Tyson

Just ten short months ago our journey with Tyson began and on August 8, 2017 it broke our hearts to have to say goodbye to our brave Snuggle Pit.

Tyson was truly a special dog and it took no time for him to steal our hearts. Our story with Tyson began just a month after we said goodbye to our 15 year old rescue, Rocco. Our house felt so empty without a dog, so we started looking almost immediately for a rescue that we could save. We really wanted a dog that needed a chance and when we came across Tyson’s photo and story on Happy Tails Rescue website, we knew he was for us. His photo caught our attention at first glance because Tyson basically had no ears. They had been cropped to his skull, giving him a very distinct look. As we clicked on his story, it broke our hearts to learn what abuse and neglect Tyson had been through as a puppy and young dog. So it was then, we decided we should meet him. At our first meeting we learned of the details of Tyson’s rescue and life; it was horrible and we couldn’t not have him. He had been attacked, abused, burned, and released to die. His story should’ve ended there but he had the tenacity to live and the folks at Happy Tails Rescue gave him a chance to recover and give life another try. Tyson spent a good amount of time in foster care recovering and then he was adopted by a family, who returned him after just three weeks. It was sad to hear that he had been returned but we were glad because now he could be ours.

We brought him home on October 9, 2016 and he seamlessly fit into our family. Tyson definitely was not a “healthy” dog at that time. He had many nails missing, broken teeth, oozing pads, lots of scabs, and sores but nothing we didn’t think we couldn’t handle. He was on medications that we assumed he’d come off of in time and eventually be a normal and healthy pup. However, Tyson never became a fully healthy dog. In March, the pads of his paws were still in disrepair even though he had been removed from the horrible conditions in which his life had begun. He was then diagnosed with an autoimmune disease referred to as “vasculitis.” We did our best to manage his vasculitis and we were pleased when we started to see changes/healing in his pads. However, the joy was quickly taken from us when Tyson caught staph and E.coli bacteria in his toes due to his suppressed immune system. The staph and E.coli were not responding to antibiotics, so we had him tested further and the results were devastating. Tyson was antibiotic resistant to all antibiotics minus one option. The option came with risks, like organ failure and death; but we had nothing to lose because if we didn’t try this antibiotic, Tyson would die from the bacterial infections alone. Unfortunately, the staph and E.coli spread and Tyson could no longer fight; his organs shut down. We had no other choice but to say goodbye to our buddy at only 19 months old. So it was August 8, 2017 surrounded by our amazing care team that we said our farewells. The setting was set for a King; Brad, myself, Dr. Meyer, Meg, Lisa, Tyson’s spider web blanket, shredded muscle man, and abundant amounts of vanilla ice cream, grilled chicken breast, and peanut butter.

Even though we had to say goodbye only ten months after we said hello, Tyson’s story still ends HAPPY. He was loved, spoiled, cherished, and deeply cared for until his dying breath. We will always remember his smile, tenacity for life, and goofy shenanigans. He loved wrestling his bed, playing search, eating, snuggling, and going for car rides. He brought us great joy and love and we miss him deeply. We share the ending of his journey with you because we know that Tyson’s story impacted a lot of people. We thank everyone at Happy Tails Rescue for giving him a chance because he deserved love. In the end, Tyson knew love and he loved deeply. We are forever grateful that he was a part of our lives, even though his time with us was all too brief. For those of you who want to look at his journey with us, feel free to visit his Instagram TYSON10916 that we created months ago because we thought, “He is too cute, everyone needs to see our dog!”

“Tyson, we love you Tooshie. It was our pleasure to have you in our lives and we look forward to seeing you at the Rainbow Bridge buddy. Rest in Peace Snuggle Pit.”