The Creation of Frankenpuppy

Rusty has been in our family for a long time. For ten years he was a bedtime favourite, well cared for and in very good shape for a puppy his age. He used to look something like this:

Then along came Bad Dog. Bad Dog has only been with us for a short time. For ten months she has been terrorizing the household, and especially the stuffed animals, with her dripping jaws of destruction. We all took precautions to prevent tragedy. Bedroom doors were kept closed, favourite toys were stored in hard to reach places. Then it happened. One day, Rusty was left alone and vulnerable on the arm of the couch. It all happened so fast.

I'll spare you the gruesome photos of the aftermath. Rusty was in horrible shape. Seams were split, one ear was chewed completely in half. And his face. Oh, his poor little face. His snout was chewed to pieces, all the stuffing exposed. It was the stuff of nightmares.

Needless to say, Rusty needed some major reconstructive surgery. Now, I'd mended a torn foot or two, replaced a few button eyes, but this...I didn't even know where to begin. But then the crying and the begging started. "I just can't sleep without Rusty" was enough to send me in search of some rust coloured thread.

The first stage of the surgery involved repairing the extensive damage to Rusty's snout. There really wasn't much left to work with. The edges were ragged and still stiff with dried slobber. I pieced it all back as best I could, and stitched some shape into his little face.

Then the second round began. I tidied all the little holes and lumpy spots, stitched up his side and fixed his ear. There wasn't much we could do there, the bottom half was gone, but at least there is no gaping hole. 

The hardest part was giving Rusty a new nose. He had a cute little button nose once. It was shiny and smooth. Then it was gobbled up with slobbery glee by Bad Dog. So now Rusty has a hand sewn nose. It's different, but he'll get used to it. 

Now Rusty, all mended and fresh and clean, resides on a the highest shelf in the safest bedroom. Bad Dog looks up at him, licking her chops. I wonder how much it would cost to put in a motion sensitive laser perimeter?