LA MESA, Calif. (KGTV) — A 4-month-old puppy shot in the head with a pellet gun at her foster home in La Mesa has returned home.
Last week, ABC 10News detailed Chloe's battle for survival. Now, we follow up on her fragile recovery.
Cellphone video shows Chloe after a rescue group brought her back from a veterinarian in Tijuana on Wednesday. Soon after, the chihuahua puppy was back in the arms of her foster mom, Zoraida Padilla.
“You're alive and fighting,” Padilla told Chloe as she held the puppy. “When I saw her, I cried, held her, and kissed her. We just didn’t know if she was coming home … There’s relief, all this love that pours out.”
Relief came after a week of disbelief and worry.
@abc10news 🐾💙 After being shot in the head last week, Chloe, a 4-month-old Chihuahua puppy, is defying the odds. Watch her happily run around in her foster home as she continues to recover! 🐶✨ #relatable #funny #puppy #feelgood #positivevibes #funnyvideo #dogsoftiktok #chihuahua ♬ Lovable and funny animals - ALOHI STYLE
ABC 10News first spoke to Padilla on Monday at her home on Guava Avenue.
“To shoot her like that, who does that?” a tearful Padilla said in the September 30 interview.
An emotional Padilla, feared Chloe's injuries were too much to overcome, after her foster puppy, who was playing in the back yard, was shot in the head with a pellet gun.
Based on the shape of a wound on another of her dogs, Padilla believes Chloe was the second dog to be shot in two weeks.
Chloe was treated for brain bleeding and inflammation and put on six different medications. Eventually, she began to improve.
“I see a fighter. She’s shown us she wants to live,” said Padilla.
She said Chloe has suffered brain damage affecting her motor functions. When she gets excited, she can fall over, and her balance and coordination have been impacted.
“When she sits up, her head tilts, and that may be a forever thing,” Padilla said.
While the medications are effective, there is still swelling in Chloe's brain. The pellet remains lodged in her head. In a week, veterinarians will determine if it's safe to remove the pellet.
It's unclear what kind of long-term needs Chloe will have, but Padilla said she will have a loving home, with several families wanting to adopt her.
“She's resilient and strong, and she will live her best life,” Padilla said.
The Humane Society reports that an enforcement officer has been assigned to the case as the investigation begins.
A GoFundMe campaign has been started to help with Chloe's veterinary bills.
