Meet Noelle! We found this sweet senior girl in San Antonio waiting for a Christmas miracle. She had an ugly hanging mass on her ear that was causing her discomfort and looked just awful. Thanks to one of our long time volunteer fosters in San Antonio, we were able to get her out of the shelter in time for Christmas. As a senior girl in tough condition, her chances of making it out alive were not good.

We brought Noelle to our rescue vet who thinks she may be close to 12 years old, but the veterinarian at the shelter seemed to be of the opinion that she’s 7 or 8. It’s very hard to determine age, so it’s probably a safe bet that she’s somewhere between 8 and 12. The tumor on her ear was a simple papilloma – ugly to look at, but easy to remove and the prognosis is excellent. She does have a couple other small lipomas, common in older dogs, and do not need to be removed.

While she was in surgery, she got a full dental workup including a cleaning and removal of a couple cracked teeth. She’s now got a spring to her step, her coat is getting nice and shiny again, and she’s got a new lease on life. Her foster mom reports that she’s not especially playful, but gets along fine with her own dog. She enjoys just hanging out and going for the occasional walk and she’s looking to live out the rest of her “second life” with a happy family.