A crippled dog dumped for dead is the first in Britain to have four prosthetic legs.
The bionic dog’s happy home in Dalgety Bay is a far cry from the Ukrainian rubbish tip where has found with all four paws bound tightly with wire.
He was found, close to death, on a tip in Dnipropetrovsk in October 2015.
It was thought he had belonged to hunters who decided to get rid of him.
Callously, they tied his paws with wire and threw him into the rubbish dump.
Dillon was believed to have been there between seven and 10 days before he was found, in a terrible state.
Staff actually thought he was an old coat – until he groaned.
Now he runs about the home he shares with Lyn Johnston, who has spent around £8,000 on his rescue.
Vets had to amputate all the German wirehaired pointer’s seriously injured limbs to save his life.
When he was then taken to a Ukrainian animal rescue centre, an international appeal for help was issued.
Lyn, who is a dog walker, came to his aid, bringing him back to the UK to share her home and life as part of her family of rescue dogs.
Now 16 months on from his harrowing ordeal, Dillon can walk, run and play with his chums.
Lyn, speaking in a national newspaper, described Dillon as a “real snuggle monster”.
However, she recounted how she had faced a real struggle to get help.
Quite few animal hospitals, despite not having seen Dillon, told her she should have him put to sleep.
“After everything he had already been through there was no way I could give up on him,” she said.
It was to her great relief that she finally found a vet in Aberdeen who was willing to examine him.
Won over by the “amazing” Dillon, Scott Rigg agreed to do all he could to get him back on his paws.
Lyn also contacted OrthoPets UK, which makes prosthetic legs for animals.
Scott made moulds of his stumps which were sent to America so his new legs could be attached comfortably.
He took to them immediately and now locals know him well.
“He is an amazing dog and I’m so proud of him,” Lyn told the paper.
