A Florida girl is safe this weekend thanks to her family's German shepherd, Haus, who stood his ground to protect her from a rattlesnake's deadly bite.
A little girl's life was potentially saved this week thanks to her family's German shepherd, who bravely stood his ground in the face of a deadly rattlesnake.
Haus, the 2-year-old pooch, was playing with 7-year-old Molly DeLuca in her family's fenced-in Tampa, Florida, yard when a huge Eastern Diamondback approached.
Haus stood between the snake and Molly, possibly saving her life while taking three venomous bites on Wednesday afternoon.
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"They’re quite certain he was protecting Molly, because he did not back away keeping himself between the snake and away from Molly," Cherissa Vandergriff wrote on a GoFundMe page dedicated to helping pay for Haus' veterinary costs.
Haus was rushed in for treatment and antivenom was administered immediately, but by Thursday vets were unsure if he'd make it.
Instead of the usual one or two doses of the lifesaving treatment, Haus was placed on a continuous drip of antivenom in hopes of improving his odds of survival.
In the ensuing hours, two miracles happened.
First, the GoFundMe page set up to pay the skyrocketing costs of Haus's treatment went viral.
In just two days, more than $58,000 was donated to pay the DeLuca's vet bills, far exceeding the $20,000 they'd asked for.
Haus also appeared to start to pull through.
Late Friday, Molly's mother, Donya DeLuca, said vets had given Haus about a 70 percent chance of survival.
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"Thanks for all your help! He is still on anti-venom, but doing better," Mrs. DeLuca wrote late Friday. "We appreciate everyone's generosity but we have been assured we have plenty of money for Haus's care."
With the costs covered, Mrs. DeLuca asked that interested donors consider giving to the rescue organization where they found Haus after losing their beloved canine companion of 12 years, Bailey.
"We ask that if you want to help great pets like Haus, to donate in his name to Heidi's Legacy Rescue who has been such a help in transitioning Haus to our home," DeLuca wrote.
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