Adopted
Help
Wanted for Huggable Hannah!
Homeless, heartworm positive, and then
hospitalized for a major health problem… Hannah has been through a lot in a few
short months! The story begins back in January…
“Introducing the Sweetheart of the Shelter! This girl is between 3 and 4, sure looks purebred to me, and the staff has fallen in love with her. Her coat is matted and she is FILTHY, but oh so sweet.”
That was the first report on Miss Hannah, when volunteer Tracy met her at the local pound. A day or two later, when no owner showed to claim the little stray, Hannah got her GRR number (#07-006) and headed to the vet. Tracy took her there, too, and said, “Heads up! She LOVES stuffed animals. I have one hanging from my rearview mirror and seconds after she got into the Suburban she spotted it and LAUNCHED herself at it. I gave her a firm NO and she got back into the back seat but she eyed that plushie the whole way. When we got to the vet, she just had to stand up on the counter to say hi… she spotted another stuffie that was sitting on the counter and BAM it was in her mouth so fast!”
That’s Hannah—sweet as sugar, but energetic and always looking for fun. Unfortunately, she turned out to be heartworm positive, and that meant: confinement in the crate, leash walks only, no rough-housing. Wow, that’s tough! So tough that she had to move out of foster homes #1 and #2, because she was SO determined to play with her foster dog sisters! But with a little help from her wonderful foster mom #3, Susan, she made it through the treatment. Susan says, “she is very, very sweet and friendly, a little bit shy. And she does what we call the Hannah Hug, where she stands up on her hind legs and actually puts her front paws very lightly around you. This is very cute!”
The long-awaited day came when Hannah, nearing the end of her HW treatment, was cleared for light exercise. Yippee! She spent a glorious day in the country just rambling around, rolling in mud puddles, and sniffing the breeze. Then it was back home again for a meal, a nap, and a big drink of water. And then…
Just a few minutes after Hannah had her water, Susan noticed her staggering, retching, and foaming at the mouth. Hannah’s belly was bloated tight as a drum and expanding further even as she watched. Susan knew right away that this was a gastric torsion, and less than 2 hours later, Hannah was heading into emergency surgery. Not exactly the perfect end to her perfect day!
Also known as bloat, gastric torsion is a life-threatening condition in which the stomach twists over on itself, filling with gas and preventing anything at all from moving. When it twists, it tears or damages the large blood vessels near it, and blood begins to pool around the spleen, the liver, the heart. The condition is excruciating for the dog, and very rapidly fatal.
So what causes it? In brief: nobody quite knows. For years, veterinarians thought it resulted from bolting a large amount of dry food or a large amount of water down too fast. While eating slowly and drinking moderately is excellent advice (for all of us!), recent research suggests that this isn’t the whole story. There may be a genetic component as well; and a recent study at Purdue found that dogs with very deep chests were more likely to suffer from torsion.
Whatever the cause, a torsion is very, very serious. If your dog’s belly looks distended and stays that way; if she is in clear distress; if she is vomiting, or if she tries to vomit and cannot; if she strains to defecate and cannot—IT IS AN EMERGENCY! Get her to the vet NOW, even if it’s after hours on or a weekend. Don’t wait to see if she’ll get better on her own. Susan’s fast action literally saved Hannah’s life. The vets “de-rotated” her stomach back into the proper position, and, to keep it in place in the future, sutured it against one of her ribs. Her file contains that wonderful comment, “Recovery from surgery was uneventful.”
A bit more of an event is the price tag for Hannah’s emergency surgery and post-operative care: close to $3,000! But the good news is that, after a few days in the hospital for observation, she’s ready to come home. Still, our Extraordinary Golden Fund has sustained quite a hit… So if you've had it in mind to make a donation to GRR, please direct it to "EGF: Hannah" to help Hannah and other dogs like her. Just click here Thank you!
P.S. And here is the latest on Hannah! Susan writes, “I am happy to say Hannah is home and looking incredibly good for a dog who just had major surgery. She is restricted to short leash walks and the crate for the next 2 weeks... poor thing, she just got out of the crate from the heartworm treatment last week. She is resting comfortably and seems happy to see all her Golden friends again. My little girl Divi has decided to be her nurse and has set up sleeping next to Hannah's crate to keep her company. They know!! Hannah ate a small, custom-cooked lunch of boiled chicken, brown rice, and cottage cheese. She is on pain medication and pepcid to settle her stomach. I wanted everyone to know how well sweet Hannah is doing!!”
***
What about protecting your own Golden from
bloat?
First and foremost, talk to your vet about it, so
you can recognize the signs. After about 2 hours from the onset of symptoms, the
recovery rate drops to 50 percent, and from there, it goes down pretty rapidly.
So understanding what you’re seeing is critical to getting your dog the help he
needs—immediately.
Second, though the condition does have more than one cause, it’s still wise to prevent your dog from eating or drinking too much, too fast.
*Feed two or three times a day, not just
once. Smaller amounts of food at one go
are less likely to cause trouble.
*If he bolts his meals in a split second, make
him slow down by spreading the food out
on a large cookie sheet with sides; some owners even throw the food around on
the floor! If he has to chase the kibbles down one by one, he won’t be able to
eat a cup of food in a single bite.
* Don’t let your dog run or play hard right before or right after eating. Wait for 15 or 20 minutes after a walk or play session to feed; wait for 20 minutes or so after a meal before heading out the door for a walk or jog.
* Find a food she digests easily. Some foods may create more gas than others. If that’s happening, you’ll know! Keep trying till you find a good-quality food that doesn’t make her gassy or give her loose bowels.
* No frat-boy drinking contests, please. Some dogs really get into “chugging” a full bowl of water and then (often) blurping a mouthful back up again. If your dog is swilling like there’s no tomorrow, take up the bowl when he’s had a decent drink and make him wait a while for more.
Update 05/07/07:
Hannah is doing just great. She is completely recovered from her surgery and enjoying life as a normal dog again. Her coat is starting to grow back, and before long she will look like her beautiful, fluffy self again. Hannah is back to her lessons and is doing very well. Her leash manners are wonderful, and her basic obedience is awesome. She knows SIT, DOWN, STAY, and WAIT, and she will reliably come when called. She is very happy on her weekends in the country. She loves to sniff and swim, and she retrieves with the best of them. She gets along wonderfully with all 7 of her housemates and loves to play with the other girls. One issue with Hannah is that she is so athletic, that she can easily soar over a 4-foot fence! Her new family will need to make sure their fencing is sound. She is an escape artist for sure, but only when you leave her ... she just wants to be with you. She adores rides in the car and long walks in the country, walking at your side like the wonderful velcro dog that she is!! She is a true Golden with a true Golden heart!!