Aging Cocker Spaniel Abandoned at Manalapan Animal Shelter Monday Night

Manalapan, NJ - Someone abandoned this senior Cocker Spaniel Monday night at the Town and Country Veterinary Hospital in Englishtown, reports the Monmouth County SPCA.

The dog, now named Gracie, was shoved into a small cat carrier and abandoned outside of Town and Country Veterinary Hospital on Franklin Lane. She was found late Monday night.

When the staff arrived at the hospital Tuesday morning, they were horrified at the condition the elderly dog had been left in: She was severely matted, covered in large growths, her nails were overgrown into the pads of her feet, both her eyes and ears were terribly infected and she had several open sores which were filled with live maggots. Patch has chosen not to share the most graphic images, but you can learn more about Gracie here, and see more photos.

Gracie was initially treated at Red Bank Veterinary Hospital and she is now in the care of the Monmouth County SPCA. She is being monitored, hand-fed and is resting peacefully, "like it’s the first time she’s slept in years," SPCA medical staff wrote online. Gracie will need several treatments, including surgeries to remove her growths, repair her eyes and ears and possibly even amputate some of her digits.