Once Hours from Death, Belo’s Story Showcases the Resilience of Rescue Dogs

“Belo was the most extremely emaciated dog I have ever seen come in alive. He was hours away from dying,” said Dr. Aubrey Crowley, an ASPCA veterinarian who worked with Belo. “At this point in my career, I have seen hundreds of emaciated animals. I have not seen one come in as sick as he was and live. There is not a doubt in my mind that if he had been found just a day later, he would not have made it, and this would be a very different story.”

In January 2025, Belo, an 8-year-old pit bull-mix, was found by the NYPD in a shopping bag. In severely critical condition, he was rushed to the Veterinary Emergency & Referral Group (VERG), an emergency hospital and ASPCA partner clinic.

Belo upon intake at the ASPCA Animal Hospital, three and a half weeks after being found.

“Seeing the photos of his intake at VERG, he looked deceased,” remembered Dr. Crowley. “He was severely emaciated, dangerously anemic, his organs were shutting down, he only responded to being in pain, he wasn’t mentally aware of what was going on around him and he had several deep infected pressure sores on his chest, elbows and hips from being stuck in a lying down position for so long as he was unable to stand or even sit up.”

Belo, in too critical of a state to be transported, remained in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at VERG for over three weeks before being transferred to the ASPCA Animal Hospital’s ICU. Here, Dr. Crowley and her team saw firsthand how dire a state Belo was in.

“You could see every rib, every vertebra,” said Sam Porto, a Floor and Operations Manager at the ASPCA Animal Hospital and Belo’s adopter. Belo had an emaciated body condition score of one on the nine-point Purina Body Condition System, one being the thinnest score. “It was a tough thing to see, but we knew we were going to try everything we could to get him out of that state.”  

A Team Effort

Belo’s care was both extensive and labor intensive. Due to the nature of his injuries and the fact that he couldn’t stand or move on his own, Belo required manual rotations of his body every few hours to prevent infection and any new pressure sores. The pressure sores already covering his body required extremely involved maintenance from multiple veterinarians. They would perform bandage changes, debriding or the scraping off dead tissue, closing his wounds when possible and making sure his dressings were always clean and dry.

Additionally, Belo had a urinary catheter that had to be maintained as well as an IV for several medications that required its own separate (and intensive) maintenance. Since he couldn’t lift his head to eat or drink, staff would have to feed him by hand and give him water.

“Another consequence of being starved for so long was that he lost all the fat behind his eyeballs,” explained Dr. Crowley. “His eyeballs actually retreated into their sockets and as a result, he had very painful ulcers from his eyelashes hitting his eyes over time. So, our team had to constantly keep his eyes lubricated and protected to prevent more pain.”

“It was a lot to ask of Belo to go through this rehabilitation process, and it was definitely a team effort to get him healthy again,” she added.

That team effort is what led to Sam and Belo’s first meeting during a round of X-rays that Sam was assisting with.

“When I came in, I thought he was incredibly cute,” he recalled. “So, I followed him along his journey here.”

Defying the Odds

Day by day, Belo started to get better. After eight long weeks, Belo finally took his first few steps.

“The day he took those first steps was a celebration,” recalled Dr. Crowley. “The whole hospital, the whole team, was cheering and sending videos to each other because it took so long and so much effort to get him there that we were all so excited to see him take a couple steps on his own.”

After gaining more muscle and doing physical therapy Belo was finally able to walk again.

“The average emaciated dog does not come in unable to walk,” explained Dr. Crowley. “They have decreased strength, but they can stand. It is an extreme level of neglect and cruelty for a dog to be so starved that they can’t walk and even then, they usually start walking within a matter of days. Belo took almost two months to take even one step. That’s how sick he was when he got to us.”

Typically, a dog spends no more than a week or two in an ICU setting. Belo was there for four times the average length of stay, which made the day he was able to be transferred out a day many staff members will never forget. Though he still had ways to go medically, Belo was then moved from the ICU to the ASPCA Animal Recovery Center (ARC).

Showing Pawsonality

Despite the immense amount of pain he endured, Belo always remained calm, joyful and eager to greet everyone around him.

“One of the first things that started working was his tail,” Dr. Crowley said gleefully. “He would come over, usually holding a bone or a toy in his mouth, wagging his tail, eager to greet you and very excited that you were in his presence. It did not take long for him to become a staff favorite.”

“The running joke was that he was the mayor of the hospital, and he had to say hello to everybody,” Sam added. “He had his usual routine. He knew a few of the Licensed Veterinary Technicians were the people to go to for treats. He knew everybody in the hospital after spending so much time there and everybody became so invested in him.”

Sam was also amazed at how trusting Belo was even after enduring the level of neglect that he did.

“You could extend your hand to him, and he trusted you instantly. It made the recovery process so much easier,” said Sam.

“A lot of animals require sedation for bandage changes, understandably, because they don’t know what we’re doing and get upset. Belo required some peanut butter on a stick. That was all he needed to cooperate!” Dr. Crowley laughed.  

Throughout the six months he spent in our care, including two months in the ICU and five months of bandage changes, Belo had gone from the brink of death to a jubilant, friendly dog full of life. As June rolled in, Belo was finally ready to find a home to call his own.

Heading Home

Sam started working at the ASPCA Animal Hospital in 2023 and knew he’d one day adopt an animal from work. However, he’d decided that he had to wait six months before bringing someone home so that it wasn’t a rash decision.

“I wanted to make sure it was the right dog for my lifestyle. My girlfriend, Marielle and I were looking for a female with no long-lasting medical injuries,” explained Sam, who had still not adopted a pet in the year and a half he had been at the ASPCA before meeting Belo. “Belo was the total opposite of what we initially discussed. But as Belo progressed through the hospital and I got to see how calm he was, how friendly he was with everybody and that he really just wanted to enjoy life, I came to the decision that this was the guy I wanted to bring home.”

Though Sam had been following Belo’s journey for half a year and sharing whatever updates he could with Marielle, her first time meeting Belo wasn’t until adoption day.

When the couple pulled up to the Adoption Center, Belo happened to be outside on a walk. Marielle recognized him immediately.

“She went up to him and he immediately had full body wiggles. It was love at first sight between the two of them,” said Sam, who brought everyone back inside the Adoption Center to fill out the adoption forms. “We could not have signed that paperwork quick enough.”

When everything was final, the couple brought Belo to their car where they would make the roughly three-and-a-half-hour drive back to their home in Worchester, Massachusetts.

“We think Belo knew he was heading out because the moment we opened our car door he hopped right in,” Sam remembered.

The Home He Always Deserved

The minute Belo got to his new digs, he made himself right at home.

“He totally came out of his shell — we didn’t even know he had a shell,” joked Sam. “He is excited whenever we come home and has no problem lounging on the patio in the sun all day. He’s surrounded by grass and trees, which he enjoys as well. And it’s just him so he gets to be as spoiled as he wants.”

Belo found his favorite activity ­­— napping. In just the first week of being home, Belo found all his favorite spots to snooze, rotating between his two dog beds and Sam and Marielle’s bed.

“Our joke at the hospital was that he doesn’t do a whole lot. He’s just happy to be included,” said Sam, who found the same to be true at home. “He’s a couch potato. As long as he gets to see his people and has his pile of toys and gets his food, he’s incredibly happy.”

“We even had to baby lock the fridge because he learned how to open it,” Sam told us.

Something to Be Proud Of

Though Belo was only home with Sam and Marielle for six months when we spoke to them, the pair feel like he’s always been there. He added an immense amount of joy, cuddles and appreciation into their lives.

“I’ve seen so many dogs come through the hospital, several who have been in the same situation as Belo, and these cases that absolutely break your heart,” said Sam. “We’ll spend so much time with them and grow attached to them and then over time they’ll slowly learn to trust us a bit more and see that we’re trying to help them. In the end it’s always so great to see them finally go home and be happy and live full doggy lives. To actually be a part of that now and have my own version of that story is really something to be proud of.”

“I have essentially known about Belo and been a part of his journey from the beginning,” he adds. “He is the true story of what the ASPCA can do when you have this dog that’s so emaciated and so injured and then turns into this absolute love ball that wants to do nothing but cuddle with you and spend the day with you. It’s really special to be a part of.”

It's not just Sam and Marielle that are proud, the whole team back in New York City are too.

“Belo is an example of the worst and the best humanity can do,” said Dr. Crowley. “Seeing a dog like Belo come in was heartbreaking and emotionally devastating but it’s the most wonderful feeling to see a dog looking the way he did not only be able to recover but be able to thrive. Belo did not just survive; he blew away all of our expectations. It is something that I can’t put into words, seeing an animal come in hours away from perishing, living his best life with a loving family where he could parade around with his favorite toys and nestle in his comforters. Being a small part of getting him to that stage is the greatest reward I could ask for from veterinary medicine.”

This holiday season, countless animals like Belo who have been denied food, water, care and love will be left feeling like they’re being punished, wondering if they’ve been put on the “Naughty List” when they’ve done nothing wrong. Learn more about how you can help more animals like Belo this holiday season by visiting aspca.org/GivingSeason.