It's been a really hard, stressful month around here but at least we finally have some good news to report. As many of you know, we took in a new foster last month. Samson came to us in pretty bad shape. He had severe pneumonia - his labored breathing and congestion were obvious even at a quick glance. He also has this crab-like walk where he walks sideways and his head tilts. He was severely emaciated - his ribs stuck out from all angles. And both of his eyes were cloudy. He was an owner surrender. The girl who had him said she had picked him up about a year ago from an ad in the local paper where a breeder was getting rid of him. Unfortunately, he didn't get any medical care while she had him and by the time we got him he was in critical condition.

When Cindy called to tell us about him, Richard & I immediately volunteered to take him. We needed to name him - the name the girl was using for him was completely unacceptable and we like to re-name dogs that have come from bad circumstances anyway. Without hesitation Richard said we would call him Samson as a tribute to his first Pug and Denny's daddy. Richard & I talked about the fact that this little guy might not make it, but we had to do whatever we could to give him a fighting chance. 

We brought him home on antibiotics and heart medication. We were relieved to find that the guy had quite an appetite. We made sure he had cheese & other treats in between meals to try and get some weight on him. We bought a humidifier and set it up in the spare bathroom to help his breathing. He & I took a "sauna" 3 times a day to help loosen up his congestion.

Week 1 saw little improvement but he had gained a pound. Week 2 saw a bit more improvement and another pound of weight. When his walking and head tilt didn't improve with the antibiotics, we took him to a neurologist. After a very thorough exam, the doctor diagnosed him with probable brain stem disease - most likely a tumor. We cannot have a definitive diagnosis without an MRI. But Samson's breathing makes it impossible to have him sedated for the test. Week 3 saw a bit more improvement and a little more weight added. Unfortunately, x-rays showed that the pneumonia was breaking up but since Samson has some issues with swallowing, he was aspirating some of the congestion he had been bringing up. Cindy brought over a nebulizer and we began breathing treatments. I was also worried about him choking, so we obtained a suction machine to keep his airway clear.

We had a lot of long, sleepless nights giving him breathing treatments, using the humidifier and suctioning the poor little guy every couple of hours. But it looks like we are finally turning a corner! The little guy has a lot more energy now and though he still has some difficulty walking, he gets around pretty well. He's even found out how to use the doggie door to get outside! On sunny days he likes to try and get out there to lay in the sun. It must feel good to him.

His appetite is good and he's looking much healthier. His breathing is not nearly as raspy as when we first got him. And probably most encouraging sign is that he has discovered toys! We actually caught him playing with one of Phoebe's nasty little eggs last night.

This makes us so happy. And he seems happy too. We had an issue with one of his eyes last week. It seems that the right eye ruptured and he lost a lot of fluid from it. But thankfully there's been no further issue and we're keeping medication in it to keep infection away. It doesn't seem to bother him and there's not anything that can be done at this point anyway. So we'll work on the things that we know we can work on. In addition to his antibiotics, we have started him on some homeopathic med's to try and help his congestion. We'll try anything we can to help the little guy feel better.

It feels so good to see him happy and playful! We hope that we can give him the life he deserves.

Posted by Robbi at 02:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

We have some shocking and deeply saddening news to share. Our beloved Winston has passed away. He died quite suddenly Monday morning.

We had thought that we would be posting happy news about Winston this week. You see, he was adopted out to a wonderful woman on Sunday. We had begun to think we would never find anyone worthy of him until she submitted her application. After several conversations, Richard met her Saturday when he took Winston to the Pug Meetup at the local dog park. It was love at first sight for her and Richard agreed that it was an excellent match. While we were very excited for him, we were also very sad for us. We had grown so attached to the little guy and really thought of him as part of our family. But we knew this was a perfect home for him and were ready to let him go on to this new chapter in his life. We drove him to his new home Sunday and said our goodbyes. We cried on the way home but kept affirming that this was for the best. It was very strange going about our routine Sunday night. I kept looking for him and felt an empty feeling when we didn’t have our routine bedtime cuddle and belly-rubbing session. The same emptiness was there Monday morning when there was an extra dinner dish on the counter.

At work Monday morning we received an email from Winston’s new Mum stating that he had a very good night sleeping in her bed with her and her other 2 dogs. She confirmed that he had received his bedtime belly rubbings as prescribed. She mentioned how all of her friends and family had met him and fallen in love with him. I responded to her to let her know how much we appreciated the update and how glad we were that they had found each other. Shortly thereafter I received an urgent message to call her. When I did she started talking nonsense about how he was gone. I didn’t understand. She said he had been home with her son and her son said Winston looked a bit tired and he had placed him on the rug in the living room so he would be more comfortable for a nap. When she had called for an update he went to check on him and found him unresponsive. He was gone.

I called Richard immediately and had to break the news to him over the phone. He left work immediately to pick Winston up and head to our Vet’s office for answers.

As we believed he was in excellent health, we had an autopsy done which revealed he had died of heartworm's. We did not know he had heartworm's. When he was taken into rescue a routine heartworm test was negative. However, we now know that a dog can test heartworm negative and yet still be positive. The test does not indicate immature heartworm's, just adults. And further it detects female heartworm's. So 6 months ago Winston had immature heartworm's and so his test was negative. As he did not have a large infestation, he displayed none of the signature signs.

So now we know how it happened. We know it was nobody’s fault – well, except for the people that owned Winston before turning him into PugHearts. By keeping him outside and not giving him heartworm preventative they sealed his fate. But it doesn’t make it any easier knowing that we did not do anything wrong. It still hurts terribly.

We have made arrangements for Winston to be cremated and returned home with us. Though he had technically been adopted out, he really does belong with us. His adoptive Mum has been very understanding of that. Given his previous life, we feel confident in saying that the time he had with us was the best time of his life. He knew what it was like to be part of a family and he knew he was loved. He was happy here and so we will have him come home to us. He will take his place beside Alfie and Lilly and will watch over us.

Run free sweet Winston – we love you more than you will ever know. It has been our honor to know you and have you as part of our family.

Mummy, Daddy, Denny, Charlie, Phoebe, Jacob, Samson & Munchkin

Posted by Richard at 12:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)