New Hips for Rescue Puppy Mozart in 2024

My name is Mindy Pannell and I'd like to introduce you to my friends, the McCarthy Family. It is our goal to help Mozart, the sweetest most tenderhearted puppy. Moz is a Bernese Mountain Dog puppy that was rescued from horrible conditions. He was emotionally shattered, completely shutdown, malnourished, and physically unhealthy. Love, quality nutrition, and veterinary care has transformed Mozart into a different puppy. He has learned that our world can be a wonderful place, he has learned to trust and to love. Unfortunately he was diagnosed with severe bilateral hip dysplasia in September 2023 at the age of 6.5 months old and since that time his mobility has progressively decreased and his pain increased. His orthopedic surgeon has recommended that he undergo Total Hip Replacements and he is scheduled for his 1st surgery in January of 2024. The estimated cost for the two surgeries and rehab is $15K. It is our goal to help Mozart live his life to the fullest and a big piece of that is giving him some brand spankin' new hips. We would be incredibly grateful for any monetary contribution and shares of this link. We will keep you updated as Moz progresses and we can all celebrate his new life together!

For a bit more detail, here is more about Mozart from Kimberly McCarthy:

This summer we were asked to foster a Bernese Mountain Dog puppy. On July 16 we met the transport volunteer in Denver to pick up Mozart. Mozart had travelled from Missouri with 6 other Berner puppies that were taken into rescue.

Mozart was completely shut down when we picked him up. Having been born in what we believe was a puppy mill, everything he was seeing was new to him. He was unaware that there was a world outside of his cage, unaware that there were kind people in the world, unaware that there was love beyond measure coming his way. On the ride from transport to home he laid motionless just pancaked to my chest as I tried to calmly reassure him that he was safe. All of the sights, sounds, movements, smells and activities were new and scary for him. Mozart would not stand up on his own unless we put him down and balanced him, shortly after he would just melt into the ground. He would not make eye contact, would not take any steps, his body was stiff and guarded, he would not drink water or eat anything, not even pieces of a fresh hamburger. We also noticed many signs of malnutrition including very short hair which should have been long puppy fluff at his age, thin limbs, a rounded belly, discolored hair on his ears, discoloration on his toenails and he just looked mis-proportioned.

Seeing dogs in this condition is so hard, but watching them come out of that scared shell is such a joy. Over the first several days Mozart made a huge turn around, it was not always linear, sometimes he would seem to be doing great - feeling confident and brave and then we would notice he regressed and felt fearful again. Luckily with calm and quiet patience he began to walk on his own, eat without fear and even play. He began to bond with us and quickly learned the comforts of a home. He would seek out soft places to lay like the couch, dog beds and blankets. He became brave enough to initiate play with his foster sister and brothers. Within a week he was much more of a normal 20 week old puppy!

Over the following weeks we noticed big changes in his fur and overall health. Unfortunately, we also began to notice that his gait was not normal. It was hard to pinpoint, but he had an uncomfortable way that he walked. Some days he seemed to favor one leg over the other, but it would not be the same leg consistently. Sadly, as the weeks went on and we were in the process of finding Mozart's forever home, he was diagnosed with severe bilateral hip dysplasia. Knowing how far he had come from his first days with us, this was such a sad blow to those that love him. After meeting with the Orthopedic specialist it was determined that Mozart will need bilateral hip replacements as soon as he is old enough.

Mozart will not be able to have those surgeries until he is between 10 and 11 months old. He was diagnosed in September at about 6 1/2 months old. Until that time we just have to manage his pain medically. We have noticed as we wait for surgery that he is getting weaker. He will play for a short time in the mornings, loves to go out and about, but by late morning he feels tired and uncomfortable. He spends most of the daytime hours laying down and will pull himself around to play with his front legs to avoid using his back legs. He also has a hard time going from a sitting or laying position to a standing position. We have added physical therapy to his treatment regimen to try and preserve any muscle mass that we can before surgery and make his post op recovery easier.

Although this shatters our hearts, we know Mozart’s amazing personality and willingness to persevere even in the worst of situations is going to get him through this and onto the other side as a healthy boy! We will do everything in our power and stop at nothing to make sure he has a full, healthy, happy life.