Uphill Battle

When Garrett was found, he was in bad shape.  Turns out, he was in worse shape than we thought.

In the past two months, he's put on almost 20 pounds.  He's not quite as tall as Cole, but he outweighs him now.  So, the body's looking better, but we still have so much more trouble shooting to do under the hood. What I would give to find out where this poor guy lived before and under what conditions.  Maybe I don't really want to know.  
Here's my guess:  he was someone's backyard dog, who had no shelter and had to fight other dogs for his food. 
I say backyard because of the bewilderment he had when he first rode in a car and came into the house. 
I bet he had no shelter because when we had a hole prepped for a fruit tree, he jumped in and spent time digging himself a den to lay in.  Only a dog exposed to blazing heat would know to do that.
Next, his food aggression issues are getting better, but, in his previous life, he definitely had to fight for his food.  Some country folks have different ideas concerning the responsibilities of being a pet owner.  A few months ago, it was with quiet horror that I witnessed how one family 'fed' their dogs.  No kibbles, no sirreeee, just table scraps thrown out the window and every dog for himself, chicken bones and all.  
Indeed, Garrett will eat/steal anything.
Ask the chickens.  

He intercepted half a watermelon intended for the chickens and drug it off into the woods growling.
I didn't let him do the same with the canteloupe.

We practiced "sharing".
He has to be watched in the garden.  Tomatoes are his favorite prey.

I know he's snagged one when he darts out of the garden and makes a bee line for the woods.
Seems his thieving has landed him in trouble in the past:

Someone shot Garrett with a pellet gun.  The pellet is under his skin,but the vet doesn't recommend surgical excision.
Baby G did go back to the clinic this week because that persistent cough that we hoped was a resolving case of kennel cough won't go away.  His X-rays showed donuts and cloudiness in his lungs.  Yes, donuts, not the kind you dunk in coffee, but the kind that tell you that your dog has pneumonia.  
And did I mention he's taking his sweet time getting over a dermatitis issue?
Or that he's still receiving treatment for intestinal parasites?  He's gone from being very anemic to having some color in his gums now.  My last visit to the cardiologist revealed that I was anemic too.  So, Baby G and I are sharing my bottle of liquid iron.  What's good for the goose is good for the gander!
Leaving the vet, we stopped for ice cream... topped with pills.

A little sugar helps the medicine go down.