Kabang: Dog With No Snout Gets Face Surgery
The celebrity pooch is treated by top US vets after having part of her face ripped off while apparently trying to save two girls.
6:19am Saturday 08 June 2013
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Kabang's open wound seen here before the op
A dog who lost a chunk of her face while saving the lives of two girls is getting a hero's welcome back home in her native Philippines after being treated by top US vets.
Kabang made global headlines after jumping into the path of a speeding motorbike that was about to hit the young daughter and niece of her owner.
The girls were unharmed but the shepherd-mix had the top of her mouth ripped off in the collision in Zamboanga City, in the southern Philippines.
Owner Ruddy Bunggal said Kabana had formed a bond with his daughter, Dina, which had probably prompted her into action.
The shepherd-mix has been enjoying plenty of attention
Reports of her feat moved thousands of supporters from at least 45 countries to contribute towards the cost of facial surgery at the University of California, in the city of Davis.
Filipino vet Anton Lim took the canine celebrity to the US last October and is the one who brought her back to Manila eight months later.
Filipino vet Anton Lim brought her to the US
"She symbolises unconditional love, that if you give unconditional love to your dog, of course they'll give it back to you," he said.
Total donations for Kabang's fund reached $27,000 - with donors including children who offered their lunch money.
Specialists also treated her for other illnesses, including a cancerous tumour.
They have reconstructed one eyelid that was damaged in the accident, and one operation saw vets closing her open facial wounds with skin flaps that were taken from other parts of her head.
Then, nasal openings were reconstructed and stents put into those passages that would allow two permanent nostrils to form.
She can still eat by herself, as well as bark and pant, and her sense of smell is intact.
But she will never look like she did before the accident because it is impossible to safely reconstruct her upper jaw.
Kabang with a member of her family last year
Kabang has continued to show signs of mental trauma.
Mr Lim said: "When we were in Davis, it's a bicycle city, whenever a motorcycle or bicycle would pass, she would get a bit scared. But recently, that has dissipated."
With her facial wounds sealed, Kabang is protected against infection and can look forward to a relatively normal and active life when she is reunited with her family on Monday.
