Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, July 25, 1994 TAG: 9407250093
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: AUBURN, ALA. LENGTH: Medium
He's been on television. He's been on the front page of the newspaper in Mobile, the city where he was tortured and rescued. He's been the featured guest of honor at a Mobile bar, which donated the money from its $2 admission charge to the local animal shelter.
``It would be great if we could use Gucci as the spokesdog for animal cruelty,'' said Doug James, a Spring Hill College professor who saved the pup. ``He's big-time down here. It's funny when I go places, people say, `There's Gucci, There's Gucci.'''
James witnessed the May 20 burning of the little animal, then 3 months old, by a group of young males in a downtown Mobile neighborhood.
``Suddenly, I saw this little guy burst into flame,'' James said.
The dog, a chow mix, ran under a house, where he continued to burn until James rescued him.
James said the youths were sending a message to the puppy's original owner, a 15-year-old runaway girl who gave the dog its designer name and who has since returned home to her family. The boys wanted her out of the neighborhood, he said.
``I couldn't sleep for two nights,'' James said. ``Every time I'd try to sleep, I'd see his whole body a ball of fire.''
On July 6, three veterinary surgeons at Auburn's College of Veterinary Medicine moved the puppy's scarred eyelids so he can blink.
``We're trying to get the eyelids to where they'll work as normally as possible and protect the eyes,'' said Dr. David Whitley, who said the puppy will likely need another operation on each eyelid.
James was inundated with offers of help after a story about the puppy appeared in The Mobile Register.
Two juveniles accused of torturing the dog are scheduled for trial in August. A 19-year-old is scheduled to go on trial Tuesday on one count of violating Alabama's statute on cruelty to animals, which carries a maximum punishment of one year in prison plus fines.
James' friend George Hardesty is one of the lawyers on Gucci's team. Hardesty, a former Mobile district attorney and assistant state attorney general, wants to act as a special prosecutor on the dog's behalf.
``With Gucci, we intend to show that the government or a concerned citizen can step in where an animal is being abused, '' Hardesty said.
A Mobile lawyer, John Crowder, offered to pay for the dog's surgery, which the Auburn team performed at cost.
Crowder was outraged by what happened to the helpless mutt. ``I don't know if it's a sign of the times or our society or what. It's just sickening,'' he said.
Gucci now lives with James in Mobile. Despite having to wear a shield that looks like a lampshade to protect his scars, he plays happily with one of James' two other dogs. The vets say he appears to be a healthy, growing pup.
``He's been totally pleasant through the whole thing,'' James said. ``He's been a real trouper.''
by CNB