I found MCOA by Sheer Luck!

BODI

By: Wendy Sullivan

(Author's Preface) We live in an Internet world so finding these beautiful beasts is EASY, falling in love with them is EASY, nursing their “neglected bodies & hearts” back to health is EASY, living each day once they’re gone is NOT easy.

This is our story....

I made a call one day to MCOA Rescue, (The Mastiff Club of America), received information and decided I would start by fostering (mainly due to my husband CJ being quite vocal about our 2 dogs being enough). 

Soon I got a call saying that they were going to pick up a four yr. old male who was in bad shape, and could they bring him by afterwards.  I went home to prep the house and call my husband.  He wished me luck but then with a very stern voice said, “We’re not keeping him, no matter what". Naturally, I agreed. 

They pulled up in an Expedition & this creature was lying in the back barely able to lift his head. I knew at that moment he was my new baby & I would do whatever I could to give him the life & love he should have had all those years.  

I’ve read other’s stories and love to hear owners say  'we fell in love when they first met', 'he looked at us and we knew', but for me it was different!  Body could not lift his head, his nails were so long they imbedded in his pad, he had such a severe case of entropion, he had never seen human eyes, trees, dogs, water…virtually blind.  And to add to this emotion I was angry, angry that we as a “higher” species could do harm to these creatures.  And I was also scared that it might be too late to make him trust & love again.  But what kind of being would I be if I didn’t try?

I knew I needed to get him to the vet. MCOA had already left and it quickly became quite very clear that this animal had never been walked.  His poor back legs were too weak.

Oh- I almost forgot to mention what the “intellectually inept” previous owner named him; Bozo!!  Needless to say that wouldn’t work (since I feel the name should’ve been given to the owner), so I named him Bodi.  Well, Bodi & I started our adventure to the vet, which was ¼ mile from my house.  This walk took us 45 minutes.  Bodi was so sweet, but truly in a state of emotional disassociation.

Shy of a face-lift, the vet fixed him up!!  He looked beautiful; I just needed him to feel beautiful inside.  He trusted me with his heart, from that moment I promised him I would never let his heart ache again. When my husband, CJ, came home he knew he could never ask me to give him up.  But something magical took place between Bodi & CJ; Bodi seemed aware of his presence and liked it.  I should have known at that moment that all my work would be in vain, Bodi from that day forward would be CJ’s dog.   The bond grew with each day, my tending to his wounds which lessened each week, and our hearts filled with a passion that we thought we’d never have. 

A few years back, about 5 months after our wedding, I had been hurt during an operation and was told I couldn’t bear children. Naturally being very young this was something we thought would be fine and didn’t think we would be missing out on anything. 

But we were missing something,  and a 230lb. gentle giant named Bodi was going to give that to us.

Bodi grew stronger thru walks with CJ, and really started to love our other 2 dogs, one of whom is a 125 lb. Chocolate Lab named Jack. A quick little note about how truly remarkable Bodi was: Our other little lab- Sady, who is older & very moody at times, didn’t care for Bodi at first. 

One day Sady went at Bodi snapping at his face.  Bodi was getting bitten, and could have stopped this attack in one snarl or snap, but he didn’t. Instead, he gently stood over her, holding her to the ground with his giant sweet paw, waiting for her to calm down.  That was the last time it happened.

Bodi loved his walks, and without having ever been on a leash, he didn’t realize that pulling was unacceptable!  CJ is a muscular man and was about the same weight as Bodi, so this task wasn’t difficult for him.  I, on the other hand, weigh less than ½ of Bodi, and this became quite apparent as I was dragged thru the field hanging on to his leash for life once when he had seen another dog and wanted to play. 

The owner was so scared she froze, not hearing my screams “he’s friendly” (between bites of grass).  Bodi could see now, and every sound, sight, & walk was brand new!  The hardest feat I encountered was teaching the “non-Mastiff” owner not to fear him.  This truly affected Bodi’s confidence; he was always “avoided”.  So if you’re reading this, please pass it along to everyone you know….don’t avoid Mastiffs,  lavish them with love & attention.  They have no idea they’re an intimidating animal, so do not give them a reason to be!

Bodi could not do stairs when we first adopted him; his muscle atrophy was too severe.  But with a few months of continuous exercising we finally could bring him up to bed with us.  That was wonderful, until promptly at 6am when his sweet giant face would be resting in front of mine wondering when mommy would be feeding him. 

Bodi loved his food, and water!  I had so many water bowls scattered throughout the house for him, because I knew he never had an adequate supply of it before.  Even though he was neglected, there wasn't a mean bone in his body. He would share his food, treats, and even allow CJ to reach in his mouth to retrieve a “non-treat” (i.e. a rock). 

Bodi & CJ had many outings together, snowshoeing, swimming, hiking.  The trust & bond was so evident when Bodi would go to get in the car by lifting his front paws on the tailgate, waiting for CJ to gently lift him into the Jeep. 

The love was even more evident when the summer heat came. We were worried about Bodi, so CJ spent quite a bit of money and even more time refinishing our basement all by himself.  (Needless to say our “dog room” is more beautiful then my living room.)  They have beds, toys, couches, TV, music, & water bowls to keep them happy. 

You see, what happened was...Bodi completed us! We spent more time at home as a couple rather then being away trying to stay busy.  There was no way we could give him all the love he brought us, but we certainly tried and I know he felt it.

In February 2002, Bodi and I were upstairs getting ready for bed.  He acted slightly immobile but I chalked it up as too much exercise.  When the next morning arrived and I wasn’t awakened by his precious face resting on my pillow, I  immediately woke CJ up, saying something was wrong. 

And something was wrong: Bodi had suffered a stroke and his hind legs were paralyzed.

The vet told us that sometimes they recover & get mobility again.  Well, that’s all we needed hear- we would give him as much time as he needed- and if CJ broke his back moving him everywhere he needed to go…so be it!!  

However, only 24hrs after we left the hospital we knew He was getting worse.  Bodi's bladder & bowels were paralyzed too. His poor tummy was so distended that I set out for the hour's drive to the vet at 10pm to get a catheter.  We wanted to relieve his pain hoping that he could possibly still recover.  Nothing worked. So I made that drive again & was told the worst news of my life: 

Bodi would have to remain at the hospital hooked up to a catheter indefinitely or we could put him down.

We stayed with him till he took his last breath, me laying my tiny head against his large chest feeling his heart become a part of mine; & CJ resting mouth to snout assuring him his daddy loved him so much.  The vet was crying extremely hard, & the ER cleared out for us to have our time.  I wouldn’t stop holding him. 

It’s been 1 year and I just had to close my office door because my tears won’t stop flowing.  See, this amazing creature became a part of our hearts & souls forever. We are so thankful to the MCOA for bringing Bodi to our world (that we thought was good) but how little we knew!!

If you have love, room and generosity to share please consider saving one of these captivating animals….I promise you, the love you get in return is everlasting.

Upon writing this story I have always said “we rescued Bodi”, but the truth is Bodi rescued us!

We’ll be with you again Bodi.

Wendy Sullivan

CJ Bickmore

Jack & Sady