360 pugs rescued since October, 2005
Sometimes being at failure at something isn't necessarily a bad thing, forgive me for I have failed.
Never in a million years did I think I would want a young busy dog again. My heart is usually with the seniors and special needs, but Rosey has managed to win me over. She's grown from a quiet little girl to a baseboard chewing demon with a heart of gold.
There's a very special bond between her and my old eyeless pug that I haven't seen in quite some time. Rosey is constantly looking out for him and won't come back inside the house until he does. She'll sit at the door and wait for him to come up onto the deck.
Rosey has brought out the playfulness in the other resident pug that he needed and the compassion that she has for the old guy is second to none.
So I gave in and am admitting to my failure as a "foster" Mom. Now I am just Mom. Rosey will continue to have her liver function monitored and is in fact going on August 15th for her second post surgery bile acid test. No matter the outcome, I have no doubt that we will forever enjoy the love and excitement that she brings to our home.
Rosey has been adopted by her foster parents!
Rosey had her bile acid test done on Thursday. She was quite put out that no breakfast was served, as (in true pug fashion) she loves to eat. Results came back that she has normal liver function for a post-surgery pug and thus, the surgery worked it's magic. Rosey no longer needs medication and can eat whatever food she wants. Needless to say, we are both very excited!
Ever since her liver surgery, Rosey has been full of energy and loves to run in the yard - she's like a little bullet. However, her love for the resident pug hasn't changed and she still loves to cuddle with him as they have a special bond.
We're continuing to work on potty issues. Rosey is a sneaky one and if you don't keep an eye on her, she'll pee. Her newfound energy isn't helping matters either. She is like a toddler who gets all wrapped up in playing and doesn't want to stop for a bathroom break.
Pottying aside, it's been so wonderful to see her thrive after everything that she's been through. I have no doubt that her new home will love her as much as her foster home does!
Since her last update, it has been quite the month for Rosey. Following her bile test, which confirmed that she did indeed have a liver shunt, Rosey was sent to Dr. Mason at the VEC for an ultrasound to determine the severity of her shunt and how best to proceed. The ultrasound showed that the blood vessel going into her liver was about 40% smaller than the one going out. Fortunately for Rosey, the shunt was outside of her liver and thus much easier to fix during surgery. Dr. Mason scheduled Rosey in for surgery on June 15th and prescribed 3 medications to help manage the situation until then. Specifically, Rosey was given lactulose to reduce her blood ammonia levels, levetriacetam to prevent the possibility of seizures due to the shunt and finally metronidazole to prevent any infection. She was also switched to a prescription renal diet to reduce the amount of protein she consumes.
Once on her medication, Rosey was a completely different pug! Her energy level shot through the roof and she just ran around all the time, playing with her foster family. She had been quite sleepy during the day when she first arrived in foster care, but now she hardly sleeps! That's not to say she doesn't still love a good cuddle, she just also likes a good run around the backyard as well!
On the day of Rosey's surgery, everything pretty much went as planned; however, once Dr. Mason was able to see the shunt up close, he found that it was a little larger than expected. Fortunately, Rosey was a trooper and came through with flying colours. She was able to eat within 12 hours after surgery and is coming home June 18th (today!!). Needless to say, her foster mother is beyond relieved. Rosey still has a ways to go in her recovery because we won't know if the surgery worked until she's had a series of bile acid tests over the next three months,. However, she has definitely made it through the hardest part! She will likely be running around like a fiend in no time!
We will be sure to keep everyone updated throughout her recovery and beyond!
Meet Rosey - a very tiny 1 year old little girl, who came into Pugalug about two weeks ago as an owner surrender. It is clear that Rosey was loved by her previous owners, but after she developed a corneal ulcer in her right eye, they were financially unable to treat her and made the difficult decision to give her up.
Upon her surrender, Rosey was immediately taken to see Dr. Wolfer, an ophthalmologist who put her on a strict regime of two different drops 4 times a day. She just had her follow up appointment and has healed nicely. No more drops are needed, but Rosey has lost the vision in that eye.
Rosey also went to get her routine bloodwork and fecal done. Unfortunately, that did not go as smoothly. Some of her bloodwork results suggested a possible liver shunt - a birth defect that results in a vein carrying blood around the liver instead of through it, thus preventing toxins from being filtered out. To confirm, the vet performed a bile acid test and the results determined that Rosey did indeed have a liver shunt. We are currently arranging an appointment with a specialist who will use an ultrasound to get a better idea of the severity of the shunt. Once we know what we are dealing with, Rosey will be scheduled for surgery to fix the problem. Our hope is that her shunt will be a minor one and easily fixed. We will keep everyone updated as things proceed.
All in all, Rosey has settled nicely into her foster home. She cuddles with her foster brothers and loves the cat. Rosey plays with all the toys and can really zoom around in the backyard. She is equally happy snuggling up to her foster humans and we are happy to oblige. She is just a sweet little girl and we love having her in our home!
