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Dog Forced to Chew Off Foot to Escape Trap Is Still Looking for a Home Over a Year After His Recovery

Reported:
08/15/2025
Location:
Long Island, NY - USA
Species:
Dog
Trap Type:
Snare
Incident Date:
Victim's Disposition:
injured
Victim's Name:
Axel
Legal Action:
No

Summary:

LONG ISLAND, NY – Axel is currently under the care of Ollie’s Angels Animal Rescue, and has been since Dec. 2023. Axel ended up at the foster-based animal welfare organization based in Long Island, New York, after a journey of “incredible resilience and heartbreaking hardship,” according to Ollie’s founder, Melissa Bielawski.

Before moving to Ollie’s, Axel was living as a stray in South Carolina and ended up caught in a trap. “After being caught in a trap, he chewed off the end of his own foot to free himself. He was then taken to a South Carolina high-kill shelter, where his injuries were so severe that he was placed on the immediate euthanasia list,” Bielawski tells PEOPLE. Thankfully, before euthanizing the dog, the South Carolina shelter reached out to Ollie’s to see if the rescue could take on Axel’s case.

“When the shelter reached out to us, we saw the sweetness in his eyes and knew he didn’t deserve to die. Despite knowing we would face extremely expensive medical care ahead, Axel was brave enough to save himself from the trap, so we chose to follow in his footsteps and give him the chance he deserved,” Ollie’s founder adds.

“His ears were cropped, he was painfully thin, and heartworm positive, a fatal condition if left untreated. He likely had to scavenge just to survive, and eventually, his foot was caught in a trap, whether by accident or by design, leading to his arrival at a high-kill shelter,” Bielawski explains. Ollie’s provided Axel the medical care he desperately needed, starting with heartworm treatment and an operation to amputate a part of Axel’s injured leg that was making the dog uncomfortable. Despite all of his medical procedures, Axel has remained a loving dog the entire way through.

Axel has gone from a “sick, weak, and painfully thin dog” to an energetic and confident canine who has mastered navigating the world in his donated wheelchair. He is still waiting to find his forever home. To learn more about Axel and submit an adoption application, visit Ollie’s Angels Animal Rescue’s website.

Result: