A blind pit bull abandoned on a park bench in Santa Maria has found a new home.
Poly, a 3-year old female red nose pit bull, was left in Santa Maria’s Armstrong Park on Oct. 14, according to Jennifer Wales, president and founder of Los Angels-based Foreverhome Pet Rescue.
Santa Barbara County Animal Services took her in, and she was treated for possible ringworm and other skin conditions, Wales said.
Poly is blind in both eyes. The shelter discovered that Poly had recently given birth and that she may have a congenital heart defect.
It’s not known what happened to her puppies, although Wales believes they may have been sold.
Poly was placed in a loving foster home with the help of Foreverhome Pet Rescue, Wales said.
A Facebook page, Poly Blind Pibble, was established to document Poly’s new life. Wales said that Poly will need extensive surgery to treat her health problems and that could get expensive.
Because of Poly’s possible heart condition, Wales said that anyone who obtained a pit bull puppy in the Santa Maria area in the last two months should have it checked for a heart condition.
“Poly’s heart condition is congenital and if it is diagnosed before four months of age, it may be reversible,” Wales said.
Her story went viral throughout the Internet and grabbed national headlines.
Poly is a very lucky pup. In an email, Wales told the Sun that the organization decided to launch a crowd-funding campaign because of all the media attention Poly’s been receiving lately.
“Often a shelter dog that requires these types of diagnostics will scare away a small rescue organization because the vet bills can be enormous,” Wales said. “We were very fortunate that Poly’s story got out into the world and that folks have been donating to cover the diagnostics.”
The funding campaign has raised more than $7,000. Donations are currently being accepted through polysfund.org.
This article appears in Nov 5-12, 2015.
