Going Rogue. –by Tina K. VaLant
MONDAY, MAY 11 WAS A DAY LIKE ANY OTHER for Tomeka Collins in Saint Petersburg. This time of year, she likes to begin before the heat of the day sets in. She rose before the sun, fed and walked Cypress, a brindle Pit Bull mix she found as a stray, and arrived for her shift as a meter reader at 7 a.m. Aside from a supervisor changing her route that day, everything was just as it always is.
gash under his right eye, a hole in his ear and numerous facial puncture wounds. He had to have been in pain, yet he was trust- ing and friendly. Wagging his tail, he jumped into Tomeka’s vehi- cle with her help. Thinking such a friendly dog may have been lost, she filed a report with the St. Pete police department. They wanted to keep the dog, as evidence, they told her. “I didn’t know if he was going to make it through the night, so I thought, if he was going to pass, it was going to be in a home where people cared.” She then took him to an animal emergency room, but they turned her away. Then she took him to Skyway Animal Hospital. He was infested with parasites
and at 40 pounds, extremely mal- nourished and anemic. His injuries included deep flesh wounds, eye damage and infections, causing his immune system to be severely com- promised. Skyway Animal Hospital’s Dr. William C. Slocumb, said the injuries undoubtedly resulted from dog fighting. Tomeka never sus- pected that history from the affable canine. Aside from the dog’s gentle demeanor, the only other bit of good news was, he was heartworm negative. Dr. Slocumb estimated the dog’s
Tomeka Collins with Rogue (left)and Cypress (right). Photography by Tina K. VaLant.
Walking at a brisk pace, Tomeka looked forward to working
on some home improvements that afternoon, and maybe even getting in a CrossFit training session. Approaching a busy inter- section, she saw a woman chasing after a tan, medium-sized dog. As she got closer, she could see the male dog was hurt. People looked concerned, but they just drove away. Perhaps they thought, “It's not my problem”, “That looks dangerous”, “I've got to get where I'm going”, “I'd like to help, but...).” None of these thoughts crossed Tomeka's mind. She pulled her vehicle over and got out to assist. Heat-
exhausted, the dog allowed them to lead him from the intersec- tion, using Tomeka's belt as a leash. She asked the woman how her dog had escaped. “It’s not my dog,” she said. “I just didn’t want him to get hit by a car. I can’t take him home — can you help him from here?” The skinny, russet-colored dog was bloody and looked gruesome. His left eye was nearly swollen shut. There was a deep
52 THE NEW BARKER
age to be just over a year as he administered vaccines, pain medica- tion, and antibiotics. The swelling
would need to subside before his injuries could be further eval- uated, and a care plan put into place. After setting up a followup protocol, Tomeka took him home. She kept him separate from Cypress (who was very curious about this new addition) so he would stay calm and rest. While looking at collars and leads in a pet supply store,
Tomeka chatted with a woman who had a dog named Rogue. Coincidentally, she does CrossFit using Rogue equipment. The dog she found had gone rogue, having escaped a treacherous, brutal life. He was so named. Over the next three weeks, Rogue was dropped off at
Skyway for daily wound care. “I didn’t plan on adding another dog to my household, let alone a severely injured one. I don’t know what I would have done without Dr. Slocumb and all the Skyway staff. They staked their claim in making Rogue’s new life happy and healthy, with expert veterinary care, given with great love and kindness.”
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