A dog has made a miraculous recovery after being crushed by a speeding car and left with horrific injuries in a road accident outside her home.
Miniature wire-haired dachshund Liesel was hit by a vehicle travelling over the speed limit near her owner’s house near Inchester.
The six-year-old pet was left fighting for her life with seven broken ribs, a fractured pelvis, a punctured lung and extensive internal damage.
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She even suffered nerve issues that left her struggling to urinate – and vets feared she might not make it.
Liesel’s devastated owner, Lesley Hallett, had just returned from a trip away when the accident happened.
“I’d lifted Liesel into the house while I was unloading the car but she got out and ran across the road to see a dog,” she told Need To Know.
“When I called her, she started to come back but a car came speeding over the brow of the hill and ran her over.
“It was going way over the speed limit and didn’t stop.
“The car went right over the middle of her body and my poor girl was left lying there crying.
“I couldn’t see any blood as all her injuries were internal.”
Neighbours rushed to help and Lesley raced the injured dachshund to an emergency vet in Southampton.
There, specialists confirmed the extent of her traumatic injuries and referred her to Southern Counties Veterinary Specialists (SCVS) in Ringwood for life-saving treatment.
At the hospital, vets carried out a full body CT scan and discovered that Liesel’s tiny body had been damaged from head to tail.
Surgeons spent hours repairing multiple fractures and internal injuries during a complex operation before she was placed in intensive care for over a week.
Despite the odds, Liesel pulled through – earning herself the nickname of “miracle dog” among staff.
“I’ve been a vet for 10 years and I’ve never seen so many injuries in a dog after a car accident,” said vet Mara Sprocatti.
“We often see damage to parts of a dog or cat, but when we did a full body CT scan, Liesel had injuries literally from head to tail.
“They included broken ribs, multiple pelvic fractures, broken bones in her legs, a punctured lung, contusions to her kidneys, spleen and liver and a tail-pull injury causing problems with her being able to urinate.
“There were so many things to try and deal with at the same time, we had to speak to the owner about potentially putting Liesel to sleep.
“But she was very committed to us doing everything we could.”
After returning home, Liesel’s devoted owner set up a recovery space beside her bed so she could care for her around the clock.
Now, just months later, the brave dachshund has made a full recovery and is back to her playful self – a walking miracle after surviving injuries few dogs could endure.
Vets say her case was one of the most extraordinary recoveries they’ve ever seen – proof that even the smallest dogs can have the biggest fight in them.
Lesley added: “Mara and the team gave me huge confidence they could help Liesel right from the beginning, despite the amazing number of injuries.
“She’s become a bit of a legend locally with people who’ve heard about all she’s gone through.
“It really is a miracle, and I can’t thank everybody at SCVS for all they did.”
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