I recently came across a story about Gabriel, a Bulldog mix with a brown and white coat. His story is one of unimaginable pain and a relentless quest for justice, unlike any I’ve ever heard.
Gabriel was rescued from horrific abuse in Miami-Dade County, Florida, and the local vet who first examined him said it was the worst case of abuse he had ever seen.
His injuries were so severe that it felt almost impossible to grasp how any creature could endure such pain.
The scars on his body told of the unimaginable suffering he’d faced, but they were just a glimpse of the torment he’d lived through.
When Victoria Frazier, founder of Love Is Fur Ever Dog Rescue, heard about Gabriel’s case, she knew right away that she had to help. She couldn’t look away, not from those eyes, not from the pain that screamed out from every inch of his body.
Victoria rushed Gabriel to Dr. Thomas Jackson who discovered that acid burns covered 60% of his body, leaving him infected and broken.
Besides the burns, both his hips had been dislocated, most likely from repeated blows with a baseball bat. Dr. Jackson revealed that this sweet dog had been tortured in the most heinous way.
It was hard to believe there could be so much cruelty in the world, but it was even harder to understand how Gabriel had found the strength to keep fighting, as Dr. Jackson shared in a YouTube video:
“Either you were hurt to the point where that didn’t hurt anymore, or you were restrained and hurt.”
Six months passed, filled with surgeries and treatments that amounted to over fifty thousand dollars.
Skin grafts, stretching, and innovative procedures with buttons to pull and tighten his damaged skin were all part of Gabriel’s long road to recovery, as Dr. Jackson explained:
“We had wounds that wouldn’t close. We had severely infected wounds…The buttons were a way to take all the pressure off of these sutures and really get some tightening of that skin.”
Through it all, Gabriel showed a spirit that was nothing short of miraculous.
Slowly, piece by piece, with each stitch and every caring hand that touched him, he started to heal. His golden eyes, once filled with terror, could finally rest peacefully.
Today, Gabriel lives with his foster mom, Samantha Kellum, who is just as fierce about his justice as she is about his care.
The shelter Gabriel was rescued from and the Miami-Dade Police Department had decided to drop the case against Gabriel’s abuser.
However, Samantha refuses to let Gabriel’s story end there, sharing:
“He’s healing, but he’s always going to have these scars… Something needs to be done. Animal abuse can’t be tolerated like this.”
Samantha is seeking justice through an online petition demanding action against the person who hurt Gabriel, and it quickly gathered over 6,500 signatures.
Additionally, Love Is Fur Ever Dog Rescue is pushing the case forward with the State Attorney.
For Samantha and everyone involved in Gabriel’s rescue, it’s about more than just one dog – it’s about ensuring that animal abuse cannot be ignored or brushed aside.
Gabriel still has a long road ahead. More surgeries are needed to remove scar tissue and replace his damaged hips, but his spirit remains unbroken.
His past may have left scars that will never fade, but Gabriel has proven that with love and the right people by your side, you can overcome anything. It’s no wonder he’s now known as Gabriel the Great!