Hi, my name is SARAH and I'm about four years old. Aren't I beautiful? I'm told that I am as sweet as can be, too!!
Why am I on Medical Hold, you ask? Well, I have some issues that SOS is going to fix for me! I have a nasty infection in my neck, and that is the first thing we are fixing. Once that is all better, then I will be having surgery to remove some salivary glands in my jaw to fix my pharyngeal mucocele (see side-view pics below). The Dog-ter is hitting me hard with antibiotics so that I can have surgery as soon as possible, since my pharyngeal mucocele is making it difficult for me to breath. YIKES!!!
Once we get past that issue, I have some other lumps that will need to be removed. Fortunately, they are not life-threatening at this time, but SOS wants to get them out before they do start to cause problems.
Needless to say, I won't be ready for adoption anytime soon. I'd really appreciate your good thoughts and Setter Zen for me. Oh, and SOS would appreciate your financial support, cuz it will cost a lot to get me all better.
Fostered by Susan in OH.
Save Our Setters, Inc.
SARAH
Update 9/30/08: Dr. Schwab took Sarah's temperature and it was normal. She also listened to her lungs (and heart). She felt there was something else going on besides kennel cough because of the lack of fever, the clear chest, and lack of a cough. Her feeling was that the massive drainage we were seeing couldn't have come that quickly from the bordatella that was administered. She also felt that the thing under the chin was fluid, probably saliva from a busted saliva gland. So after Sarah was just the perfect dog for all these exams, when the doctor tried to aspirate the fluid to check it, stuck the needle in and all of a sudden it was like Sarah was in terrible pain and she became agitated, nasty and uncooperative. Most definitely a yelp of awful pain when the doctor went to put the needle in. The needle flew across the room when Sarah reared and shook it loose. (By the way she was not nasty to any of us, just the needle.) The doctor and the vet tech were in agreement that it should not cause her that much pain. Some new doubt then that it was saliva, because it shouldn't hurt her to pull the fluid out.
They asked me what SOS would approve. I responded that it was important to know what the bulge stuff was and if it was related to the mucous pouring from her since she was barely able to breathe. She was sucking down tons of mucous, not wanting to eat, gagging on the fluids that continually ran down from her nose. Trying to breathe through her mouth. I was concerned that she was sniffing so much that she could take in massive amounts of air.
So after much discussion, it was decided to give Sarah a mild anesthesia, check up in her nostrils, take fluid from the bulge under the neck and fluid from the mammary gland that is distended and check for evidence of spaying (shave her, explore manually etc.)
Dr. Schwab felt that the mammary fluid-like distension was glandular and that it could be repaired when Sarah was spayed, but having a fluid sample and checking for abnormal cells would determine how much tissue they removed when they went in. They also took blood for her future surgery. She was very good and cooperative when they put the iv catheter in, which told them more so that the neck must be very painful.
So while she was under light anesthesia they drained the neck bulge and searched for the bad saliva gland by trying to follow the fluid. It looks like it must have been draining for some time and the fluid was a bloody mix and it was impossible for them to trace the side that has the problem. They scoped up inside her nose to see if there was some other cause for the drainage than kennel cough. The nasal passages and one tonsil is inflamed and full of drainage and mucous. They looked for any obstructions (grass, small stick or object) and found nothing. But all the problem looked like inflamed sinuses. Lots of speculation on the origin of the sinus type infection.
They gave her an antibiotic shot to get it into her system, and gave me orvafloxin (twice a day). I am to keep an eye on the fluid sac and if it starts to fill I am to take her over so they have a head start on locating the infectious side. She had a fecal stain and float which both were negative. The cytology on both aspirations will be back in a day or two, and so will the blood results. Probably at least 7-10 days before even considering surgery.
I guess this operation is a very delicate one. The surgeon has to be meticulous and careful to separate the tissue from the nerves and go slowly and carefully so that there isn't any damage to the nerves. So that she wouldn't end up with a droopy eyelid, tongue that didn't work or some other nerve (Okay, this isn't technical and I am not a specialist, but I got the idea and am trying to convey it.) I guess I should be more literal in the repeating of everything, but what you are hearing from me is my impression from a day fraught with worry while the dog was struggling to breathe. But to the best of my ability, I am trying to recall the happenings and the conversations. At any rate, the clinic does not feel that this operation and the spaying can be done at the same time. The way I see it, the spaying can wait. And it looks like (unless cytology report to the contrary) that it is not cancer (because the cells looked clear in their small microscopes before sending it off to the big lab).
Keeping her separated from my dogs has been hard. She is at work with me now. At night she sleeps in the room (sometimes on the couch or on the bed) with Dave. I walk her outside to the front yard to pee and poop and take her for walks when she wants to go. (If she responds to the leash by getting up and moving.) She is very sick. The vet said it would take awhile. She didn't respond this morning when I wanted her to get up and it worried me. But after the Benedryl had some time to work we took a walk. Now she is pawing my leg. Thinks I should pet her the whole time I am working on the computer. Crawls up on my lap. This is as active as I have seen her. She had me worried last night, wouldn't respond when I asked her to get up and go out.
She did eat a little for me today. She ate pretty well Sunday and Monday morning, but not Monday night. She is up on her feet now for about two hours. Not moving a great deal. More just sitting or standing next to me.
She sure is pretty. Without all that fluid she is very attractive. Her tail is funny though. Not anything specific, but just that it looks small (short?) she has a tiny bit of gray in the end of it and I just wonder if she lost the tip of it a long time ago or maybe not, maybe it is just me, but she weighed in at 65 pounds, The shelter estimated her age at four but I think that is high. (What do they know - they listed her as an Afghan mix).
Vet appt & lab work:
$ 403
$ 403Est for two surgeries 2,000
2,000 General Vetting 200
200 2,603Actual total2,637
2,637Donations for SARAH: 2218
2218Adoption Fee: 300
300Amount Still Needed: $ 119
$ 119WOW!! SARAH says THANKS!!
SARAH's Heroes: LUCKY FIONA; LUCY & SHYLO Rodak (get better fast!!); the Shillinger Setters (who are really hoping for recovery from her current illness); Jeffy Orr; CLOUD and Elizabeth (with love and gratitude to SOS); With LUV from SPENCER & TRACY (Irish Setters, just like you!); The O'Dwyer Family (in honor of HANNAH MAE); SUSIE, GAGE, Mommy and Daddy; Geoffrey Gainor; Liz and Dann McCarte (in memory of MUZ); GILLIE, PADDY, & JESSE (who wish you the bestest forever home ever!!); Susan Hilleary
So far it is like she is the perfect dog. Rides well, affectionate, walks beside you. Lets you brush her, clip her nails, clean her ears. Gets along with the dogs and is okay with cats. Has a beautiful coat - short hair on the back and neck with beautiful blonde feathers. She is a clinger, doesn't run off. Wants to be in your lap or close by. Gorgeous long, well-formed ears. I hope that whoever gets her is able to give her lots of attention.
I believe she has been trained on a shock collar. We have an electronic sound that tells us when someone opens the lobby doors. When I walk her through it (every time) she jumps and runs with her tail tucked. It sounds a little like the noise on the old shock collars. Plus she jumps no matter who comes through or where she is in the office. She doesn't jump at all noises. The washer, dryer, lightning and thunder, the phone, those don't bother her.
Someone is going to have to let this dog know she can't have attention every second - probably not me.
Susan
Update 10/01/08: Sarah's bloodwork came back looking good, except that her white blood cell count is very high at 32,000, and her red blood cell count is low. The cytology isn't back yet. Dr. Schwab is really glad she started SARAH on orbifloxicin. It is hard on the girl - her bowels are soft and I can see that we may need to treat diarrhea from the antibiotic soon. It's only been 36 hours.
She is starting to show signs of improvement. Ate a little last night and again this morning. The drainage is not as copious. She stood and moved around yesterday afternoon - not for long, but for about an hour. Stands, turns, stares; responds to touch by leaning in to you. Lays her head in your lap. Isn't very active (yet). Sad to say, it looks like there is more fluid building up. Called in to the vet today to see if they want to see her today before the fluid is massive again. I think they were hoping that it would take longer to build up. Whatever damaged the gland must have happened near to the time her owners dumped her, since it builds so fast.
She got up on the bed for just a few minutes and let Dave rub her belly. Not for long, just not feeling well and wants to be secure in a corner.
Her reaction to the electronic signal at the shop when the door opens worsened yesterday, to the point where she hid behind a trash can and refused to come to the lobby. She just crouched in a corner and trembled. She got stubborn and wouldn't move - I didn't force her because I didn't want to pull against her collar on a neck that was already sore so I ended up opening the back door (emergency exit) and taking her out that way. She didn't resist that at all. She just wasn't going anywhere near the door that sets off the door open signal. Whatever setting they used on the collar must have been way too high. I feel bad for Sarah. At any rate, she is not afraid of thunderstorms or lightning, or cars. Whoever adopts her is going to have to be aware, so that they don't think she is misbehaving - she is just very afraid. I haven't had my cell phone around her yet, but Maggie ran and hid when it gave the message waiting signal. So I expect there will be various sounds that are going to cause a reaction. With time, she may become accustomed to them.
She is also leary of your hands. I hope she hasn't been abused. She wants affection, and responds by pawing for more, but when I reach out to scratch her ears she immediately goes into submissive posture. Kind of ducks. It is hard to tell because she is so sick and all of her behaviors are limited by the amount of energy she has.
I am really happy to see her eat a little and stand up. Diane Rodak said she played a little with her dogs (Fri./Sat.), so the massive infection must have started Saturday (Diane saw some drainage), and really kicked in on Sunday when she arrived here. Sunday night I thought she was going to choke on the drainage, as she went into gagging fits that made her head jerk. It must have also hurt because she would freeze in position and move very slowly to try to get comfortable even after the antibiotics started and she had been given some Benedryl. She started to gag and had one paw up in the air as she was stepping forward and stood there with the paw up, afraid to move while she sneezed and sneezed and sniffed to clear he nose. It was terrible to see. Then she moved very slowly to put her foot down waiting to see if moving was going to cause more problems, then just stood there frozen until she felt safe to move. It made my sinuses and throat hurt to watch her. I am so glad the drainage has let up. The first day the drainage just flowed down her face while she gasped to breathe through her mouth, so it is a big difference after only 36 hours. She can lie on her side and rest, and she doesn't sound like a bad air conditioner anymore. She still gurgles and sniffs, but isn't choking.
She should definitely not go to someone who wants to use an electric fence. She shouldn't have to live life being afraid. It would inhibit her - depress the joy that is in there somewhere. I have never heard her make a sound yet. Her whole personality is suffocated right now by the sickness. I look forward to seeing her run and give a bark someday.
Susan
Update 10/02/08: Sarah is still having difficulty breathing and she gasps for air, particularly after a several minute bout of clearing her sinuses. The episodes are becoming fewer in number, so we know the drugs are doing their job.
Dr. Schwab wants to see her again on Saturday to assess her general well-being and to try to determine the affected salivary gland(s). Knowing where you are going before surgery helps in reducing the amount of time under anesthesia, so at least determining whether the affected glands are on the right side or the left side will help. Isolating the problematic specific gland or grouping of glands is almost impossible prior to surgery, but we can always hope!!
Update 10/04/08: Sarah's surgeon believes that the right side is the affected side. The nasal discharge is much clearer now, but is still thick and there is plenty of it. The right tonsil is still inflamed, and SARAH is still dealing with diarrhea. SARAH came home with Tetracycline and Pectain.
Surgery is scheduled for Thursday, October 9th. Please keep you paws crossed for her that day!!
Update 10/09/08: Sarah's surgery was done first thing this morning, and she is doing well. YIPPEEEEEEEEEEEE!! In fact, Sarah is doing so well, the vet says she can go home today! Thanks for keeping your paws crossed for her!!!
The surgeon started underneath, and was able to follow the trail up to the salivary glands - on the LEFT side!! At least one of the drainage ducts was visibly abnormal, so the surgeon removed the entire left bank to eliminate the possibility that other damage that was not visually apparent would not necessitate the need to go back in at a future date. She also looked for pharyngeal cysts, but found none. Hopefully, the problem is fully resolved with only one surgery!!!
Sarah now sports a drain tube (unfortunately, they were out of designer penrose tubes, so she got a plain cream colored one), which will come out next Monday assuming all is well with the incision.
Sarah will get to rest and recover for several weeks before we go back in to resolve the mammary issue. After all she has been through, we feel that she could use a bit of a break!
Update 10/10/08: Sarah had a rough night last night. The pain meds and anti-inflammatory drugs helped considerably, but she still cried whenever Susan left the room. She is doing better this morning. She has not wanted food or water yet, but that will come later today.
The drainage is minimal, so we are optimistic that the issue is resolved. She is itchy from being shaved on both sides of her face, but is leaving the drain tube alone... for now!
Update 10/16/08: Sarah feels better. The swelling has gone down to about half. Instead of a cantalope under her neck it is more like a little golf ball. The slit where the drain was still gapes because of the swelling, but it looks clean. Back to the vet tomorrow for a recheck. She has been so good.
Sarah is angelic and perfect. She is starting to answer to her name and is eating well. Still need a little chicken to get her started. She is pretty calm and quiet. She is such a good girl. Perks up when I walk her. She had a spring in her step tonight. She gets separate walks during the day to get out of the shop and we go to a nice park. I run a little with her - she really wants to get the squirrels. I am not fast enough for that obviously.
When I leave the bedroom, Sarah stands by the door and cries to get out. She wants to be where the action is and she doesn't feel good, wants her caregiver. There just isn't enough of me to go around, but I will tell you Sarah is worth every bit of energy I dredge up to get stuff done. She reminds me so much of my Maggie that when I am walking her my brain kind of forgets that it is Sarah and not Maggie. She is a lot nicer than Maggie was, she doesn't bark, walks without showing any aggression to other dogs when she sees them. She has a stubborn streak. When she doesn't want to get her feet wet in the grass, she comes to a dead stop and won't move. She is a bit timid, but does want affection. She wasn't sure at first about getting up on the bed, but now she comes up more readily. She is a good girl, with a bit of a tough streak. Autumn and Sarah like walking together. They think they are hunting.
Susan
Update 10/25/08: Sarah goes at noon on Tuesday to have her stitches removed. The large slit in the sack under her neck where the drain tube came out is healing well. The swelling continues to go down. Instead of the cantaloupe-sized "turkey neck", she now has a sophisticated double chin! As the swelling goes down, it should shrink a little more. Her hair is starting to grow in and she is a happy girl. She has a captivating smile and looks at you with those big eyes, tilting her head to see through her abundant blonde bangs.
The sweet pretty girl is a countersurfer. She "borrowed" my Timbits off my desk at the office when I went out to take care of a customer. I think she is feeling a lot better. She romps in the backyard a little with the others now. One is a little shy of her ever since she stole his dentabone - walked right up and took it out of his mouth! But he likes to play and he runs a lot, so she is right there behind him going back and forth across the yard. She has been really good with the other dogs. I have them together most of the time, but separate them for feeding and for brushing, sleeping, etc.
Below are pictures of her neck post-op as well as the lump that the vet will remove during the next surgery. It is like one mammary gland has this large sack. It is not hard, so the vet suspects it is glandular. The rest of her body seems very normal, and free of growths.
She is very affectionate. She follows me everywhere and lies down close by. She refuses to get up on the bed when Dave is in the room. She readily sleeps on the bed when alone, or when I am there. Perhaps a man in her previous life didn't allow her on the bed. She has a pad next to the bed and sleeps there through the night. She is really afraid of things that beep, so I am convinced she had an underground fence and that it severely shocked her. I disconnected the buzzer to the front door at work. Trying to get her through the door was like pulling a two hundred pound mule!
She learns quickly. I heard her bark for the first time this week when she saw a rabbit on the other side of the fence. She is very gentle taking treats from your hand. Compared to my two little monsters, she is nearly perfect. I don't see how anyone could have dropped this sweet girl at a shelter...
Susan
A huge THANK YOU to Shannon and FIONA for their generosity and their efforts during the months of September and October for donating half of the purchase price of featured collars just for SARAH!!! The final tally came up to THREE HUNDRED FIFTY NINE DOLLARS!! Thanks also go out to the many folks who purchased one or more collars to help with SARAH's vet bills!!
Update 11/10/08: Sarah had her surgery today. Dr. Nicole called me at 1:30 when she finished. The left mammary gland was not herniated like she originally thought. It was filled with brownish fluid. She called it a "cystic mammary gland", which means that pockets of fluid accumulate in the gland and cause enlargement. She took the entire gland out and sent it for cytology - because the fluid was brown. The right mammary gland was also enlarged, very bruised, but the fluid looked like milky fluid and is probably hormonal. The Dr. thought that since she was spayed today, that the fluid on her left side would most likely clear up over time.
She has three drains which will come out on Saturday - two for the circular incision to the mammary gland, and one up the middle for the spay. She checked the abdominal muscles for hernias on both sides. To prevent infection in the milky enlargement, she will be on anitibiotics (again). I can take her home tonight around five. They want to keep an IV in until then to continue giving her fluids.
The cytology and histology reports should be back in about ten days. My fingers are crossed.
Susan
Update 11/16/08: Sarah managed to pull her drain tubes out while I was driving to the vets office yesterday.
We tried three different collars. The vet and her assistant couldn't believe what a little contortionist she is. She actually laid on her back and lifted her hips up to her head!!
We are now trying a larger elizabethan collar. I left her briefly this morning to go to the grocery. When I returned home, the collar was in the middle of the floor and she was asleep on the bed. I now have it threaded through her collar and she is just waiting for me to leave the room.
I just know it.
Susan
Update 11/17/08: The histopath report is in - mammary lobular hyperplasia - NO cancer!! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!
