Brave street dog makes incredible recovery
Found lying in the middle of a street and barely able to muster the energy to lift his head off the ground, Major Sahib was days - if not hours - from death.
Maggots had completely devastated his right ear while mange had ravaged his skin, leaving him weak and in so much agony that he was unable to move, eat or drink.
Had Rajasthan-based charity Animal Aid Unlimited not rescued him when they did, he would surely have died in that very same spot.
Major Sahib barely had the energy to lift his head to look at the team that rescued him from near certain death in the middle of a street
A spokesperson for Animal Aid Unlimited said: 'We found him lying in anguish on the side of the street, gravely wounded and broken.
'The side of his head was being eaten by maggots and his body had given up all hope. He lifted his head with great difficulty when we approached but quickly collapsed again from the effort.
'We could tell that he had been lying in the same place for many hours if not days, and we believe that if we hadn’t rescued him right when we did, that this is where he would have died.'
Once back at the sanctuary in Udaipur, the team killed and flushed out hundreds of maggots that had completely destroyed his ear
Once he began to grow stronger, Major Sahib was then treated for the skin condition that had left his skin red raw and bald in many places
But after successful treatment and months of rehabilitation, Major Sahib is now unrecognisable in a video depicting his horrific ordeal and subsequent recovery.
The only indication that the fluffy dog now bounding around the charity's sanctuary is the same stricken canine found waiting to die in the road, is his missing ear and endearingly deformed jaw, which rescuers say is from a previous injury.
In the video posted to Animal Aid Unlimited's Facebook page, Major Sahib can first be seen trembling in fear and pain in the road with cars weaving round him before the rescue team scooped him up in a blanket and put him in their ambulance.
But Major Sahib is now unrecognisable as he laps up attention from the team at the sanctuary
After months of treatment, Major Sahib is out of pain and his fur has grown back
Back at the charity's base in Udaipur, the helpless hound can be seen lying still with his eyes wide open on the veterinary table, before the clinical team flushes his infected ear of hundreds of maggots in a stomach-turning clip.
The ear was entirely destroyed by the flesh-eating parasites, but once it had began to heal Major Sahib started treatment for mange, a skin infection which had seen him lose most of his fur and left his skin red raw.
In the meantime, he was also given IV fluids to treat his dehydration and antibiotics for the infection.
The only sign of his traumatic past is his missing ear and the endearingly deformed jaw that was caused by a previous injury
The team gave the dog the name Major Sahib in tribute to his 'incredibly valiant spirit'
'In the following days our old boy grew stronger, he ate well, and his wound started to heal. When we rescued him he was also suffering from mange, a skin condition, and that too healed with weekly medicated baths', said the spokesperson.
'After several months of treatment, you will have trouble recognising this handsome fella who we named Major Sahib in honor of his incredibly valiant spirit.
'He was wounded and broken, but he had so much more life to live.'
And Major Sahib is doing just that, as he laps up attention from the team at Animal Aid Unlimited and enjoys playing in the safety of its sanctuary.
Animal Aid Unlimited - set up by Erika, Jim and Claire Abrams-Myers 15 years ago after the family relocated to India from Seattle - rescues thousands of animals from India's streets every year.
About 50 dogs, 30 cows, 25 donkeys and five pigs who cannot be returned to the street live at its sanctuary where it also cares for some 200 animals under treatment for injuries and illnesses at any one time.
The charity also runs education programmes to prevent suffering among animals.
Donate to the charity here.