Pit bull born without a nose and fought to survive celebrates 1st birthday

MIDLOTHIAN, Va. (FOX 35 ORLANDO) - Goosie has every reason in the world to celebrate.

For the past year, the Sanctuary Rescue in Midlothian, Virginia has thrown weekly birthday's for the little pit bull after she was born with some serious medical issues.

"She was so fragile as a baby we didn’t know how much time we would have with her so the weekly birthdays were born,” Adri Yancey, founder of Sanctuary Rescue, told People. 

On April 22, 2018, Goosie was born without a nose. Realizing that Goosie was a special needs puppy, the breeder who was caring for Goosie and her mother asked the rescue for help. Since the rescue had experience raising a puppy with a cleft lip, they took her in.

Goosie's journey was a tough one. She was hospitalized several times and a had a few close calls along the way. 

Every milestone was captured on the rescue's Facebook page. One year later, Goosie has beaten the odds and celebrated her 1st birthday with more than 300 guests showing up to party with her!

"It’s been a magical year sharing Goosie and her triumphs with you all. Thank you for all of the love and support for the past 54 weeks," the rescue wrote on Facebook.

Weighing a whopping 11-pounds, Goosie is likely one of the world's tiniest pit bulls. The rescue believes she has pituitary dwarfism, a condition in which the pituitary gland does not make enough growth hormone, resulting in slow growth and an unusually small stature.

But what she lacks in size she makes up for in personality. 

"Each morning when I hear Goosie start to stir in her playpen I get excited. Every time I snuggle her and she starts to yawn and stretch my heart melts a little. Every time I see her get excited about meatballs, I get excited, too."

For now, Goosie lives with a foster family on a farm and isn't available for adoption. She's scheduled to have surgery next week to construct a nose.

"We’ll explore adoption options once she’s had her surgery," the rescue tells Fox 35.

If you'd like to help animals like Goosie, you can visit the Sanctuary Rescue Facebook page.