In order to stabilize him for the trip to the hospital, we started providing him with the initial round of veterinary care as soon as we arrived at the scene. The doctors were taken aback by his condition but maintained a positive outlook. They calculated that he had been malnourished for at least three weeks, and that he had been left to expire slowly and in excruciating pain. John displayed a robust appetite, consuming food as soon as it was presented to him, which was a gleam of hope despite the circumstances. During the time that they were cleaning and treating his infected wounds, the doctors were able to begin him on a regimen of vitamins and supplements.