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It’s always heartbreaking when puppies are found abandoned, but one recent story was truly a shock as the puppy had six legs. Now, this unique puppy is getting a second chance thanks to her rescuers.
A female spaniel puppy was found in a parking lot in Pembroke Dock, Wales on September 27, and was taken to a local vet. The puppy had a number of abnormalities, including having six legs.
The unique pup was put in the care of Greenacres Rescue. They named her “Ariel,” after the main character in Disney’s The Little Mermaid, because her extra back legs were fused together like a mermaid’s tail.
It’s believed that Ariel wasn’t left out on her own very long, as she was not underweight, but she was still shaken up by the ordeal.
“When Ariel was brought into our centre she was very scared and timid,” Greenacres’ founder and manager Mikey Lawlor told BBC. “She spent that first night at home with me and she was almost completely shut down due to everything she’d been through.”
“We have no idea why she would be born with a defect,” a spokesperson for the rescue told Newsweek. “Never seen this before.”
Vets examined Ariel, and found that in addition to the extra legs, she has “the beginnings of an additional vulva,” and found that her pelvis has not properly formed due to her extra hip joint, according to a Facebook post.
In good news, they also found that her insides are working properly: “Her organs are all as they should be,” they wrote.
And, they will likely be able to treat Ariel’s deformities. They are giving the pup some time to settle before taking action, but their goal is to remove the additional limbs and assess the function of her remaining leg. Over $2,000 has been raised for the surgery.
“There is a possibility she may lose one of her own legs due to the structure of the additional limbs and pelvis,” they added, “but time will tell.”
Lawlor told BBC that Ariel’s extra legs “serve no purpose at all” and are not functional. He also said that the pup’s extra vulva will also eventually be removed.
In the meantime, Ariel is in good hands in the care of her foster mom. Lawlor said that Greenacres has received over 200 adoption requests, but they are not taking applications at the moment.
It’s heartbreaking that Ariel was abandoned, but we’re so glad she was rescued and is now on track for a better life ❤️
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