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click on the picture above!
and don't
forget to read his story printed below
ELLIS ,
AMERICAN DREAM
When we picked him up at the
shelter and put him inside my car, every time he moved or
shook, there were pieces of skin flying around us!!! YES,
PIECES OF SKIN were flying inside the car. I remember
telling Marlen as we were choking from the rotten odor,
"DON'T OPEN THE WINDOWS!" She could not take the rotten odor
and wanted fresh air. I asked her not to open the windows
as the air flowing in would make things worse.
In case someone missed the
original post let me tell you about
AMERICAN DREAM. He was picked up near Homestead,
Florida by Animal Services after receiving a complaint call.
He is now at Tropical Park Animal Hospital in Miami,
Florida. I am glad that I took him directly there from the
shelter. HE NEEDED IMMEDIATE MEDICAL CARE AROUND THE CLOCK.
The Miami Herald and NBC News came
to the clinic to film Ellis. You should have seen the face
on the camera man and the reporter!!!! They were shocked!
They took several pictures and video of this dog. The
pictures shown on this page do not really show the condition
he is in. He is MUCH WORSE.
He was bathed, started on IV,
vitamins shots given, dewormed with Panacur and antibiotics
are going directly into his vein. He had blood and worms in
his stool, actually it was blood and worms, not
stool...:-(
On his first day at the clinic he did not eat anything, he
was too weak.
On his second day he was on TV!!
(8/11/99) Miami local NBC News! Today, on his 3rd day he was
photographed by The Miami Herald and they are running his
story on the Sunday paper. I asked if people could access to
the story on the Internet. As soon as I hear I will post
it.
Today, there was no more dead
skin flying around, his little hairs were soft and you could
see some color at the base of his hairs on his head! We
have a call name for him now. It is
Ellis. We named him after ELLIS ISLAND. It was at
this island where immigrants came looking for the
AMERICAN DREAM.
This is his THIRD DAY after being rescued from the
Miami Dade shelter. (8/10/99)
Yesterday, he ATE a whole can of prescription food,
slowly, very slowly. He IS eating now. He is in a very nice
large crate being pampered. Maria, the vet tech (Rott owner,
too) is constantly attending to him. He has a comforter to
keep him warm. Today, Maria told me it is an exhausting job
caring for Ellis as he has diarrhea very often. She walks
him out of the clinic several times a day, but he is still
going inside his crate.
Marlen and I agreed on one thing, HE
LOOKS MUCH BETTER. You can see COLOR in his feet!!!!
I personally want to thank those who sent emails
(zillions) received. The picture of this dog has hit the
Internet and it is now being circulated among other breed
lists, chat rooms, rescue groups. Several rescue groups have
loaded up his pictures on their site! I know of several
people who have created their own web page with his
pictures! Emails have been received from other parts of the
world also, Africa, Middle East, Hawaii... AMERICAN DREAM
has become a RESCUE POSTER BOY! He will be forever
remembered as he is embedded in the mind of those who have
seen his pictures.
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY is shaking.
AMERICAN DREAM has been seen by local politicians,
his story has been sent to government agencies. It is
AMERICAN DREAM who will make a
difference in saving abandoned pets, pet rescue and most
important, ANIMAL SERVICES.
The day will come when I will HUG
this dog and kiss him in his cheeks! And I will tell him, I
will make sure he knows, how much our entire country has
been pulling for him!
May God continue to bless all of you and very especially
OUR, AMERICAN DREAM
Ellis is by far the worst rescue we have ever seen.
He needs A LOT of help and support.
UPDATE!
Monday, August 16, 1999
The story of American Dream aka Ellis
and his pictures have been forwarded to other rescue groups,
chat lists, other breeds lists. The amount of email I am
receiving makes it impossible for me to respond to all,
especially when so many are asking questions.
Animal Control in Miami received a complaint of a stray dog.
Someone reported this dog to AC. Ellis was picked up by
Miami Dade Animal Services from the streets. No owner has
been identified. Apparently this dog had been roaming the
area near Homestead, Florida. This area is agricultural and
many of its residents are poor.
Animal Control has been very cooperative with me
concerning Rottweilers at the shelter. They allow me take
every single Rottweiler, healthy or sick out of the shelter.
We do not have enough foster homes to save them all. We do
not have a problem with Animal Services. We have a big
problem with irresponsible breeders and owners in this
county. Personally, Ellis rescue will make me work more
diligently in educating the children at my school Belen
Jesuit Preparatory School where I am an Assistant Principal.
Once a month, after school hours I will drive a school bus
loaded with students to the Miami Dade County Shelter. I
will show them the worst of the shelter, the room where the
sick dogs are waiting to be killed. I will make sure they
know it is not the workers at the shelter who are bad, but
the breeders and owners of these poor animals who should be
held accountable. Education is the key to success.
What has bothered me the most
about this rescue, is the thought of this abandoned dog
being in this condition for such a long time WITHOUT anyone
doing something about it. I can't understand that. Again,
Ellis was a stray. We do not know who the owner is or how
long he has been roaming the streets or the
agricultural fields. He spent 5 days at Animal Control. I
found him there on his third day and took him out on his
final day before being euthanized. I took him directly to my
vet, Dr. Alberto Iglesias, at Tropical Park Animal Hospital
(305) 553-4464. Dr. Iglesias is a GUARDIAN ANGEL.
 TODAY'S
UPDATE: Marlen Valle and I visited him at the clinic. When
he heard our voices he got up and wanted to come out of his
crate. We took him out and he was so happy to be with us. He
is eating a lot, no more diarrhea. His eyes have cleared up.
His skin is shedding old and sick cells. We continued to
video tape his improvement and took several pictures. Here
is a head shot of him as of today. Please, mark this site as
I will be sending updates and pictures at least once a
week.
ON THE NEWS!
AUGUST 20,
1999 - TEN DAYS AFTER RESCUE!
All is good news.
 *Donations
for his vet bill are still coming in. All those that came to
my name, are being endorsed and DEPOSITED on the GULFSTREAM
ROTTWEILER CLUB ACCOUNT. I have received all kinds of
donations, medication, supplements, blankets.
 *There
is a lady who visits him every other day, has brought him
blankets, toys, treats. Her name is Anne, Guardian Angel
Anne. She is from England. Anne loves
Ellis and is begging me to let her adopt him. He is
getting very attached to her.
*Today
Ellis had a very special
visitor, another Guardian Angel. His name is Mike Holloway
of Pet Massage. Mike works rehabilitating all kinds of
animals, especially dogs. Mike gave Ellis ONE HOUR MASSAGE
and he said he will be back tomorrow for more. I am 55 years
old and I have NEVER had a massage, and this dog is getting
the treatment of his life!
*Two
other Guardian Angels, Jaime and Maria the vet techs. Ellis
is here with both.
 These
two angels are constantly attending to Ellis. Jaime does all
the veterinary needs and Maria the feeding, bathing,
walking. The hands of Maria (What a beautiful name!) have
done a miracle! Look at Ellis' skin! No more scabs! His skin
feels very soft and there is no oozing anywhere. NO SMELL!
Hair will slowly begin to grow.
*The
Head Guardian Angel is Dr. Alberto Iglesias. This man has
taken this dog under his wings! He is worried about the
heartworm treatment, but he says he has full confidence this
dog is going to pull through.
Ellis' heartworm treatment will be next month.
AMERICAN DREAM, aka Ellis is a happy boy full of energy. He
is hungry all the time. I think he wants to eat more and
more, just in case that tomorrow ...there is nothing! Poor
thing, he does not know that his suffering HAS STOPPED!
Ellis will finally become AMERICAN DREAM! God bless all of
you who take time to read his updates! To all of you who
have sent a donation. A video will be available of this
amazing DOG! AMAZING DOG! He is!
Grace Acosta
Just 10 days after
rescue, look at the difference!
AUGUST 30,
1999 ELLIS COMES HOME! He goes home with Grace
Twenty days after leaving the Miami Shelter he is now HOME!
Ellis spent 20 days at Tropical Park Animal Hospital but he
is now ready for TENDER LOVING CARE.
Not that he didn't get some of it at the clinic, but here I
will assure you that he is going to think HE DIED AND WENT
TO HEAVEN!
Ellis' temperament is of a dog from heaven, so maybe he did
die and came back from there!
 Ellis
is so sweet, so grateful. Before he left the clinic the
Doctor wanted to take a blood sample. Ellis stood there with
his arm stretched out and made no attempt to fight the
needle. His eyes needed washing and he was squirted with an
eye solution. Again he did not move. Ellis is convinced that
whatever they do to him, it is to help him. The pictures
here attached were taken today 8/30/99 as we were getting
ready to leave the clinic. Ellis is now weighing 77 pounds,
he has gained 5 pounds. He will return to the clinic for his
HW treatment when he reaches at least 85 pounds.
He got into my car and I think he recognized my little Honda
as the "ambulance" he rode from the shelter to the clinic on
August 10th.
 Even
after washing the interior I bet you he could still smell
his own odor in my car! He sat down and enjoyed the ride!
At home, he went straight into my backyard. He was probably
thinking, "Wow! Where are they?" He was recognizing every
dog odor. I prepared a good meal for him, a big one too. I
added some Panacur to make sure those awful parasites never
return to this poor guy. He ate his food in a RECORD TIME!
It did not matter that I had told him that there was much
more stored, just for him.
He was then introduced to some of my other dogs. Ellis went
into the garage where he will sleep in air condition.
My dogs were shocked to see Ellis
walk in! At first, they barked and all of the sudden there
was total silence!
They stared at him as they could not make out what he was.
One of them probably said: "Oh Gosh! What happened to you
Bro?"
and another, "Gee, that is a SHORT hair cut!"
Incredible, this dog comes to
live with my dogs and they are all there quietly staring at
Ellis, not a sound.
Tomorrow, I will let my girls
show him around and give him some pointers. After school, is
bath time. And I promise more and better outdoor pictures.
Tonight Ellis is HOME. I can sleep and don't need to think
about this dog at last! Ellis IS from heaven above!
Thank you, God.
Wednesday, September 8th 1999
Two more days and Ellis will
celebrate his MONTH anniversary of his rescue! I wanted to
wait until the 10th to make this update but so many people
are asking about him that I couldn't resist the temptation.
Ellis is a WONDERFUL DOG! He lives with my other dogs in air
condition. He has not shown any type of aggression to any of
them, including a neutered male I have.
Ellis is hairless and tall, and he surely does not look like
a Rottweiler! But, they all "accepted" Ellis as part of the
gang. Some of you might think I was nuts for putting him
with my dogs, but, Ellis IS healthy.
His skin is completely cured, no mange, no oozing. I wanted
him to "feel" he belonged here! I have no fear as God is
with us.
Ellis is eating three times a day with a ferocious appetite.
He has gained weight and you can't see his ribs or his hip
bones anymore.
Every day I run my hands through his skin hoping to feel his
hair growing out. I think hair IS growing. You can see his
brown markings on his face and on all four paws. This is NOT
a Rottweiler with black and mahogany markings, but GRAY AND
MAHOGANY markings! HAHAHAHAHHA!
I talked to Dr. Iglesias today. He
wants to do his HW treatment in two weeks. Dr. Iglesias is
feeling very positive that Ellis will go through his
treatment without a problem. I will definitely make a post
before his treatment as I am going to be looking for a lot
of prayers for this AMAZING BOY.
All donations received have been
deposited to Gulfstream Rottweiler Club account.
And more good news: AMERICAN DREAM,
'aka' Ellis will travel with me to the GRC Specialty
Show on Friday, September 24, 1999 and he will be in the
PARADE OF RESCUE!
Ellis will receive a club medallion and a "We Are Not
Disposable" bandanna.
And here is a picture of Ellis
and his Guardian Angel Anne. Anne is from England, but lives
in Miami. This lady is hoping to adopt
Ellis in the near future.
Don't they look like a perfect match?
God bless you for the time spent reading this update.
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9/12/99
After so many of you
asking why I have not taken a picture with my
AMERICAN DREAM, here it is. I want you to look
at HIM! Look at the color on his face!!! HE
LOOKS LIKE A ROTTWEILER! Those who had a doubt
that he was a Rottie, what do you say now? Ellis
is, our AMAZING DOG! And God continues to work
miracles!
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You must read this poem that was
written for Ellis!
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American Dream
By Troy Kechely
Through lonely nights I have wondered,
A hope for salvation I have pondered.
No food to fill my aching stomach.
Parasites and sores all across my back.
People flee from the sight of me,
Not bothering to look at my plea for sympathy.
Anguish fills my eyes as I search for a home.
Wondering why I am so very alone.
When I finally feel all is without hope.
From atop of my pit of despair someone throws me
a rope.
With caring hands they take me in.
With love and compassion my recovery begins.
They look past my tainted hide and sores,
But at my heart and soul they see so much more.
I had lost hope in God up above,
The one who made me to love and be loved.
But now I see why the suffering I endured took
place,
That peoples hearts would be touched by my
loving face.
For in me they will see him and the love that is
given,
And with a little faith, that all can be
forgiven.
As hair grows back and wounds do heal,
I long to show them how I really feel.
With all my heart I give my thanks and
affection.
For they took the time to help change my
direction.
Though just a Rottweiler I am much more than I
seem,
For because of those who rescued me I am the
American Dream.
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Troy, I sit here and I have no
words. I try to write but there is so much I want to say. I
know words can't express the emotions in my heart. I thank
you Guardian Angel Troy. I thank you in the name of OUR
...AMERICAN DREAM! Your poem says it all. Ellis, aka
American Dream, is much more than just a rescue.
I have always said that God has
allowed us to rescue this AMAZING DOG for a good reason.
Everyday, I see the LOVE for this dog in the hearts of so
many. When I get up in the morning, or when I come home from
work, first thing I do is to hug him tight. I want him to
feel the love I have for him and for me to feel GOD'S LOVE
FOR HIM!
AMERICAN DREAM IS A MIRACLE. I
thank God for allowing me to be a part of His plans. Troy,
I have never met you, but you have become a part of me, of
my life and history. What a wonderful gift! One more
MIRACLE.
May God bless you dear friend,
Grace Acosta
CLICK HERE! 2nd Anniversary, 2
mos. after his rescue! October 10, 1999
And FLASH! Go look at his FIRST ANNIVERSARY!
http://www.gulfstreamrottweilerclub.org/Happy Birthday
Ellis.htm
Donations to Rottweiler Rescue can
be sent to:
GGARR
click on the DONATIONS link
Gulfstream GUARDIAN ANGELS Rottweiler
Rescue
A Non-Profit 501c3 Rescue Organization
All Donations are Tax Deductible
God bless everyone who has responded and is following up on
OUR BOY.
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