Short spine syndrome is an uncommon genetic disorder found in canines. Dogs with this disorder have a severely compressed spinal cord, so they look shorter than most dogs.
This condition is so rare that it appears in only approximately 30 dogs in the world. One of them is Mojo, a border collie who has been to quite a few homes.
He’s originally from an animal shelter located in Ohio. Mojo first came into contact with Julie LeRoy, who maintains a Facebook page for her own short-spine dog, Cuda, when someone posted Mojo’s picture and information on the page.
Soon, a woman named Maria Rell expressed an interest in adopting the border collie.
Image credit: Cuda Cares on Facebook
Julie and Maria kept in touch for several years, sharing news of their short-spine angels. But one day, Julie got a message that Maria had died of a terminal illness. Her family wanted help in finding a new home for Mojo.
By the time his former owner passed away due to cancer, Mojo was already ten years old—elderly in dog years. Julie knew that with his advanced age and his disorder, she might have a difficult time re-homing him. Still, she posted about the dog on her Facebook page once more.
Rachel Bryant, who lived two hours away, reached out to Julie and offered to take in Mojo. When she brought the dog to the vet, however, Rachel found he has not attended medical consultations for a while.
Image credit: Cuda Cares on Facebook
He needed to update his vaccinations and get urgent dental treatment, not to mention deal with the health issues that come with growing old.
Thankfully, a retired veterinarian by the name of Robin Stamey asked about the short-spine dog. Everyone decided that Robin and her family would be able to provide the best care for Mojo; in addition to being a former vet, Robin had much experience with senior dogs.
Because Robin lived in Florida, she and Rachel met halfway in Nashville to bring Mojo to his new home—forever this time.
According to Robin, in spite of Mojo’s condition, he’s “pretty normal, basically.”
Indeed, Mojo is a playful bundle of energy. You can watch him here:
Source: Inside Edition on YouTube
