Ordeal over for emaciated lurcher

Emaciated and crying, poor Martha was abandoned in the freezing cold.

Left tied to a railing, her skin hung from the protruding bones of her ribs and pelvis.

The eight-year-old black lurcher was left all alone in a pub car park, where she was found by the dog warden.

CCTV footage showed the pet being tied to a rail and abandoned.

Brought to Blue Cross in a terrible state, Martha needed urgent care.

“She was abandoned alone and tied up, left in the freezing cold and rain,” explains Anouska Ashmead-Bartlett, Admissions Co-ordinator at Blue Cross Burford, in Oxfordshire.

“Poor Martha was emaciated and incredibly stressed.”

The Blue Cross team immediately tried to get terrified Martha warm. 

“Although when she arrived with us we put her in a nice warm kennel and put a jumper on her she was very stressed and would cry the whole time, she began bar biting and continued to cry,” continues Anouska.

Martha needed to be checked by our vets to make sure she wasn’t suffering any serious health conditions.

Thankfully, apart from being severely underweight, Martha was otherwise relatively healthy.

After being wormed and given flea treatment, the team managed to find stressed-out Martha a foster home, where she could feel more comfortable.

“Martha needed to go into Blue Cross foster care as quickly as possible and, once there, she flourished,” adds Anouska.

“She was very friendly and loving, and in her foster home she loved to lie upside down and play with her toys.”

Over the coming three weeks, regular nutritious meals helped underweight Martha go from just 21kg to a healthy 25kg.

And her personality also flourished – as Martha relaxed and her confidence grew.

After 26 days in Blue Cross care, gorgeous Martha was adopted by a loving home in nearby Gloucestershire.

Rehomer Helen Green explains: “Martha is lovely and she’ll do funny things like bury herself under her blankets and pull them up over herself.”

A warm bed, regular meals and plenty of love and attention mean Martha will never have to suffer such a brutal ordeal again.