Francine was abused in the most horrific of ways and her story was heard by thousands of people but despite a lot of interest it took one very special couple to match perfectly.
Kate Gannon & her husband, Derek, fell in love with Francine instantly and so Francine (now called Mable) joined them in their small holding in Truro, Cornwall in Autumn 2024.
Mable now has a new family with two Golden Retriever Brothers, Monty & Maximus and Italian Greyhound Sister, Gigi. She lives the perfect life enjoying their garden and once her 6 month settling in period (required by AFOT) has ended she’ll be off to the Scilly Isles on regular jaunts too, where they enjoy swimming in the sea and having the best of fun.
“Mable has fitted in perfectly with our other dogs and has a very caring and attentive attitude to us all.” Says Kate, “She has changed all our lives for the better having her with us. She’s amazing!”
Francine’s original story – Francine is a Golden Retriever who was probably purchased as a puppy and then abandoned as she started getting older. She was found on the streets with her collar still on, wandering around, desperately trying to find a safe place to call home.
She ended up finding a road-side cafe that took pity on her and started feeding her. She had been there for weeks, living on the pavement, eating leftovers, and never straying from her spot behind the cafe, when an animal lover spotted her. When she stopped to give Francine some attention, she realised something was wrong. Francine was experiencing severe vaginal bleeding and her bottom was caked in dried up and flesh blood. Francine was also unable to urinate, and kept trying to pee, but was unable to. The animal lover called Lisanne at our sister rescue MELEZ Dog Rescue for help.
Francine was taken straight to the vets, where it took over an hour of physical examinations, blood tests and ultrasounds to figure out what was wrong with her. It turned out that she had a vaginal rupture, which was causing the excessive bleeding and was making it extremely painful for her to urinate. Unfortunately, it is possible that she was raped, as this does happen in Turkey, but we will never know for sure. We don’t know how long she had gone without urinating, but her bladder was so full that her whole belly was swollen. The vet had to insert a catheter and we estimate that about a litre of urine came out.
Francine stayed at the vets until the tear in her vaginal wall started to heal and she started being able to urinate by herself. She had recovered well and appeared to be very healthy when we got even more bad news:
During her spaying surgery, it was discovered that she had Pyometra and her uterus was terribly infected and swollen. This wasn’t causing her any discomfort yet, but would have become a life-threatening condition within a matter of days to weeks according to the vet. Luckily it was caught on time and the vet was able to successfully remove the whole uterus.
They also discovered a lump in one of her breasts during the operation. The lump was removed and sent off to the pathology lab for examination, where it was discovered that this was a malignant tumor. The tumor has been removed and X-Rays show that the cancer hasn’t spread to the rest of her body, but it is possible that it will come back in the future.
Despite everything, Francine is a happy, energetic girl who loves life! She is a very confident dog who feels at home just about anywhere. She can be a bit bossy, and will bark to demand cuddles or food!
Francine loves people and is very affectionate. She gets along very well with other dogs, but doesn’t like cats.
Francine’s absolute favourite thing is going out for walks. As soon as she sees a lead, she gets excited. She loves going out to explore new places and smell new smells.
This five year old girl is still young and has such a lust for life, she really deserves to spend the rest of her days in comfort, and with a family who loves her…
Thankfully Francine has found her loving family in the Gannons, but we have so many still waiting. If you adopt one of our dogs then see what’s involved in taking on one of our rescue dogs by clicking this link: Adopting With AFOT. A home check is always made and while there is no adoption fee required, we do ask for a voluntary donation to help towards our costs.
All our dogs will be tested prior to leaving Turkey for the following diseases:
BRUCELLA
LEISHMANIAS
ANAPLASMA
HEARTWORM
E-CANIS
Proof of tests and accompanying signed vet letters will be sent to adopter.
Animal Friends of Turkey (AFOT) is working together with Melez Dog Rescue to provide even more opportunities for dogs like Lucky. Those abandoned, abused and neglected dogs who through no fault of their own have no future in Turkey.
Without us there is no hope for these dogs and for every one we rehome there is another 100 waiting to take its place. But, we can only do so much without space or funds. Being volunteer run you can be sure 100% of your money goes towards food, foster care, vet bills and travel costs. Even if you decide not to adopt, please consider a donation.
Thank you.
