago and set up The Sanctuary to look after unwanted animals which are unlikely to be rehomed.

He cares for feral cats, pigs which outgrew apartments they were kept in, orphaned baby squirrels, and lots of dogs, once-aggressive or fearful, blind and disabled.

But The Sanctuary is now facing an uncertain future after its landlady told Sean she wants to sell the property which is home to 200 rescued animals.

They face the prospect of being made homeless.

Mr McCormack added: ‘We are starting an IndieGoGo campaign and hoping to use Tiny’s story and Ruffs victory to help bring international attention to our plight.

‘We’re looking to buy a beautiful 2.5-acre site to give our dogs, cats, pigs, rabbits, squirrels, pigeons, hedgehog, budgerigar, and, very soon, deer a permanent happy home.’

Comments (461)

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Matey,

Midlands, United Kingdom,

11 minutes ago

What a lovely story. This poor animal must have thought he’d been through a nightmare and woken up in doggy heaven.

rupertlark,

bucks,

14 minutes ago

Bring him home to the UK, these dogs need help!

Me,

Sticking my oar in, United Kingdom,

25 minutes ago

Sean you’re a star, shame there aren’t more people like you in the world

Mandy Rogers,

Tamarama,

57 minutes ago

How shocking!!! Sean, you are a gem mate!! Enjoy each other’s company!!!

Richard Merrell,

Blue Mountains, Australia,

1 hour ago

Animals know more than we give them credit for…they understand…..and know when they are treated badly or with kindness…if only they could speak…and in a certain way they do communicate…cats can too

Richard Merrell,

Blue Mountains, Australia,

1 hour ago

People who do that to an animal are the REAL animals..they have no regard for life at all

shamusoz,

Gold Coast, Australia,

1 hour ago

Beautiful save. Well done and blessings to you.And what a handsome fellow Tiny turned out to be

Jules St John,

swansea, United Kingdom,

1 hour ago

what a great STORY AND What a good man rescuing him like that great friend to have

thru a glass darkly,

Englandland, United Kingdom,

1 hour ago

Poor boy,well done that man,thank God for people such as yourself.

Poppy,

Malaga,

1 hour ago

A rescued dog never forgets being abandoned, and is usually devoted to the rescuers for life.

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Rottweiler was close to death in Taiwanese dog pound until British expat rescued him