Marcello: A True Rescue Story

Written by: Cristina Callegari

Marcello Mastoriani at 4 Months & Fully recovered

I was in the local mall shopping when I wandered into the Pet Shop because I could never resist cute puppies. Once inside, my heart broke at the sight of all the puppies in cages stacked up along walls one on top of the other. The cages were dirty with urine and feces, and the dogs looked absolutely miserable. One dog in particular kept grabbing my attention, because he seemed so weak and frail to me - yet every-time I passed him his tiny tail wagged, and he looked as though he had a grin on his face.

I felt so bad for this tiny little thing - I thought let me ask the worker to take him out so I can play with him, just to give him a break from the cage. And, the worker informed me that I didn't want that puppy because he was going to be put down. Horrified, I asked why and was told that he had kennel cough, and it wasn't worthwhile to keep a sick dog alive. I think I puked a little bit in my mouth when I heard that. I didn't intend to get a dog - I certainly never intended on buying one, I've always gotten my pets from Shelters or Rescues but something inside me just couldn't live with the fact that this tiny dog was going to be put to sleep.

I told the worker, "I'll take him!" He tried to talk me out of it, and offered me just about every other dog in the store. I asked if any of the other dogs were going to be put to sleep? He said, "No." My response was, "Then I don't have to save any of the others, I have to save this one!"

To make a long story short, I took the puppy to the vet the next morning and discovered that there was more than just kennel cough going on with him. Kennel Cough had gone un-treated by the Pet Shop and had turned into full-blown pneumonia with compromised lung function, additionally, the dog had broken his front leg (probably right around birth) which had also gone un-treated. Unfortunately, the bone set incorrectly on its own, and there really wasn't anything that could be done.

Yet, all the while the puppy seemed so happy, constantly wagging his tail, and "smiling" at me. He was very small for his age because he was sick, and the vet said he would probably never grow to be a normal size for the Shih Tzu breed. The vet also said that if the dog didn't start to respond to treatment that it may be necessary to put him down because he couldn't breathe. I said, no - you can't put him down, he's still smiling and wagging his tail. Three weeks in a nebulization tank, (sort of like an incubator for new born babies), and many rounds of antibiotics later. My puppy was healthy, and breathing on his own and even jumping around.

I named him Marcello Mastoriani after the actor. He always played the lothario in old movies, and that's just what my pup is. A charming lothario, a melter of hearts!

It has been 4 1/2 years since and I'm happy to report that Marcello hasn't been sick a day since!