A dog has been transformed after he was rescued from a backyard pool in a neglected state.
Jason Cooke is the president of the Healthy Hearts and Paws Project, an organization located in Brookfield, Ohio, that was formed in 2019 to "save the lives of heartworm-positive and medical-needs dogs."
"I got a call from two people that saw a matted dog in Warren, Ohio. I went out there and sure enough, I looked up the street and this huge ball of fluff came running toward me," Cooke told Newsweek.
Along with the help of two other volunteers, Cooke attempted to catch the dog to help him, but as they began following he ran and disappeared into someone's backyard.
When the rescue team got into the backyard, they looked down to find he had fallen into the pool.
"I got down into the swimming pool, took my shoes off and thankfully there was only a couple of feet of water in it, but it was still disgusting," said Cooke. "I picked him up and it was just terrible. He was matted from head to toe."
With matted fur, Gizmo had ears that looked almost five times bigger than their actual size, and a tail around 10 inches longer that it should have been due to the terrible matting.
To add to this, he was soaked from being in the pool, and Cooke took him back to the shelter in Brookfield, located east of Cleveland.
The next day, he took Gizmo to a vet clinic where he could be looked over and get a well-needed haircut.
"A few hours later they sent me this photo of a dog and I thought, 'who's this?'" said Cooke. "They said, well, that's what was underneath."
Each year 6.3 million pets are surrendered to U.S. shelters, which is an average of 17,260 a day, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Around 920,000 surrendered animals are euthanized every year. Shelters are striving to minimize euthanasia rates by promoting adoption campaigns, spaying and neutering programs, as well as behavior rehabilitation.
Aside from the horribly matted fur, Gizmo was healthy, and Cooke headed to see him again at the clinic.
"He's a really, really beautiful dog," said Cooke. "He looks to be some type of poodle mix. Maybe around 3 years old. It's like a rags-to-riches story."
It is unclear how Gizmo ended up in the state he was found in, but Cooke believes he was probably not being properly looked after before he got loose.
"I think he belonged to somebody in the area and he just got free," he said. "It's another case of somebody taking on a dog that they don't take the time to look after it."
Severe matting in dog fur can be extremely painful and uncomfortable, causing restricted movement, skin irritation and even blood flow impairment.
"I always liken it to somebody grabbing your hair on your head and pulling it constantly," said Cooke. "There's no way for the dog to escape it."
Gizmo is to go back from the vet to the rescue where Cooke said he'll be fitted with a harness, collar and microchip and have some photos taken.
"We'll come up with a basic profile and begin the process of accepting applications for adoption," said Cooke.
While the team hasn't had a chance to get to know much about him yet, Cooke has high hopes for his future.
"We don't know a lot about him, but from what I've observed he's a very playful dog. He just jumped into my arms. He's very active and I would suspect he's going to end up being good with other dogs," he said.
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