12.12.07

Sad news on Tyson

Posted in Tyson North Mills, Uncategorized at 6:29 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue

These are the days that rip your heart out.  Sweet little Tyson developed the neurological signs of distemper early this morning.  What we know from fighting distemper many, many times is that one the spasms start, the prognosis is very, very bad.  Distemper is a insidious disease that mimics kennel cough and any other type of upper respiratory disease. 

With Tyson, as with any other of our victims of distemper, what disappoints and angers me the most is that it is totally avoidable.  A simple $5 vaccination given three times when he was a puppy, would have prevented his suffering.   It’s just not fair!

With no hope of recovery, we made the decision to end his distress this afternoon.

I apologize to all of your for putting you through this horrible experience.  I’m sure many of you have lost beloved pets before and we get attached to these dogs just as though they are our own.  Carmen, Tyson’s foster mom, is taking this very hard.  She provided the most unbelievable care for him during his illness. 

I also wanted to thank each of you personally for your support of Tyson.  We never know whether we will win or lose when one of these babies get sick and we know how it breaks your hearts when one doesn’t make it.  Thank you for your faith in us, thank you for allowing us to at least try. 

Cat Martindale from ChaChaCha, Chugger and Chiclet, Erin O’Neill, Fur Kids, Susan Hardaway, David Nay, Bruce and Gay Yancey, Barbara Moran, Jennifer Rue in honor of Teipei, Kelly Highley, Cynthia Dantoni, Sandie and Doug Curb, Janet Bello, Ashley Riebschlager, Shari Bagwell, Rosemary Cody, Wanda Kenyon, Sherry Goodpasture, Elliott Lander from Spankey and the Lander shih tzu gang, Driscilla Stors, Marty Howard, Barbara Grabell, Wylene Dunbar, Carol Lundemo, Nancy Croft, Jean Flanagan, Pam Stewart in memory of sweet Sawyer White, Joan Samara, Cheryl Oyaski, Eugene Bonos, Jean Day, Christine Hutchison, Jan Haile, Sally and Doug Cameron, Ginger Warnick, Susan Lewis, Claryce King, Medea Snyder, Aggie Wood, Martha Hughes, Lorna Van De Weile, Karen Anderson, Chantell M Wiley, Richard Bandanza, Ashley Riebschlager, Tricia Havis, Pam Glass, Kimberly Ann Baehr, Lael Ward, Susan Gregory, Gay Yancey, Eugene Bonos, Sunny Goldberg in memory of Snuggles, Buffy and Chad, Debbie Plyant in honor of Woogy, Anon SB, Doris Diaz, Mandy Corey, Cindy Ruby, Darnell Hester.

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12.11.07

TYSON IS STILL CRITICAL!

Posted in Tyson North Mills, Uncategorized at 2:07 am by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue

I just spent almost an hour on the phone with the vet at the clinic where Tyson is in ICU.  His condition is very, very confusing since they are treating him with all of the biggest guns (antibiotics) they can and his progress is very slow.  In fact they are treating him with four different classes of antibiotics to get the widest coverage possible.  He is making progress, according to the vet that is handling him.   His respirations are much lower, which means he’s breathing much easier. 

One of the three tests we did last night came back tonight.  There is good news and bad news.  The good news is that they didn’t see any cancer cells (always a risk when something doesn’t heal).  The other good news is that they did not see any evidence of fungal infection.   Not that it is NOT fungal pneumonia, but it was not in the bronchial wash that they did. 

Another test is due back in 3-5 days – the bacterial culture, which will identify, hopefully, the specific strain of bacteria eating away at his immune system.  That MIGHT give us an extremely definite course of action – a specific antibiotic for a specific bacteria.

Finally, a fungal culture should be back in two weeks to tell us definitively if he is fighting a fungal pneumonia.

Ok, the really bad news – pneumonia, regardless of cause, is often treated only by supportive care.  That means oxygen, IV flulids and many, many drugs.  Right now, the oxygen chamber is all that is keeping him breathing.

We cannot promise that he will make it, but we think he deserves a shot.  In the past, the pneumonia dogs we’ve treated have only needed to stay on oxygen and IVs for three days and then they are well enough to go home for a few weeks. 

Tyson’s immune system STINKS thanks to the lack of care for the first few years of his life.  We’re hoping and praying that he just needs a few extra days to start the upward trend.  We have the funding through tomorrow at noon (thank you all you great, great compassionate people), but now we’re looking at another 3-5 days minimum at $683 per day.  Can you help!  You know we are only the voice for those who cannot ask themselves.  Tyson probably wouldn’t ask himself, if he could talk, but we will ask for him!  We want him to live. 

Plesae use THIS LINK for paypal, or THIS LINK to send a check.  Download the credit card form HERE and fax it to 281-754-4851, but be sure to email me at teresa@shihtzu-rescue.com to let me know to look for it.

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12.10.07

Monday Update on Tyson

Posted in Tyson North Mills at 8:30 am by LSSTLAR

Update from Tyson’s foster mom, Carmen:

I spoke with Dr. Maddox and here is what was said – He received the authorization last night to do the culture.  They went ahead with the procedure and Tyson did fine….yea!!  Dr. Maddox had concerns with this procedure and was glad Tyson came through.  They should have the test results within a few days.  His respiration is back down in the 30s again, not in the 50s.  Dr. Maddox did notice yesterday a muscle twitch.  He has concerns because that is a sign of distemper, but Tyson has not had one since yesterday morning.  Just something they are watching.  They have not started a fungal treatment because it will be very hard on Tyson and they do not want to go this route until they know for sure it is fungal pneumonia.

Prayers and positive thoughts are working so please keep them coming for this little furball!  We are only short $133 for Tyson’s 72 hour stay.  If Tyson needs to stay longer, we will need more funding for that so please keep checking the blog for his progress.

Plesae use THIS LINK for paypal, or THIS LINK to send a check.  Download the credit card form HERE and fax it to 281-754-4851, but be sure to email me at teresa@shihtzu-rescue.com to let me know to look for it.

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12.09.07

TYSON UPDATE: SUNDAY MORNING 10:30 AM

Posted in Tyson North Mills at 11:57 am by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue

Tyson Update Sunday at 10:30am – from Tyson’s very concerned foster mom….

I spoke with the vet at 7am this morning regarding Tyson’s prognosis and here is what was said; I am going to start with the positive first because I feel that is what we need to focus on for this little, precious guy POSTIVITIY!   Tyson has not gotten any worse, but he has not gotten much better.  His respirations went down by two, which is good, and his total protein and blood glucose are normal.   His appetite is good.  The vet would like to do a culture on Tyson to see if the pneumonia is bacterial or fungal.  There is some risk to the procedure because they would have to sedate Tyson to get a tube down his throat for the culture.  Reason it is risky is because of his respiration level but the vet feels it needs to be done.  Now for the negative, the cost for this is between $400-600. 
The vet said they have a good success rate if this is a bacteria pneumonia but if it fungal it could be a challenge.  He also said it will take time to see an improvement in Tyson, but there have been dogs that have been in this state and recovered.  
I don’t have an update photo of Tyson because they have requested that I do not visit him while he is in the oxygen tank because they want to keep him as calm as possible.  As Tyson’s foster mom, I am pleading for your help.  He survived in a puppy mill for 1 ½ – 2 years so I know he is a fighter and survivor.  He would appreciate everyone pulling for him so he can have a chance at a wonderful life, which he so deserves!!  Tyson says “thank you” to everyone that has donated, prayed for him and send positive thoughts his way.

Plesae use THIS LINK for paypal, or THIS LINK to send a check.  Download the credit card form HERE and fax it to 281-754-4851, but be sure to email me at teresa@shihtzu-rescue.com to let me know to look for it.

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12.08.07

12/8 Tyson UPDATE

Posted in Tyson North Mills at 6:52 pm by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue

Tyson update.  Saturday 7:30 pm. 

The vets are stumped.  Tyson has been getting antibiotics for two months and is now worse than he was two weeks ago when we last took him into the clinic.  He has been in the oxygen tank for 12 hours and his respirations are getting worse.  The prognosis is very guarded.

I just don’t know what to do.  They estimate that he will now need to be there 72 hours and if their estimate for the initial 48 is correct, his tab just jumped to around $2300.  I am so torn. 

As of 7:30 pm, he has $970 in his account, thanks to Cat Martindale from ChaChaCha, Chugger and Chiclet, Erin O’Neill, Fur Kids, Susan Hardaway, David Nay, Bruce and Gay Yancey, Barbara Moran, Jennifer Rue in honor of Teipei, Kelly Highley, Cynthia Dantoni, Sandie and Doug Curb, Janet Bello, Ashley Riebschlager, Shari Bagwell, Rosemary Cody, Wanda Kenyon.

But now, he needs another $1300 at least.  Should we go for it or throw in the towel?

NEVER GIVE UP!!!  NEVER GIVE IN!!!

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URGENT: Tyson is in ICU with bad pneumonia

Posted in Tyson North Mills at 9:58 am by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue

Poor little three pound Tyson has been fighting this horrible bug for a MONTH.  We’ve had him into the vet three times in the last four weeks – changing antibiotics – and last night, he was struggling to breathe.  Here is the quick summary Carmen wrote up for me this morning.

Teresa,
After being up most of the night with Tyson, I decided to take him back to the VCA Hospital at 5am this morning because his breathing was labored and he seemed very weak.  They put him in the oxygen tank because his breathing was at 78% and it should be at 100%.  He was also dehydrated so they will be putting him on IVs for that along with two different types of antibiotics.  The vet request we do another round of Xrays and have a consultant look at the Xrays because he has concerns that Tyson is having difficulty exhaling air as well as breathing in air.  I asked if we could do a culture to see what type of pneumonia he has and the vet said Tyson was not stable enough to do the test.  After he is stable, then they can do a culture.  The vets words were “he is a little guy but we need to go after this will all guns loaded.”  Tyson will be at VCA for at least 48 hours.  Prayers need to be said and positive thoughts to Tyson! 
Carmen

Guys, we are in a world of hurt right now.  With Dougie and the severe illnesses of all of the little guys from the puppymill confiscation, we have way overstepped our normal funding requirements for the end of the year.  Right now, the estimate for Tyson is around $1700 for the weekend in oxygen.

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11.30.07

Pneumonia Strikes Lone Star Dogs

Posted in Diesel Worth, Hutch Hill, Romo Hurst, Tyson North Mills at 8:03 am by LSSTLAR

There is always a risk of Kennel cough for shelter dogs, but there are hard
to fight strains out there and we are experiencing it first hand.  Not to
mention, Upper Respiratory are being taxed with the quickly changing
weather.  When there is an epidemic, we have to ask for you help as it is
not cheap to get them cared for properly.

 
Hutch Hill, just a baby at 1 year came in with his sister, Helena, because
their family is moving.  Not only did they not plan ahead, their
irresponsibility exposed him to disease and stress, a bad combination to
fight off pneumonia.

 
Romo Hurst, one of the seniors we could not turn our backs on just before
the holiday, has also come down with a bad case of pneumonia.  He is 8 years
old, has horrible skin, dry eye, and now a hacking cough that is making him
miserable.

 
Diesel Worth, another baby less than 1 year, has obviously been on the
streets with the appearance of his skin and coat, but add to that a
horrible runny nose and cough.  It doesn’t stop him from expressing his
appreciation, so we need to get him on the road to recovery soon.

 
 
Tyson Mills North is the tiniest HSNT Mill Bust pups cannot fully recover
from his pneumonia, nor his eye condition.  We have to ramp up the treatment
to help him get over the hump and of course it continues to be costly to do
so.
 
This condition adds $250 – $300 more to the normal vetting costs of these
dogs.  We need to receive $1000 – 1200 to cover the cost we have spent and
will need to spend to help through this condition.

 If you can possibily donate a few dollars for these babies, use THIS LINK for paypal, or THIS LINK to send a check.  Download the credit card form HERE and fax it to 281-754-4851, but be sure to email me at teresa@shihtzu-rescue.com to let me know to look for it.

Donations to date:  $475

Thanks to Becky Caldow, Scott Lewis in honor of Susan Lewis, Michael Coniglio, Pat Heitmann in memory of her precious angel Winston, Max Pachar in memory of Brillo.

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11.18.07

November 2007 Fundraising update

Posted in Amaretto Collins, Anthony Valley, Dapper West, HSNT Puppymill Oct 2007, Michelin Turner, Tyson North Mills, Winslow Oaks at 8:33 am by Lone Star Shih Tzu and Lhasa Apso Rescue

As you all know, over the last weekend, we met the $500 NYC matching challenge!!!  YEAH.  That added $1000 to our fundraising for theses fluffs below.  But, as you can also see, they still need a lot more.

Two extremely good friends of LSSTLAR have issued an additional match challenge last week.  For each dollar donated through the weekend, they will match it dollar for dollar up to $2000.  WOW!!  That will get all of these babies at least close enough for us to go forward.  We really need to get Amaretto’s surgery done asap.

Thanks to the following people who donated and made the NYC challenge a success:

Rosemary Cody, Janet McLeland,  Cat Martindale, Pam Glass, Lael Ward, Anonymous, Leanne Little, Cynthia D’Antoni in memory of Lucy, Kenda Stacy in memory of Gus, Joan Samara, Judy Florence, Kirstin Gerstley.

Amaretto Collins-READ HIS STORY HERE.

Thanks to Martin Howard in memory of “Killer,” Cat Martindale, Anon, Rosemary Cody, Wyatt Edenfield, Patricia Heitmann, Bruce and Gay Yancey, Barbara Grabell, Natty Products, Janet McLeland, Kaye Wyly, Claryce King, Rosemary Cody, Fur Kids, Janet McLeland, Pam Glass, Lael Ward, Leanne Little, Jean, Larry and Jose Smith in honor of Jose, Lauren Crosby, Lorraine Bucklan, Digital Auction,Larry and Bonnie Cox in memory of Anthony and Pita, Lorna Van De Wiele, Mary Grassi, Linda Morse, Cathy Hite, Kristy Formella, Bettie Asher, Joyce and Mike in memory of Abbi Worth Tate, Pam Glass, Barbara Detwiler, Anna Dee Lastick, Carol Lundemo, Janet Bello.

If you can donate, please GO HERE to contribute via paypal.  If you want to send a check, please go HERE.  And, to use a credit card, please download the form HERE.  You can fax it to 281-754-4851 and email me at teresa@shihtzu-rescue.com to let me know that it’s coming.

Tyson North Mills-READ HIS STORY HERE

Thanks to Ginger Guest-Warnick, Cat Martindale, Kenda Stacy in memory of Gus, Bruce and Gay Yancey, Carol Lundemo.

Michelin Turner-READ HIS STORY HERE.