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A resilient dog who was cruelly tied to a fence during Hurricane Milton has defeated cancer just months after he was rescued and found his forever home.
Trooper, a white bull terrier, was found left to die and surrounded by rising flood water just off Interstate 75 near Tampa, Fla. right before the devastating Category 3 hurricane made landfall in October.
After the Florida Highway Patrol found Trooper, Frank and Karla Spina adopted the pooch and brought him home to join their family.
But just two weeks into Trooper’s new life, the Spina’s noticed a couple of dime-sized lumps on his left side, according to a report by CBS News.
A veterinarian diagnosed their newest four-legged family member with cancer.
“The doctor immediately said, ‘Oh no, these are mass cell tumors. These are cancer.’ So we were in a complete meltdown,” Frank revealed to CBS News.
The veterinarian removed the cancer but noted that there was an issue in the Trooper’s stomach. Trooper had consumed a freezer bag which weighed just over two pounds.
“It’s a combination of about 110 or 120 pieces of garbage,” Frank said.
Trooper quickly underwent a life-saving surgery that lasted more than four hours as health officials removed both metal and rubber from his stomach.
According to the outlet, the trash was inside Trooper before he was adopted.
“Could you imagine how starved he had to be to ingest a piece of metal or, or pieces of rubber that are the size of quarters?” Frank said.
Trooper’s previous ex-owner, Giovanny Garcia, was charged with aggravated animal cruelty, a third-degree felony.
The 23-year-old allegedly told officials he left the pup because he “couldn’t find anyone to pick the dog up.”
The heartless former pet owner’s next hearing is in March.
Trooper was named to honor the Florida Highway Patrol trooper who rescued him.
The Leon County Humane Society stepped in to help Trooper after the rescue.
There was a surge of interested aspiring dog parents after the viral coverage of Trooper but in the end, the non-profit organization picked Frank and Karla Spina to adopt him because they have cared for bull terriers for over three decades, according to a Facebook post.
The Spina family has another dog named Dallas.
“We don’t have children. These are our children,” Frank Spina boasted.
