Straydog UPDATE posted MONDAY 7/7/03 at ~5:00 p.m. CT

Bill Arnold's Daily Straydog Log

MONDAY JULY 7 2003

Lots of vet visits today as reported by Shannon:

Anthony:

     Anthony's swollen gums and lips are most likely due to his broken tooth. His broken tooth is likely due to the lamp post wars he's been having with his next-kennel neighbor, Buffy. Dr. Morton is going to keep Anthony overnight to give him a full dental exam first thing in the morning to determine what needs to be done. Update tomorrow.

Buffy:

     Dr. Morton suspects Buffy's swollen abdomen and genital area is due to a topical skin condition that has become infected. The doctor is, however, suspicious of that diagnosis because Buffy had a similar infection that we treated in May. To be safe, Buffy is having a few blood tests done to rule out internal causes. Buffy will get a special bath, topical solution, and he will be observed overnight. Also, Buffy lives to play ball. He has his special tennis ball cores that he loves to fetch and bring back. Because there is so much sand in Buffy's kennel, the ball gets coated with "goop"--a saliva and sand mix. Apparently, the abrasive sand is wearing down Buffy's teeth to the point that the pulp is showing on his canines. Dr. Morton said buffy is likely in pain, so Buffy will also get a dental today. Dr. Morton suggested that his afternoon ball play should take place in the big play yard where there is lots of grass. Eliminating the sand-covered ball will slow down the deterioration of the rest of Buffy's teeth. Update on Buffy tomorrow.

Willie:

     Willie received his third set of puppy shots, another dose of wormer (just to be safe), and he got another puppy physical. All was well, and Willie was a model patient. He actually wagged his tail while getting his temperature taken! I brought Willie back to Straydog with me.

Lassie:

     Dr. Morton consulted with Dr. MacDonald (our favorite Dallas surgeon) about the possibility of surgical removal of Lassie's probable pancreatic tumor(s). Neither doctor sounded very hopeful. Dr. MacDonald said that from his experience a dog who has the surgical procedure lives about a year. The prognosis for a dog who doesn't have the surgery is unknown, but likely less time. Dr. Morton also spoke with two oncologists who say chemotherapy is likely to do more harm than good. Because the symptoms are apparent (her two seizures and the blood counts), there is a good possibility that the cancer has metastasized. We are not ready to give up hope on Lassie. We are going to get all the information we can and explore every treatment possible. We often get emails from people whose dogs have conditions similar to some of our special needs dogs. Does anyone have any information they can share on insulinoma? I myself will make the time to read ALL the info I can get my grubby little internet-researcher hands on.

Laura:

     Laura didn't go to the vet today, but we asked Dr. Morton about her getting sick for the last two days. Like many people with pets, we dread the fourth of July. Laura was the most terrified of all the dogs here. We actually had to put her in a crate inside the house because she was chewing through wood and pulling on her fence. Saturday night there were a few more fireworks, and Dr. Morton said that it's very likely that her not eating and vomiting are results of her nerves being so rattled. In fact, Guy reports that Laura not only ate this morning, but she willingly went into her feeding gate for him and took a cookie from him, both of which she's never done. (Guy is the one who captured Laura by chasing her and jumping on her during her rescue at a golf course back in March, so she usually avoids him.)

We finally heard from Karen (the rescuer of the five newest pups)

     After dropping off the pups Karen and a friend had traveled somewhere to spend the weekend before going back home. When Karen got home, her answering machine didn't show any messages because she thinks her cat must have hit the play button. No problem. The dogs are now safe and sound, and we've already tentatively adopted out two of them.

Archie and Veronica are out of quarantine and go to the park for their first outing