In May 2014, Poppy was found on a highway in Azerbaijan. She had head and pelvic injuries and most of her tail was missing. At first, her rescuer thought she had been involved in a road traffic accident but, upon getting Poppy to a vet, it was found to be a different story. The Azerbaijan government cull street dogs and cats for fear of the spread of rabies and this is often carried out in brutal ways. Locals can claim a E5.00 reward for killing a dog and presenting its tail to an official – sadly this is exactly what happened to Poppy.

Her rescuer, Lorna, works for BARS (the ‘Baku Animal Rescue Society’ in Baku, Azerbaijan) who rescue, treat and re-home street dogs. No vets in Baku will treat street dogs, so Lorna has to travel frequently to an Iranian vet an hour and a half distance from the shelter. She was on one such visit to the vet when she found Poppy. The vet informed Lorna that Poppy’s injuries were, in fact, intentional and began treating her injuries and repaired her broken pelvis.

Unfortunately, Poppy could not stay at the shelter as she needed to recover from her operation and was getting picked on by some of the other dogs. She went home with Lorna and, after much physiotherapy and determination, Poppy amazingly began to walk again. However, her mobility never fully recovered and she kept dragging her paw. She had also turned out to be such a lovely dog that Lorna decided she would do everything she could to find Poppy a new home.

Eventually a home was found for her in the UK and everything was organised to bring her over, but upon arriving in England, it fell through. Lorna now had a race against the clock to find someone to adopt Poppy before going back to Azerbaijan. She brought Poppy to Arun Veterinary Group for X-rays to see how her pelvis was doing and to address her dragging paw. The X-rays showed that the pelvis had not healed properly to allow full mobility of the leg and so it has been decided that her leg must be amputated to avoid further complications and discomfort.

Lorna has had to return to Azerbaijan to continue her work but, thankfully, Poppy has found a foster home with Abi, a Nursing Assistant from Arun Veterinary Group. Abi is determined to get Poppy fit and healthy enough to be permanently adopted once she has recovered.

Poppy is very friendly and loves cuddles, is house trained and walks well on a lead. She is a little shy, submissive and initially nervous of new surroundings, dogs and cats but does quickly gain confidence. She is estimated to be about 2 years old and is a bit of a ‘pavement special’ sort of resembling half a Jack Russell and half a Corgi, with the cutest pair of ears! To anyone who loves a dog with a gentle (and endlessly amusing) personality, she would be the ideal companion!