From the moment we get a pet, we become their parents, best friends, and protectors. We love them deeply and share our home with them.
My heart hurts for all the defenseless animals who were abused and betrayed instead of being loved and cherished.
The beginning of Violet’s story is a bitter reminder of animal cruelty. Let’s follow her journey to happiness that all animals deserve.
Saving Violet
Violet, an English Mastiff, was thrown out of a window of a moving car on Gallahan Road, in Clinton, Maryland. People who witnessed this horrible scene immediately stopped their car and ran to rescue her.
They rushed her to Prince George County Animal Control. On the same day, she was transferred to Mutts Matter Rescue… a non-profit dog rescue organization that works with shelters and assists urgent cases like this one.
Debbie Gretz, one of their volunteers, fostered her. She worked with starved and neglected dogs before and she knew how to help Violet.
Debbie described the first time she saw her.
“She was barely alive. She was brought into my house, carried by two people, on a blanket. She did not stand for 3 days… As she stood, it was like watching a skeleton stand up. As she walked over to me with her little nubbin tail wagging, that moment gave me hope.”
Debbie cried when she saw the terrible condition she was in. Her blood test results showed the expected consequences of her prolonged starvation.
She was determined to nurse her back to health and give her the love and care that she lacked her entire life.
When she hugged her for the first time, she felt all her bones. Violet weighed only 52 pounds. Female Mastiffs should weigh between 130 and 220 pounds.
“She has a lot of pressure sores all over her body. There are two on her legs that went all the way down to her bones, so they’re treating those as well… She initially had to remain in the basement – unable to walk up the stairs on her own,“ Autumn Clayton, one of the volunteers with Mutts Matter Rescue, said.
Violet’s rescuers assumed that Violet was locked up and used for breeding, and that the chains caused her pressure sores.
The Road To Recovery
Debbie noticed that being outdoors scared Violet very much. “I can tell you, I wonder if she has ever been outside. She looks up at the skies and looks up at the trees like she has never seen them before.”
Violet’s injuries were so terrible that The Humane Society of the United States offered a $5000 reward for any information that would lead to her abusers. Unfortunately, they were never found.
Violet saw that she could trust Debbie and she often rested her head in her lap. It was her way of showing how much she loved her.
As time passed, Violet grew stronger and stronger, and she now weighed 138 pounds. She could even walk up the stairs and go for long walks. Her sores healed and she enjoyed playing with her friends.
Her recovery wasn’t an easy one, but thanks to Debbie’s relentless efforts and enduring love, Violet made it. She was no longer sad and miserable. Her face was now gleaming with happiness.
Violet got adopted and her family loves her very much.
In 2021, Violet and her family visited Debbie in Idaho Falls. They were happy to see each other.
We are immensely grateful to Debbie, Violet’s loving family, and to all the people who participated in her rescue.
