Sapulpa's ' bulletproof' dog

The vets say the bullet should have killed her, but Bullet the dog is one tough mutt to crack and Sapulpa Animal Control officials say, she's also one of the sweetest. <br/><br/>News on 6 reporter

Tuesday, March 1st 2005, 10:14 am

By: News On 6

The vets say the bullet should have killed her, but Bullet the dog is one tough mutt to crack and Sapulpa Animal Control officials say, she's also one of the sweetest.

News on 6 reporter Steve Berg has more on the bulletproof pup.

They say it's the cats that have nine lives, but the vet who worked on a Creek County dog says she's got at least two. Bob Kelch with Sapulpa Animal Control: "He's really surprised that the dog survived it, that she's a special dog and we think so too."

Bob Kelch says somebody shot the 3-month old puppy and left her for dead outside the town's water treatment plant on Lake Sahoma Road. Workers there found her and called the shelter. By all rights, the vet said the large-caliber bullet should have severed her spine, but somehow it turned. In fact, it's so close to the spinal cord, he decided to leave it there. "Said it would do more damage to take the bullet out than to leave it in, so she's still got it in there." And she carries the name "Bullet" too.

Just a week after it happened, the uncanny canine bounces around as if nothing happened at all. "She was limping a little bit when we brought her back from the doc of course, but she's doing fine now. She doesnâ€™t seem to know a stranger. She's really a friendly, little dog."

And while we suspect that Bullet will always be sweet, she won't always be little. "Yeah, she's gonna get pretty large." Bullet looks to be a Bull Mastiff and could top 100 pounds. They've already gotten some interest in adoption, but say Bullet will need a big, fenced yard. And they're being a little protective. "We just love her; she's gotten into everybody's heart here."

They don't know how she survived and even harder to understand is how someone could have shot her. Bob Kelch: "The dog deserves more."

Dr. Dan Denham, a Kellyville veterinarian, helped treat Bullet free of charge.