Tochimpo had a home in Mexico once
Tochimpo's Story
Tochimpo had a home in Mexico once. And then one day he didn’t. One day as a puppy he found himself tied to a tree with a rope around his neck. Maybe there was a reason they couldn’t keep him or maybe they just didn’t want him anymore. Maybe they thought he would be safer tied to a tree then running in the street. Or maybe they didn’t care if he died. He languished in an empty field on a short rope for days or maybe even weeks. He couldn’t remember because he was just a puppy and he didn’t know anything about the world then or have a concept about how time passes. He only knew that if he didn’t break free from that tree he would never learn about the world. He would die right there.
He doesn’t remember whether someone finally cut him free of the rope or he chewed through it. But at least he was free. Partially. He still had the small loop of rope tied around his neck and he was a growing puppy. As he wandered the streets and grew, the rope became tighter and tighter around his neck, eventually cutting through his skin and leaving him with a ghastly open wound all the way around his neck. He doesn’t remember how long he wandered the streets but it must have been awhile, months or even a year, because the wound had become very deep. Someone finally took notice, but by that time it was deep and infected.
He was lucky, though, that the person who noticed cared about animals and took pity on him. She coaxed him to her and took him to our vet in Manzanillo. Dr. Gaby Gabriela Leyva Chavez carefully and lovingly cleaned the wound that entirely encircled his neck and surgically closed it. He healed amazingly quickly and became a bright and bouncy boy. But by this time he had been away from his life and territory on the street too long and he could not safely go back with his survival ensured. He was posted locally for adoption but nobody wanted to give this sweet boy a home.
One of our treasured friends in Mexico, Margarita M. Fabela found a rare foster home for him with Bertha Margarita where he could be safe but could not find a permanent home. So we sent out our SOS messages and found someone in the US who would provide him a forever home, Lisa Bowers. Lisa had also adopted Chalupa, rescued from a dump in Manzanillo during our Humanitourism program in 2017. Tochimpo was ready and with all of his vaccinations and sterilization and just needed to wait for an opportunity to get to his home waiting in the US.
That happened when we had to fly to Manzanillo for a special board meeting of the Friends of Mexican Animal Welfare organization. Tochimpo was healed well enough to travel and had a clear health check. So at the end of January we took a planes, trains and automobiles odyssey and brought him home to the US. Awake 36 hours straight, a 5 hour overnight bus ride, 2 hour check in wait, 3 1/2 hour flight and 4 1/2 hour drive, but this boy was on his way to his forever home in the U.S.
He arrived safely and into the waiting arms of his forever family and sweet sister where he is making the adjustment to Colorado life. We are so grateful to the many people involved in helping him.