End of October 2024, one of our adoptants came to visit our shelter. He would stay for several days and as he stepped out of his rental apartment, he saw a dog on the streets.

The dog was clearly very old and seemed paralysed. It could hardly walk. Winter was approaching and it was clear, this dog was not able to survive any longer on the streets. 

We named the dog Eric, after the name of his rescuer - the sweet adoptant who saw this golden oldie and alerted our shelter. October 31, 2024, we went to the spot where Eric had seen Eric, and sweet Eric (the dog, not the rescuer) was waiting for us! We were able to catch him, crate him in the car and we drove immediately to the vet.

The vet gave him a thorough check-up and took his blood for testing. He estimates Eric (once again, the dog, not the rescuer!) to be at least 13+ years old. His blood tests were excellent: no indication of a Mediterranean disease, such as heart worm or leishmania. 

Eric turned out also not to be paralysed. He has osteophytes of the spine and this condition causes him to walk with difficulty and pain in his lower back. Furthermore, he has a serious ear-infection in one ear - the reason why he hangs his head. 

As if this poor, sweet dog hadn't gone through enough in his life, the X-Rays show, Eric has been shot. There is an air rifle bullet inside Eric's body.. 

The vet advised us to take Eric to the veterinary hospital in Thessaloniki, for a consult by specialists. A week later, we went. The professor examined him and also came to the conclusion he is at least 13 years old. Eric's heart was examined. The valves of his heart have weakened, his aorta is enlarged, but the heart has no arrhythmia. For now, Eric does not need heart medication.

They also took extra X-Rays and did an ultrasound. On the spleen, Eric has a mass and his prostate is enlarged. Further tests would need to be done to come to a diagnosis. In light of his age, however, surgery is not advisable. 

Eric has not teeth, so eating dry kibble is impossible for him. We cook for him: chicken, barley and liver. A chicken costs 4 euros, barley half an euro for a large bag and liver is 10 euros for five kilos. He needs to eat very well, as he is underweight. He only weighs 20 kilos and he should be at least 27-28 kilos.

In addition to our cooking, we also give him painkillers for his back, ointment treatment for his ear and multi-vitamins. 

The specialists told us, he needs to be kept warm, so we put Eric in the room, where we do the sterilisations and castrations. It is warm there. We walk him twice a day. Eric is an easy-going, sweet dog, who loves going out. We love to find a foster home for him. Until now, we haven't been able to find a foster home, so he needs to stay in our shelter and we need some patrons to help us with his expenses for food, medication and vitamins.