An Australian Cattle Dog born with parts of his brain missing, a deformed skull and a distinctive under-bite has been described by his owner as a ‘miracle’.
Jennifer Osborne, 26, found Moose, three, in a pet store in 2016, and decided to take him home amid fears he might be put down or abandoned.Although now an advocate for adopting, she discovered the distinctive-looking puppy had several health complications that emerged when he was six months old.
She said: ‘I’m thankful I got him rather than someone who would have abandoned him or put him down. We believe Moose was born this way.
‘We know that Moose’s nose was pushed into his skull which caused the under-bite, crooked nose, deformed skull, deformed brain and eye issues – probably when he was still in the womb.’
Moose suffers from seasonal allergies and has cherry eye, a condition that causes his tear ducts to protrude from his eyelid.
Jennifer, from Ohio, says he also began having convulsive seizures in April 2018 and now has to take medication to keep them at bay.Injured hiker crawled for two days while 'carrying' his broken legBuy a Kiddie Pool For Your to Keep Your Dog Busy. Does your dog enjoy the water? Keep your dog cool in the summer by using a plastic kiddie pool out in the yard. They’re inexpensive, too. I got ours for about 4 bucks at my local Meijer.
She continued: ‘They affect the body and the brain and left his whole body twitching and him foaming at the mouth. At his worst, he had three in 30 hours.
‘He has been on a low dose of Phenobarbital that has kept grand mal seizures away since he started the medication, but he continued to have focal seizures (partial seizures) every so often and they can last hours.‘Shortly after we got Moose an MRI showed that Moose had no forehead, no sinuses, missing parts of his brain, particularly the part that helps him smell, and a cyst in his brain where the deformity is.
‘The front of his brain is squished together too. Only the front area of his brain is affected and his seizures will likely get worse but his neurologist doesn’t believe it’ll shorten his life.’
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Jennifer enjoys sharing pictures of Moose on his own Instagram account, where he now has a following of just over 92,000.
Polish people in UK get Brexit letter telling them to 'come home'In some of the images she dresses him up in a pair of glasses or a tie, receiving hundreds of comments complimenting his permanent grin and mismatching eyes.
Jennifer has now started her own range of Moose merchandise to help contribute to his vet bills, which set her back $2,000 (£1,600) last year.
She said: ‘He is amazing and a blessing on my life. He is the happiest dog I have ever met and I’m thankful he’s my dog.
‘By the way Moose acts you wouldn’t think his brain had any issues. He is extremely intelligent, has so much personality, and loves everyone especially his mama.
‘He loves to play with his toys but doesn’t understand sharing toys with his siblings. He believes they are all for him. He knows he’s a special boy!’
She added: ‘With everything that’s happened to Moose, we’re very lucky he survived, period. He is literally a miracle.’
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