A Washington state authorities puppy made famous on TikTok was released from a hospital Monday after being critically injured a week.
In only over a year, Arlo had gained hundreds of thousands of followers on his TikTok accounts run with his handler, Dep. Tyler Turpin.
On Thursday afternoon, Arlo was shot in a police pursuit, according to officials. He had been taken to a local veterinary center, in which vets treated one bullet wound in Arlo’s leg.
Soon afterward, Arlo was hauled by a local off-duty firefighter to Oregon State University’s Carlson College of Veterinary Medicine, where his second bullet wound — near Arlo’s spine — was treated, authorities said.
“It’s a miracle that Arlo’s still living,” Dr. Jen Warnock, an orthopedic veterinary surgeon, said in a statement. “The C6 vertebra was crushed; the bullet missed an artery which would have killed him by a millimeter; it could’ve ruined his carotid artery.”
Before doctors performed surgery Friday morning, they estimated Arlo had a 60% chance of survival. Throughout the eight-hour process, they fused his C6 and C7 vertebrae and worked to fix his tender tissue damage, authorities said.
Regardless of the long procedures, Arlo was walking with help from Saturday morning.
Officers also met him in his house using a”Welcome Home Arlo” sign in the yard.
The TikTok clip had more than 33.7 million viewpoints as of Tuesday evening, after being submitted Monday. Arlo has also gained over 1.3 million followers.
According to police, Arlo won’t be returning to active duty due to his injuries. However, K9 handlers are given the first chance to purchase and maintain their dogs as pets.
