2/8/08: Tonka
came to NJBR when a shelter contacted us about a
happy little boxer who had been neglected.
Tonka had been starved and the neglect deformed his
hind legs, causing pain. But that is all in
the past! Time, love and lots of medical care
have transformed Tonka into a big, energetic, and
oh-so adorable, boy with fully functional legs.
With his improved health, muscular build and
pain-free legs, his favorite activities include
going for long walks, playing like a puppy with his
squeaky toys and running like a speed-demon.
Since completing his medical care, Tonka has been
boarded with Working Dogs K-9 Academy where he gets
extensive daily exercise, obedience training (which
he really enjoys) and the opportunity to build his
social skills. Tonka's trainer would meet with
prospective adoptive homes so he can show them first
hand why he is so impressed with Tonka.
Tonka has endured a lot in his past and is a
perfect example of how resilient dogs are.
Tonka was a trooper through it all, and his tail
never stopped wagging. He has been waiting
all of his life to be part of a loving home.
Please help him find his way there. For more
information about Tonka, email his contact person.
Or you can read all of his progress notes while he
was receiving medical care by clicking HERE.
12/19/07: Hi! My name is Tonka and
I can finally speak for myself. Though I was under
the weather for a a lot of months, I am now happy
and healthy. I have been given a great
opportunity. I'm training and boarding at K-9
Working Dog Academy, improving my doggie skills and
loving every minute of it. It's been a long road
for me and I'm doing much better. I've learned how
to play and get along with others. I just can't
help myself though, I still want to be the only
dog. I'll listen to the other "pack members"....as
long as they are the "two legged" members. Every
day I get better and better at trusting people and
understanding the commands I'm given. This is just
way too much fun! The only thing that could be more
fun than this, would be having my very own forever
home. My trainer will spend time with my new family
to fill them in on my improvements, answer any
questions, and demonstrate (with my help of course)
why he is so impressed with me. What a great plan
right? I feel good, and if I must say so myself,
I look great and I'm ready and waiting. If you
think I could be a member of your "two legged pack,
shoot Barbara an email at the address below and
let's get together. Looking forward to hearing
from you, Tonka.
Update: 12/8/07: Tonka is
recovering from his second surgery and doing very
well. Tonka spent the whole time recovering
from both surgeries in a kennel environment.
The kennel facility was very nice and gave him
wonderful care during his recovery period.
Now Tonka is ready for his permanent home. Because
we did not have any open foster home we moved Tonka
to a different kennel which is owned by a trainer
and where he can get a lot of one on one attention.
He is also enrolled in a training program run by
Working Dogs Canine Academy. He is brushing up on
all of the social skills that he could not properly
practice because of his limited exercise while
healing. Tonka is a real trooper and has had a very
tough past year. He now deserves a dedicated owner
that will continue his training and finally provide
him a warm and loving home of his own. If you can
make Tonka’s New Year a good one please contact me
and fill out an application at
www.njboxerrescue.com Read below for Tonka’s
complete story. And once again thanks to every one
who has supported him.
Update: 11/16/07: Tonka is now
ready for his forever home. He has been one of
our most medically challenging rescues. After
surgery on his hind legs and months of recuperation,
he now has fully functional, straight legs he is
able to use for the first time since his puppy days.
Thank you to those vets and techs at the University
of Penn. veterinary clinic for making this happen.
Tonka's medical condition however has not been
without consequences. Tonka's neglect before rescue and medical
restrictions during rescue have left him in need of
some social skills. He is fearful of new
people and new places, and rightfully so, when you
consider all this poor boy has been through.
Once he gets to know you, he is a happy, fun-loving
boxer and will greet you with a toy in his mouth and
lots of wiggles "at the other end." Tonka
should be an only dog, and why not, it's only
fitting and deserving. You'll see why once you
read his previous bio. Tonka also would
like exercise so he can use his newly operational
hind legs, just like other dogs. As all of us
in rescue watched Tonka's amazing progression, we
realized he is truly one of our most special
rescues. For this reason he needs a special
forever home, one with patience and one that
is devoted to helping Tonka adjust to the good life.
You tell me, doesn't he deserve at least that?
I just know he'll make the right family a perfect
family member, and one any family would be proud to
have. If you are that home, and special family
that would love to teach this special boy how to
live, please e mail me at the address below.
We need you to step forward so Tonka is no longer a
rescue project, but is truly a rescued well loved,
well adjusted boy with a family of his very
own.
Update: 7/29/07: Tonka
underwent his first surgery. The first few
days after were pretty rough....the poor guy had
this look on his face of "please make the pain
stop". Since then, the bruising and swelling
have completely resolved and the leg has no pain
at all and he is weight bearing. He
is back to his happy, goofy self and despite our
efforts to keep him calm while healing, he is
trying his hardest to get out for some boxer
play. It is absolutely amazing to see the
transformation in his leg! He still has several
weeks of recovery time before the surgery to the
other leg is done. Please keep him in your
thoughts, and please consider making a donation
towards his care. We need to have the
funds raised for surgery number 2 by September.
Everything we receive helps!
Update: 7/17/07:
Tonka is no longer the weak,
emaciated little boxer we initially obtained
from a city shelter.
With lots of TLC, he has filled out to be
quite the big, muscular boy!
The doctors say that he is now strong
enough and healthy enough to proceed with the
next big step towards living a great life.
We have had him examined by several vets
to make the best possible decision regarding his
surgical options. It has been determined that
the best course is to proceed to operate in
stages.
So.....the first of his surgeries to
repair his legs is being scheduled to take place
shortly.
We have raised enough money to pay for
the first surgery and the rehab that will be
performed after it.
After the first surgery and his rehab and
recovery period, the next operation will need to
be scheduled and we are still working on raising
the funding needed for that that second
procedure.
We will keep you updated as his journey
continues.
Thank you to everyone who has contributed
towards his vet bills.
We could not do what we are doing for him
without your assistance.
Please keep Tonka in your prayers.
Tonka came to New Jersey
Boxer Rescue when a local city shelter contacted
us on his behalf. NJBR was his last hope.
Before meeting him we were emailed a video of so
that we can see his condition. It looked to us
as though he had minor leg injury due to
neglect.
It is New Jersey Boxer
Rescues mission to never leave a boxer behind
because of expenses associated with medical care, so
we took him to safety. Tonka had been neglected by
some mean people, left in a crate which deformed his
rear legs and was severely emaciated. Tonka has a
big mushy head and an adorable wagging tail. It is
sad to say that his head looks so big because he is
so underweight.
A very nice orthopedic
vet examined Tonka and the outcome was not good.
This grim outcome for Tonka comes right on the heels
of rescue boxer, Pup-Pup, being hit by a car and
incurring thousands of dollars worth of orthopedic
surgery bills. Tonka was diagnosed with a condition
called luxating patella’s. His case is very severe-
"a 4 out of 4" the orthopedic vet told NJBR. "
What can we do?" Tonka
needs surgery, he is young now, we estimate his age
at about 2, and he is highly adoptable. If he does
not have surgery, he will be dragging his legs
behind him and in severe pain by age 5. Surgery is
the only option to prevent that horrible result. The
saddest part about Tonka's case is that he was not
born this way. Tonka has this problem with his legs
because someone left him in a crate ALL THE TIME!
Because of Tonka's
neglect, he is so eager to please and be loved. He
walks around and has boxer wiggles even though he is
pain. If there ever was a boxer that needed help----
Tonka is the one! New Jersey Boxer Rescue needs a
foster home (right now he is in a kennel) for
pre-operation and until we can raise enough funds to
pay for his surgery. Post operation care involved
two weeks of very limited activity (crated and leash
walked) and minimal activity for a few weeks after.
Our New Jersey Boxer Rescue yard sale is being done
in his honor on May 12th in an effort to raise some
money for the surgery.
