Puppy in Recovery Suffered Chemical Burns to All Four Legs: ‘One of the Worst Cases They’ve Ever Seen’

A 12-week-old puppy is on the road to recovery after suffering chemical burns to all four of its legs—an injury that animal rescuers say will likely affect him for the rest of his life.

The BluePearl Pet Hospital in Michigan first saw Dozer's injuries three weeks ago. His owners brought him to the hospital, telling veterinarians that he had been locked in a bathroom and had come into contact with the chemical clog remover, Drano.

Lindsey Clark, the adoption coordinator at Michele’s Rescue and Dozer’s foster mom, told WZZM that rescuers believe Dozer had been exposed to the chemicals for hours, judging by the severity of his burns.

"They took off the bandages and the vet said that it was probably one of the worst cases they've ever seen too," Clark told the outlet. "And when they showed me those pictures, I was so angry, I was so upset."

Dozer’s owners subsequently left him at the hospital and allegedly ignored the veterinarians' attempts to contact them. Michele's Rescue confirmed on its Facebook page that the hospital filed a report against the owners, and Barry County police are currently investigating the owners for potential charges related to the puppy’s injuries.

"I obviously don't know what happened to let this happen to him, but the person who bought the dog had no business owning an animal," Clark told the station.

Now, three of the four paws no longer require bandages, and Clark says that Dozer is nearly scampering about like any other puppy. However, due to one burn that severely damaged one of Dozer's paws, Clark believes he will likely limp for the remainder of his life.

"Breeders, shelters, rescues just need to do their due diligence when they're adopting out animals to potential owners because it could have been prevented," Clark told WZZM.

Michele’s Rescue mentioned that the end of Dozer’s recovery journey remains uncertain. However, once he's fully healed, they hope to find him a forever home.