Vinny is a five-month-old Shepherd-Mix in Houston, TX, who needs $2,000 for emergency care due to abuse.

Rescuers from ThisIsHouston were shocked, horrified, and absolutely sick when they saw poor Vinny, who is just a puppy.

"Vinny has been the victim of unimaginable cruelty," Laura F., from the rescue, tells Waggle. "He was found with a rubber band embedded around his nose, which has caused extensive damage. His face will never be the same."

There is no telling how long Vinny lived like this.

"Vinny was found by a good Samaritan who took him in to keep him safe and posted for help," Laura says. "ThisIsHouston knew we had to help this soul who, despite being so young, had already suffered so much."

The rescue raced Vinny to an emergency animal hospital, where a surgical team removed the rubber band that had grown into his snout.

"His nose is detached from his skull, so his nostrils are the main concern as they are covered with granulation tissue from his body trying to heal over them," Laura says.

The surgeon placed stents in Vinny's nostrils, and now everyone is hoping and praying there is a chance his nose will heal.

"Despite everything, Vinny is incredibly sweet," Laura adds. "Vinny has an extremely difficult and long journey ahead."

Though ThisIsHouston's mission is to save unwanted, neglected, and abused dogs, the cruelty in Vinny's case is incomprehensible.

Please support the rescue and help Vinny get a new start to life.

Update:
It would be totally justifiable if Vinny ended up being scared of humans as a result of what happened to him, or even a little aggressive, but he’s not. He just wants all the love.
He really likes to crawl into your lap and he does it so proudly. He likes to give kisses too, and would kiss your face away if you let him, and also if that big cone wasn’t in the way!

He is having suture/skin tightening and his muzzle is less swollen. So far there have been no major setbacks and is making slow but steady improvement! Vinny has a long way to go but has already made so much amazing progress.

Update 8/8/24:
Vinny’s been getting reconstructive procedures since coming into our care and just had a major one this week. He had stents placed to help keep his nostrils open and heal open. This week, they replaced the nasal tubes with the next size up to give him a bigger opening.

There was a lot of skin missing on both the top of his muzzle and the bottom. They’ve been pulling/tightening the skin around his muzzle to help close the gaps. The bottom part of his chin was exposed flesh and we initially thought he would get a flap placed there. But there was not a lot of excess skin to work with in terms of doing flaps so doc made extra cuts to the sides of his mouth to do some closing on the chin. It’s not fully closed but we hope to see it granulate.

He’s overall in a good spot! He’s still eating great and is feeling good. The top and bottom yellow dressings are being changed 2-3 times and the tubes will be kept in place for a few weeks. The tubes are prone to infection so he’s continuing to stay at Blue Pearl.

Update 8/14/24:
Vinny has been through many reconstruction surgeries but they are paying off as the top of his nose is so close to being back to "normal." His nostrils are passing lots of air but the stents are still in place. The top part of his muzzle has some healthy granulation tissue and we want that to heal on its own overtime. It’s already starting to grow new skin on the edges!

As for the bottom part of his muzzle/chin — the surgeon tried to advance the chin skin forward by using bone tunnels and suture with the plan on advancing again as the skin stretched. Unfortunately, the sutures have failed, so he’s going to come up with another plan. Vinny is still growing some new skin there and the wound there is smaller due to new skin growth, but he wants to figure out something to speed up the healing process there.

So Vinny will stay at the ER until further notice; he’s in great hands and receiving lots of love!

Update 8/22/24:
Vinny continues to do well. He's getting bandage changes and his maxilla wound is healing very well, getting smaller each time and still looking very healthy! The veterinary clinic massaged the swelling over his nose and that has improved a lot compared to two weeks ago. The mandible punch grafts stayed in place but we'll know if they are taking or not at the next two changes.

Vinny's total care is about to pass $16k. We know that is a big price tag, but we think he's worth every penny! Thank you all for helping us make his second chance possible.

Update 8/27/24:
We’re on day 30 at the ER. The top wound is so small now! It’s been truly amazing to witness his journey. The punch skin grafts on his bottom chin look great. We’re expecting that to get smaller like the top part did. He’s such a brave boy and we’re so proud of him.

Update 9/6/24:
Vinny’s still hanging out at the ER being a little mascot there. He’s in medical boarding while getting his wounds tended to. Here’s an update from one of his surgeons: “the punch grafts are doing well and the skin is growing, the wound is getting smaller and is staying healthy. The maxilla wound is healed and the bandage was left off. The nasal cannulas were removed and the mucosal grafts are holding well. We will continue nebulization to help clear the mucus in his nasal cavity but they are currently patent.”
He LOVES people and likes to climb in your lap and soak up all the love! He’s such a sweet lovable boy. Considering the damage that was done and the fact that we thought his nose would fall off when he was first admitted to the ER, this is amazing progress and beyond amazing to witness.

Update 9/11/24:
Vinny's had several reconstructive procedures done in an attempt to get his nose as normal as possible. His chin is still pretty much all flesh. The vet clinic recently took pieces of his skin from his flank and placed those punch grafts on his chin. It’s still in the slow process of growing, so we’re just waiting on his chin. We didn’t even think this recovery was possible, but Vinny is making such progress!

Update 9/15/24:
Vinny’s spent 7 weeks at the ER (majority of it being medical boarding while receiving ongoing wound care), but he’s almost discharge ready! He required several reconstructive procedures, countless bandage changes, and a punch graft procedure on his chin but he finally almost looks like a “normal” dog again. He’s loved all the attention he received in hospital and everyone there loved having him too. We're so excited for his amazing future.

Update 9/16/24:
Today he walks out of that same ER a new pup with the rest of his life ahead of him! He’s happy, confident, and loving and on the road to recovery. He’s headed to his foster home!