Homeless pooch rescued from wrinkles

Before he had a home, Shankly wandered the streets of London hungry and lost. He was alone, in poor health, and no one seemed to care that his face was full of sagging wrinkles that hampered his vision.

Thanks to some kindhearted doctors, Shankly got a new home and a £1,000 facelift that ...Before he had a home, Shankly wandered the streets of London hungry and lost. He was alone, in poor health, and no one seemed to care that his face was full of sagging wrinkles that hampered his vision.

Thanks to some kindhearted doctors, Shankly got a new home and a £1,000 facelift that matched those of Hollywood movie stars. He not only looks good but sees better these days – and it’s all because of the good people at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.

Yes, handsome Shankly (named after the legendary Liverpool football manager Bill Shankly) is a dog and he has been rescued from a bad case of wrinkles!

“The poor pooch was brought into Battersea Dogs and Cats Home after being picked up wandering the streets earlier this year, despite the fact that as a puppy he would have cost around £700,” said the Daily Mail.

Shankly is a Shar Pei, one of the most ancient dog breeds that originated in China where it was well-known as a fighting and guard dog. The dog has deep wrinkles and a blue-black tongue. Puppies are born with wrinkles that eventually disappear as they “grow into their skin.”

“Originally, the intense loyalty of the Shar Pei defined its work - guarding the Chinese royal family. The dogs are ideally suited for defense; the small ears and deep-set eyes are tough to grab and if grabbed on the skin, the wrinkles enable the dog to turn around and bite back. At one point they were close to extinction, and were listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as ‘The rarest dog in the world’,” according to Wikipedia.

In Shankly’s case, however, his wrinkles had become so saggy that they blinded him. But the staff at the London animal rescue charity changed all that in an hour-long operation that restored his sight and his good looks.

“It is only the second time in my two-year career that I have carried out this operation. Although Shankly's wrinkles are very typical of the breed, the trouble was that he was completely blinded by the folds of skin that covered his eyes, so the way of giving him his sight back was to carry out a face-lift. The operation demonstrates the first class veterinary care Battersea gives to all our animals, even if their requirements are a little unusual,” said head vet Dr. Shaun Opperman.

But Shankly’s luck was just beginning. With the help of Shar Pei Rescue and Welfare, the popular pooch got a new home and now lives with 39-year-old carpenter Adrian Duncan and his family.

“When we first drove up to Battersea Dogs and Cats Home to see Shankly he was very thin and covered in scars and stitches but we fell in love with him straight away. In our eyes he is absolutely gorgeous and we wouldn't have him any other way,” Duncan said.

While not all of us have the good fortune of getting free cosmetic surgery like Shankly, there are products that can help us fight wrinkles without the expenses and risks of the former. One of them is Dermaxin, a powerful wrinkle fighter that can restore your skin’s natural beauty. For details, go to http://tinyurl.com/8jkw6ma