Garnet came to us the first week of January when we were asked to help a dog that had a potential obstruction.
She had become extremely emaciated, was in extremely poor health and was losing blood. We performed multiple transfusions trying to get ahead of the blood loss.
Several rounds of treatment later, Garnet was still losing blood and her prognosis wasn’t good. We continued to fight for her, but there was no more blood available for continued transfusions.
After desperate scrambling and an “all hands” outreach, we were able to locate a blood bank in Indiana that had one unit of packed blood cells left. We had the emergency shipment overnighted to try to keep her alive.
Finally, after multiple rounds of treatment, what seemed to be an increasingly remote possibility happened….
Garnet’s body began to produce her own blood again!
Hallelujah! She was going to make it! But as it often goes in rescue, it is never straight forward or that easy. It was then that we discovered that she was also dealing with Megaesophagus.
Megaesophagus is considered a combination disorder in which the esophagus (the tube that carries food and liquid between the mouth and stomach) dilates (gets larger) and loses motility (its ability to move food into the stomach).
This condition creates a high potential for regurgitation leading to pneumonia by aspirating.
At the time of this writing, Garnet is still in the hospital and has been now for over three weeks. She is getting better and stronger every day. However, there a large vet bill that’s also growing every day as she continues her recovery and care in a 24 hour a day seven day a week vet hospital.
One of our wonderful volunteers built a “Bailey chair” for her. A Bailey chair is a chair that keeps a dog in an upright position for feeding. Since there is often not a “cure” for Megaesophagus, successful treatment can be obtained through the use of one of these special chairs. Essentially, it allows a dog to drink and eat completely vertically, allowing the food and water to get into the stomach by way of gravity, and to stay there.
Garnet is being fed liquified meals and then held in an upright position through the use of her Bailey chair, to aid in digestion and minimize the opportunity for regurgitation and aspiration pneumonia.
Garnet never lost her will to live, not even when we first met her and her future was uncertain, but now she gets a full wiggle butt when she sees her favorite veterinarian, Dr. Bishop, and her best vet tech friend, Stephanie.
Garnet has begun to put some weight on and regain her strength. Although there has and will be, small bumps along the way, she really seems to be happier than ever.
Garnet has the best personality, she is as sweet and gentle as can be. Everyone who meets her loves her and she has come to be adored by everyone within the hospital. She regularly makes her rounds to say hello to all the staff and for a friendly pat.
Giving this gentle baby a second chance at life hasn’t come cheap. We have racked up thousands upon thousands of dollars helping this girl fight for her life.
And we need your help!
We are planning to upload a video on Rumble to raise funds, a video can help to personalize the cause, allowing viewers to connect emotionally with the pets. Finally, the video might inspire others to create their own campaigns to help their pets, creating a community of support and advocacy for animals in need.
We are raising funds to help pay for her vet bills and hopefully find her a foster or adopter who understands her needs and is willing to love her anyway. Will you help?