Adorable Lillian has kept us on our toes for the last two months. There were several times that we did not think she would make it through the night. We have a lot of dogs that require a lot of Specialists to get well. Lillian seems to have taken that to a whole different level. The problem is that once we started searching for causes of her terrible erratic cough we found a lot of underlying Life-Threatening issues. She is an older adorable girl that has had a terrible Life. Part of her condition is from neglect and abuse; the other part is genetic. The good news is she is strong enough to go into a loving Home.
If it were up to Lillian, she would remain in your lap all day long. She is a fabulous girl that we have come to love and adore. We want the best for her and will be picking up any future bills that relate to her pre-existing conditions which is why I am listing them below. The good news is that we have her stabilized, and she can be placed in a home in our general area. This way she can see her normal Vets and Specialists that are familiar with her condition. The list below came from one of her Specialists. I think it is important for potential Adopters to know fully what issues a dog such as Lillian has.
1.) Lillian has a heart murmur. The Veterinary Cardiologist found that the heart murmur is due to leaky mitral and tricuspid valves inside the heart. Right now the murmur does not cause Lillian any problems. Over (years) time it will progress and get to a point where she will need heart medications. Because the problem was in the early stages, the cardiologist felt that Lillian needs a recheck heart ultrasound to monitor progression in September 2017.
2.) Lillian has a cough. This is due to chronic bronchitis and bronchopneumonia. Chronic bronchitis is a lifelong disease that will need long term medications to keep the inflammation in her lungs under control so that she can breathe as well as possible. Right now, Lillian is under treatment for bronchopneumonia that is a bacterial infection in the lungs. Bronchopneumonia is a secondary complication of chronic bronchitis. Hopefully, the antibiotics will clear this up. She is due to have a recheck with a Veterinary Internist 7 to 10 days after she finishes the antibiotics. This would be around December 17th-20th. At that time, they will likely want to do another culture of her airways to make sure the bacterial infection is cleared. If the infection is cleared, they may want to adjust Lillian's long-term chronic bronchitis medications. Right now she is taking five medications for her lungs; two antibiotics that will be finished up 12/10, and three long-term medications. Theophylline is meant to open up Lillian's airways, Hydroxyzine is an antihistamine to try to reduce any airway inflammation due to allergies, and Hydrocodone is a cough suppressant to keep Lillian from getting into coughing fits.
3.) She has a birth defect called a Chiari Malformation that causes pressure on her brain and spinal cord. This causes her to walk a little funny, but it's something that she's had her entire life and does not seem to be bothering her significantly. She also has a small cyst on her pituitary gland that is not causing any problems right now. She was evaluated by a Veterinary Neurologist and placed on conservative treatment to help her be as comfortable as possible with this condition. She takes two medications for this (omeprazole and gabapentin) and needs to stay on them long term.
Don't let this list discourage you from welcoming this wonderful dog into your home. She is amazing in every way and has fought to be here. She is here because she is a fighter and never gave up. I do not know how she survived as long as she did with all the medical issues she had in addition to the Life-threatening ones we found. She would not be here today if we did not keep searching for the underlying causes of her vast medical problems. A lot of the time with the Abuse Cases we take in, it takes us a long time to determine what is causing what. It is like opening up Pandora's Box. You are scared to open the box but know you have to, or the animal will not get the best possible care. Lillian is our Pandora's Box. The best news is that we have a handle on her conditions, and she can now go to a loving Home.
To say we have a fortune in this tiny pup is an understatement. There was no point in posting at the time of the procedures because her chances of survival were so small. She has a chance at a living out her Life free of pain and suffering because of never giving up. Please, help us pay down her massive bills and her future ones that she will have. This adorable pup has done her part, and we have stood by her through it all. Please, stand by us and DONATE toward her Medical bills. Thanks for being part of her Journey to Survive and Thrive. We greatly appreciate your unwavering Support.
