In July, this nameless little waif was turned into a County Animal Control Facility. The woman who brought her in claimed she was a stray. Sporting a fairly new collar, she would be held for 9 days, giving her owner a chance to reclaim her.

In spite of the fact that Claire was horribly ill, no vetting was given during this grueling period. The day she was released to New Rattitude Rat Terrier Rescue www.newrattitude.org, she weighed 7.2 lbs, was highly infested with fleas, and showing early signs of Kennel Cough.

We named her Claire and agreed that as long as we could keep her fairly comfortable, we would do all we could to save her. So began her journey to recovery.

Claire was initially diagnosed with diabetes and Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency (EPI), explaining her state of near starvation. While these were pretty big hurdles in and of themselves, the kennel cough presented her biggest immediate challenge.

For the first couple weeks Claire would walk a fine line between life and death. Her days were spent at Milwood Animal Clinic, under the loving care of Dr. L. Stewart and an amazing clinic staff. Here she received life sustaining IV fluids and antibiotics. She was started on low doses of insulin to control her diabetes and porcine enzymes to treat her EPI. In the evening she returned to her foster home — should she lose this battle, we were determined she wouldn’t die alone. Claire inspired us all by showing her amazing will to live, through her darkest hours she would still give a wag of that stubby tail and a sloppy kiss.

The next several months would include numerous trips to the vet. While the EPI was quickly brought under control, the diabetes would prove more difficult. Much trial and error ensued before finding the right combination of food and insulin to restore her little body to normalcy.

It has been nearly seven months since the day Claire was rescued. Her recovery has resulted from the combined efforts of many people across the United States including the members and supporters of New Rattitude who never waivered in their promise to help her while the costs continued to mount; a highly skilled vet who diagnosed her early on with EPI (the much needed digestive enzymes were critical to Claire’s survival); the valuable guidance and help from a forum called www.epi4dogs.com that helped in getting the EPI under control quickly; and of course, the love and perseverance of a foster family who worked for months to find that magic combination that would finally bring her diabetes to a manageable state.

Today, Claire is a healthy Rat Terrier weighing 11.2 lbs, but she has one final health challenge to overcome. Claire has mature diabetic cataracts in both eyes. This type of cataract impairs functional vision and also causes lens-induced anterior uveitis, a form of immune-mediated inflammation inside the eyes. Claire has been examined by a veterinary ophthalmologist. Her retinas were found to be healthy and normal, with cataract surgery she has been given a 99% chance of regaining her vision.

Claire would love to join in on chasing squirrels with the rest of her pack. She longs to run in her yard and not crash into the chain link fence, or to go for walks in the woods and not have to carried most of the way for fear she’ll run into a stick or twig and lose an eye completely. There is an ever present fear of her falling down a flight of stairs, or off the deck or retaining wall. We want that added cushion of safety that sight will give her. Although Claire has become very familiar with her foster home, we watch her struggle whenever she goes to new places. She is so very vulnerable in her blindness.

The EPI and diabetes are conditions Claire will live with for the rest of her life, but thankfully are now being well-managed. To complete Claire’s rescue journey from sickly shelter dog to a healthy, much-loved family pet, Claire will soon be undergoing expensive cataract surgery. We at New Rattitude, along with the medical staff caring for her, feel that giving her back her sight is one of the greatest gifts we can offer.

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • Blogplay
  • email
  • RSS
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
  • Yahoo! Buzz

240 Comments »