BEAUFORT, SC....We got an e-mail about a 12-week old puppy that was picked up barely able to walk down the road. A Good-Samaritan took him to the vet and paid to get him evaluated. He was then taken to Animal Control. We got a call when it was determined he had been apparently hit by a car, and the head of his femur was shattered, and he needed an Orthopedic Surgeon. I had them send me the x-rays and had Knight taken to our Orthopedic Surgeon in Matthews, NC.
The first thing the Specialists noticed was the head bobbing that Knight had. He was very unstable and appeared to have more going on than a damaged hip or leg. Dr. Bob Bergman was called in to do a Neuro exam before he went to see the Orthopedic Surgeon. It seems like every dog we take in lately comes in with one thing and then ends up with something totally unrelated that is far worse than what we originally thought. That is one of the main reasons why ALL of our medical Abuse Cases go to Speciality Clinics first so we can do a total body evaluation instead of just looking at one area.
Dr. Bergman did a full evaluation of Knight and determined that based on his symptoms he definitely had something going on that had nothing to do with his hips or legs and recommended an MRI. The MRI showed that this adorable puppy had a cyst on his brain. He was probably born with it but was now causing him to have a Neurologic deficit. He recommended doing surgery to drain the cyst and to remove as much of the lining as possible.
The surgery went well, and Knight began to walk better almost immediately once he recovered from the procedure. We made arrangements to bring Knight to our Rehab Facility while he recovered. The minute he arrived, we knew something terrible was happening to this sweet pup. He would not stand, and it appeared he was in a lot of pain. We had him taken immediately back to Charlotte. Knight had a fever of 104 and was put on antibiotics and meds for the pain he was having. It was like he had a horrible migraine. After several days, Knight did not improve. His fever went down, but his pain level was the same.
Dr. Bergman decided he needed another MRI to see what else was going on. The MRI showed a clot had formed that was preventing Knight's spinal Fluid from draining and it was filling up the cavity where the cyst had been drained. It was building up pressure in his head which was causing the horrible headache. Knight had to go back into surgery to remove the clot and get the spinal fluid moving. If this did not work, a shunt would have to be put in to regulate the spinal fluid.
This amazing puppy already had two major brain surgeries, and his leg still needed to be repaired. If we had gone in and done his orthopedic surgery, the chances are pretty great that we might have lost this sweet pup because of all the complications he has been having, and no one would have known what happened. Knight's leg issues will be addressed once he has recovered from his brain surgery. He is in ICU recovering and will be there for a while. He cannot come to us until all of his issues have been resolved, and his Neurology Team has cleared him. It looks like sweet Knight will be in ICU for a while.
MRI's are extremely expensive. Having one is bad enough, but two is beyond anything you could imagine. On top of these bills, we have not one Brain Surgery but two. Saying we need Funds for this pup is an understatement. We are bleeding money after all of the Neuro. Cases we are dealing with. Every penny counts and we need for everyone to help us get out of the hole with these sweet puppies.
This has been a hard two months that began with 13 parvo pups needing critical care and transfusions. We lost seven but not before we spent a lot of money doing our best to save them. We have six healthy pups that are thriving but are still in quarantine. If you cannot Donate, please send to your friends and family members so they can help us with our abused animals.
We are the only ones that do everything possible to save an animal. We never give up or give in if there is something that can be done to give one of our dogs a good Quality of Life. Begging has become standard practice for me when it comes to saving an animal. Please, do whatever you can so we can give Knight the same Medical Care we give all of our dogs. Without us, Knight and a lot of other pups would not be in this World. We didn't create the problems they are having, but we are doing our best to fix them with your Love and Support. Thanks for caring.
