Nico is a sweet German Shepherd puppy who was abandoned by his father at a veterinary clinic when he was just four weeks old. The man was a dog breeder and when he saw the little boy couldn’t move his legs, he decided it was a waste of time and took him to a vet to have him euthanized. Fortunately, a veterinary technician decided to take care of him.
When Nico was dumped, the vet simply put him in a cage, but when technician Mikayla Silkman arrived at work and saw Nico there, she sat down on the side of his cage and did nothing. could not hold back her tears, seeing him in this situation.
Mikayla told The Dodo:
“He was so small; his eyes were barely open.”
She realized that Nico would likely be euthanized and immediately knew she had to do whatever she could to save him.
Mikayla said:
“I was like, ‘Oh my God, we can’t put this puppy down.'”
Mikayla reached out to a friend of hers named Trisha Malfitano, founder of Perfect Imperfections, a rescue center that helps puppies born with special needs. She asked if they could take care of Nico and even though Trisha was in Canada at the time, she agreed immediately.
Nico underwent several tests and they discovered that he was missing bones and connective tissue, the name of this disease is: straight leg syndrome.
A vet tech saves a puppy
Mikayla was taking care of the puppy at her home until Trisha went to pick him up.
Trisha said:
“He was a bit small. He looked like a teddy bear.”
This pup needed to be bottle fed, had lots of energy and wanted to run around Trisha’s house.
Trisha said:
“He was crawling and always wanted to be with the other dogs.”
Trisha received a message from April Addison, a woman who wanted to adopt Nico.
Trisha had quickly grown attached to him, as had the vet tech, but she knew this was a great opportunity for Nico to enjoy the warmth of a forever home, in addition to being able to provide space for a another puppy in need.
Nico found him an ideal home
April lived in Arizona but flew to Connecticut in August to meet the pup.
She said:
“When I saw him at the airport, he just stuck his head out of the carrier, I pulled him out of there and he licked my face. He’s very friendly and just wants to be cuddled, and he wants to be with me all the time. He’s a Velcro dog.”
April was quite surprised to see that Nico enjoyed playing with her other dogs.
You’d think he’d be a bit scared of his siblings because of his disability, but he doesn’t care. He just crawls up to them and tries to grab a toy from them. He slips and falls, then gets back up and try again. He rarely gets frustrated. He only cries when he’s really stuck.”
April said:
“He really makes my day. People often tell me that Nico is so lucky to have me, but I feel like I’m so lucky to have Nico. I saved him, yes, but I feel like he saved me. I feel like it gave me hope. It really inspires me to look beyond the negative and think about the positive.”
If you would like to help the Perfect Imperfections association so that other puppies with conditions similar to Nico’s receive help, you can make a donation by clicking here.
Images: April Addison
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