Miss Heidi's Accident

ur little girl has always been headstrong. Unfortunately she has paid a terrible price.  March 1, 2003, when she was fifteen months old, she was returning to The Home from a ride in the utility truck.  Instead of going from the back seat to the safety of the back yard, she scampered over to the neighbor's.  We saw her round the house and heard tires squealing.

She had run out into the road and been hit by a Jeep Cherokee.  We were at her side immediately and loaded her up for the trip to Doc Butler.

She was hurt less than we had feared but she did sustain a compound fracture of her right rear leg.  They operated and inserted stainless steel wires and a pin.  She came home in a few days and we took turns sitting up with her as she slept on a futon mattress in the living room.  I watched news coverage of the invasion of Iraq in the wee hours of those nights and gave her medication every three hours.  Since she was a big girl we kept a blanket under her to use as a sling so we could carry her to the back yard to potty.

After the pin was removed she went through another invalid stage on the futon and then started slowly becoming the little girl we once knew.  She couldn't bend her bad leg but she made the best of it.  In a few months she had a relapse.  She would actually chew on the inside of her leg and kept an open wound near the site of her stitches.  An X-ray showed that one of the stainless 'twist ties' was loose and causing her irritation; the only thing she knew to do was bite at it as she would have a flea.

A third operation was needed to remove the wire but two more remained, embedded in the bone to such a degree that removal was practically impossible.  Fortunately the remaining wires could not move about.  After another recuperation period on the futon mattress, everything seemed fine.

Within weeks she started running a fever and wouldn't eat.  Now she had an infection 'hiding' near the wires embedded in the bone.  We were advised that she may have to stay on 'pulsed' antibiotics for the rest of her life, that is one week of antibiotics every twelve hours followed by a week off, then another week on the drug, and so on.

She did well on this regimen for two years but the cost was high both monetarily and in the calories she was getting in the peanut butter used to hide her capsules.  We decided to try taking her off the medication and watching her closely with the idea that we would start her back at the first sign of a problem.  That worked well for about two years but now the infection is back.

UPDATES:

 

Pavane for a Dead Princess

3/13/08 - Poor little Miss Heidi is back in hospital again.  She developed an elevated temperature and swelling in her bad leg last night and we took her to the vet this morning.  They want to take another X-ray to see if something has gone wrong internally.  For that she needed to be sedated and kept overnight.  Little Gino is not liking this one bit.

3/14/08 - We just got back from picking up Miss Heidi at the vet's.  She ate a boiled egg and went straight to bed.

The doctor said that her leg is showing no signs of deterioration since the last image was made two years ago. She gave her a more powerful antibiotic thinking that the infection may have become resistant to her old one. She mentioned too that the X-ray leads her to believe that she doesn't have bone cancer. That's pretty common in Rottweilers her age, especially if they have had traumatic injuries.

3/15/08 - Heidi seems happy to be home.  A thunderstorm came through around noon and it is good that she can be where she has family.  She is so frightened by thunder.  She goes back to Dr. Bledsoe Tuesday for a checkup.  There is a shadow on the X-ray that we hope will be reduced by the new antibiotic.  If not, a biopsy may be next.

3/18/08 - We took our Miss Heidi back to the vet this afternoon and came away feeling a bit better - although considerably poorer.  The shadow on the X-ray has become smaller and Dr. Bledsoe says the leg also feels much better to her. She prescribed an extended run of the antibiotics in combination with an anti-inflammatory for now.

4/11/08 - Our little girl was fitful all night on the 9th, so we went back to see the vet.  She had a fever and had to stay.  She spent two nights, had a biopsy, and is back home now.  With some help she has made it to the waterbed to sleep.  She has about five pounds of pills and plenty of peanut butter.

In ten days we will know if there is a malignancy.  If so, the only choices are chemo or amputation.  Chemo would be financially ruinous and is out of the question.  She hasn't been able to use the leg for months and we have been assured that she won't miss it.

And the pain will go away.

4/12/08 - Twenty-four hours after bringing her home our encouragement is limited. Except for a taste of peanut butter, she has refused any food. Her medication has been pushed down her throat. She drinks plenty of water and has gone to the back yard once to relieve herself. Mobility is a struggle for her. During yesterday afternoon's thunderstorms, she retreated from her bed to the shower in the master bath the way she always does except this time she stayed until about noon today. She is presently asleep in the hallway.

There is one good note from yesterday. I was surprised by the fact that my medical expenses from last year netted me over twice my normal income tax refund. Worries about Miss Heidi's medical expenses are thus somewhat lessened.

4/14/08 - Miss Heidi had to go back to the clinic early this morning. She has steadfastly refused to eat and, although she drank plenty of water, she threw up some vile-looking dark liquid last night. I fear that it may be blood. We took a sample with us.

The staff at the clinic are so good to her. They helped me get her out of the truck as she is now barely mobile and a 130 pound dog isn't easy to carry. We sat on the floor of the exam room with her head on Dr. Hackett's lap as we discussed her case. He kept her today in hopes that he could get her to eat and I was to call at 3:30 to see about bringing her home.

She showed no improvement during the day so she is spending the night.

4/15/08 - Today's 3:30 update from the clinic has good news and not-so-good news. Miss Heidi did indeed have blood in her stomach. She is still not eating but she still drinks so Dr. Hackett is giving her a liquid diet. She vomited again today but only a small amount and no blood so he feels that her stomach irritation has lessened. She will be staying again tonight and we miss her.

[Gino is still hiding his cigars just as though she were here. They both love the big rawhides that I get from Sam's and they look just like old men with cigars in their mouths as they carry them around the house. These things are as tough as shoe leather but a Rottie can crunch them as easily as a puff pastry. It's really a treat to slip into bed at night and find a wet, half-eaten cigar hidden under the bedclothes, especially if it has been previously buried in the back yard.]

4/16/08 - Today's news is not good. The lab confirmed that Miss Heidi has a cancer in her leg, a particularly aggressive variety, and it has already spread to her chest. There is little hope for recovery. We go in the morning to discuss euthanasia.

4/17/08 - Miss Heidi is no longer in pain. We called Dr. Hackett's office early this morning. He agreed that there was no other humane course of action and that today was not too early. I brought her collar back just now. Gino and I are going to the park.

4/18/08 - A Card from Friends. The staff at the Pellissippi Veterinary Hospital sent this nice card and, to all the friends at KnoxViews, many thanks for the expressions of sympathy.

Rest in peace, my dear sweet little girl.