Rolling Dog Farm Blog

Little blind Teddy went into surgery this afternoon and came through the operation just fine.  I took this photo at the clinic a couple of hours afterwards.  I had posted earlier this week that our vets at Montana Veterinary Specialists in Helena had seen bladder stones and a dark shape — thickened material of some sort — in his gallbladder during his ultrasound.

Well, it turned out Teddy had about a week to live.  His gallbladder was ready to explode.  Literally.  With his diabetes, that most likely would have been fatal, Dr. Brenda Culver told me this evening.  In terms of total size, his gallbladder was about five times normal dimension.  The bile duct, which is typically the size of a nylon fishing line, was nearly half an inch thick.

Here's what the gallbladder looked like after Brenda removed it … she took these next several photos for me following surgery:

See all that black stuff under the surface?  There's only supposed to be bile fluid in there.

But this is what was inside:

The lining of the gallbladder should be about the thickness of a balloon, but in Teddy's case it was half a centimeter thick:

While Brenda was waiting for me to get to the clinic, she put the gallbladder in a jar of saline solution.  When I got there, she pulled it out and showed me what it looked like after she had sliced it open to see what was inside.  In this next photo she's using her thumb and finger to indicate how big the gallbladder should be, just in terms of circumference … but in Teddy's case the whole thing was so swollen in every dimension it was several times normal:

I mean, this is a tiny dog … and that thing was huge!

Speaking of huge, here are his bladder stones — all five of them!

Egads.  All those in one itty bitty bladder.  The largest one alone was a full centimeter in size:

I will admit, we were extremely nervous about doing the surgery, given all the risks involved with his frailness, his age, and his diabetes.  To be blunt, we were afraid he might not survive the operation.  Both Brenda and Jennifer spent a lot of time with me over the past several days, answering questions, reviewing the risks, and in general helping us weigh the pros and cons of the surgery.  We are by nature very aggressive when it comes to medical intervention, but this time we were hesitant to proceed — even though we had already agreed to go forward.

In a long conversation yesterday evening, Brenda told me it was a miracle Teddy had survived this long on his own.  But, she added, without removing the bladder stones and finding out what was wrong with the gallbladder, we had very little chance of managing his diabetes successfully and giving him any time at all with a good quality of life.  She said, "This is the only shot we've got to give him what you want him to have." 

When I was at the clinic this afternoon looking at the grotesquely swollen and blackened gallbladder, and all those bladder stones, it was clear she had been absolutely right.  Brenda said today, "If he hadn't come to you when he did, and if you didn't have the resources to do all this for him, he wouldn't have made it another week."

Brenda said his bladder incision should heal without a problem, and he will do fine without a gallbladder with some dietary adjustments.  Barring any post-surgical complications, Teddy will be coming home later next week.

Thanks to Missoula Animal Control for rescuing this boy in the first place, and to all of you whose donations provide those all-important "resources" that make this kind of veterinary care possible.  We just couldn't do it without you.

One of the things we've learned about blind animals is that shedding out their winter coats doesn't always happen at the "right" time.  That's because a key signal for the brain to know when to start shedding a winter coat … and when to start growing it back … is length of daylight.

You'd think temperature would be a good indicator, but this is so variable — you can have weeks of very warm weather in autumn, for example — that temperature isn't what nature wants animals to rely on to tell them when to begin preparing for the change in seasons.  Daylight length is the sure thing.

Because this signal is communicated to the brain by eyesight, of course, a blind animal who can't register even light versus dark (depending on retinal function, some blind animals can get light in) isn't able to detect the change in daylight length.  And then their brains don't know what to do.  We've had blind horses show up here in December with summer coats on, only to grow out a winter coat in July.  Oops.  We've found the same thing happens with some of our dogs who are "seasonal shedders."

For instance, our blind sled dog Dusty takes longer to begin shedding in some years than other years.  But when he starts to shed, look out — it's a fur festival.  Last week Dusty began blowing his coat, with big tufts of white hair coming out.  We had family visiting the past few days, and naturally we put them to work — with one of the tasks being to groom Dusty. 

Although it looks like we had sheared a sheep in the photo at the top, it's actually where my sister-in-law, Debbie, managed to get Dusty to sit still long enough to work all that hair off of him.  Dusty isn't very comfortable around people, but he "survived" the up-close-and-personal grooming session just fine.  By the time she finished, I think Debbie had as much white hair all over her as there was on the ground!

The next morning Dusty was a much sleeker looking fellow:

Late yesterday evening the Animal Rescue Site posted the final results of the Shelter Challenge, and … drum roll, please … it's official:  We came in third nationwide and picked up that $3,000 grant!

Wow.

When this contest started — when was that … early April? — we thought we'd have a good shot at winning the top spot for Montana again and a $1,000 prize, but it never occurred to us that we could come in No. 3 in the nation.  Yet all of you showed us what was possible in a contest like this, far beyond what we thought was possible.  Not only did our votes come from so many wonderful people across the U.S. and Canada, but also from Europe, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. 

And everyone's individual, daily votes added up as the weeks went by, propelling the ranch to 3rd place by May 12th — and we held that spot all the way to the end!  At week four of the contest, we picked up the $1,000 prize for most votes that week … so the total amount won turns out to be $4,000.

Alayne and I know what it took for us to remember to vote every single day, and the thought of all of you out there doing the same thing, day after day … well, that really is humbling. 

On behalf of all the animals at the ranch, thank YOU!!!

The medical news on Teddy is, well, mixed.  Our veterinary team in Helena continues to make progress in treating his diabetes — his glucose levels have dropped from the mid-600s to the 300s and continue to edge downward (goal is to be 100-120).  However, on his abdominal ultrasound our vets discovered both bladder stones and "thickened material" in his gallbladder, suggesting that the bile duct was plugged.  Diabetes is one of those diseases that is made worse by any other disease or illness present in the body, and it's much more difficult to regulate unless those other disorders are cleared up.

So … our vet Dr. Brenda Culver is going to operate on Teddy on Thursday to remove the bladder stones and do exploratory surgery to try and figure out what is going on with his gallbladder.  There is definitely risk involved with this.  But both Brenda and our other vet who is handling Teddy's diabetes treatment, Dr. Jennifer Rockwell, believe that the best shot we have for giving Teddy as much time as possible is to eliminate these other problems and thus increase our ability to regulate his diabetes.  Otherwise, the diabetes will be a losing battle long term.

Jennifer reports this evening that Teddy is continuing to eat well (he's a little pig!).  One of the sanctuary's wonderful friends in Helena saw Teddy yesterday at the clinic and told me he "looked real good, very alert."

Please continue to keep this little tyke in your thoughts!

Alayne was off the other evening again looking for the Beagle-in-a-hole, blind Austin, when she noticed Oliver the wire-haired Dachshund sitting near an aspen.  She had seen him playing with Austin not long before, so she figured — Inspector Clouseau-like — that the wily Beagle might be near at hand.  Sure enough, as she got closer to Oliver, she could see Austin hiding in a newly discovered hole, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible.  Except for that confounded Dachshund marking the spot.

—

Yes, indeed, it looks like we managed to come in third in the Shelter Challenge — the Top 10 results today show us in 3rd place — a feat we still find rather amazing!  It just shows you how a whole lot of people, individually doing something for a common cause, can really add up.  But while we'll have to hold off celebrating until the official results are announced on Wednesday, Alayne and I wanted to say a big "thank you!" to all of you who kept casting your votes, day after day after day, for the past few months.  We appreciated that dedication more than you can imagine.

Speaking of which, it's kind of odd not having to vote in the Shelter Challenge today, isn't it?  That became such a daily habit — but one we're glad to give up for awhile!

Barbara Edwards and her husband Scott came by on Friday afternoon so we could hold the drawing for the quilt raffle.  Barbara shuffled the tickets around in a basket, dumped them back in the jar, and then Scott twirled the jar a few more times.  Finally it was time for Alayne to reach in and pick a winner.

And it is … Diane B. of Chehalis, Washington!

At this point we still didn't know how much the raffle had brought in for the animals.  Then Barbara handed Alayne a sealed envelope, and inside was a check for … $1,800!  Wow!  Here's Alayne holding the check:

Thank you to everyone who bought tickets — and to Barbara for making the quilt and organizing the raffle!

—

This is the last day for the The Animal Rescue
Site/PetFinder's Shelter Challenge — voting
ends tonight, the 26th, at midnight (PST)!  Please enlist your
family, friends and colleagues to join you in voting for the ranch as
we count down to the final hours.  Enter
"Rolling Dog Ranch" and our state postal code, MT for Montana,
and it will bring up our listing so you can cast your vote.

As of this afternoon, we're still No. 3, and that means a $3,000 grant if we can hold that spot through tonight!  Official results will be announced on the 29th, the contest rules say. 

Thanks for voting!

Our vet Dr. Brenda Culver called yesterday afternoon with the first set of test results on Teddy, and the news was not good:  Our little guy is severely diabetic.  His glucose levels should be in the range of 100-120, and Teddy was at 652.  Oh, my.

That could explain why he's blind, too.

Brenda was starting him on insulin to bring his glucose levels down, but it can take a while to find the right type of insulin and the right dose.  Brenda's husband, Dr. Britt Culver, is our internal medicine specialist there and will be following up on Teddy's treatment protocol.  He will also be doing an abdominal ultrasound tomorrow that will include a look at his pancreas.

When Brenda told me about Teddy's diagnosis, I immediately thought back to our last diabetes case.  It was in 2006, when an adorable Jack Russell/Fox Terrier mix named Sammy came to us with a long history of untreated diabetes.  It was a heartbreaking series of ups-and-downs, and Sammy spent as much time in the hospital as he did at the ranch.  In the end, we lost him after just a few months.

If there is anything positive to come out of that … well, Sammy was as difficult a diabetes case to manage as there is, so we are much more knowledgeable and prepared for Teddy's diabetes than we would have been.

Please keep Teddy in your thoughts.  We're going to hope this is the only thing we'll find out he's got — and yes, that his will be an easy, textbook case of diabetes to treat!

—

Just a few days left — voting
ends this Sunday, July 26th at midnight (PST)!  Please enlist your
family, friends and colleagues to join you in voting for the ranch as
we count down to the finish line.  Remember, you can vote for us every
day in The Animal Rescue
Site/PetFinder's Shelter Challenge. 
Enter
"Rolling Dog Ranch" and our state postal code, MT for Montana,
and it will bring up our listing so you can cast your vote.

We're still No. 3, and that means a $3,000 grant if we can hold that spot!  Thanks for voting!

I walked out the back door the other afternoon and saw blind Callie standing under the beach umbrella Alayne had just set up.  We have this large gravel pad at the south end of the house we call the "beach" — the chair is parked at the edge of it — and Callie looked slightly confused as to which beach she was at.  Or maybe she was just listening to see if she could hear the waves coming ashore.  But one thing she did know for certain — those were not palm fronds rustling overhead in the summer breeze.  Those were aspen leaves.  Any Montana girl knows that.

—

This is the last week for the contest — voting
ends next Sunday, July 26th at midnight (PST).  Please enlist your
family, friends and colleagues to join you in voting for the ranch as
we count down to the finish line.  Remember, you can vote for us every
day in The Animal Rescue
Site/PetFinder's Shelter Challenge. 
Enter
"Rolling Dog Ranch" and our state postal code, MT for Montana,
and it will bring up our listing so you can cast your vote.

With one week to go, we're still No. 3, and that means a $3,000 grant if we can hold that spot!  Thanks for voting!

During blind Charlie's eye exam back in May with our vet, Dr. Brenda Culver, we noticed that his pupils reacted to light — which meant his retinas were detecting it somehow, even through his cataracts.  Now, it's not at all uncommon to have fully functioning retinas in eyes that are blinded by cataracts.  But the only way to find out is with an electroretinogram, or ERG, which tests retinal function.  And that was one of the reasons for a trip to the vet clinic in Helena today.

Long-time blog readers know that we are blessed with an excellent primary care vet in Brenda who also has a special interest in ophthalmology.  Because of her skills and her diagnostic equipment, she can do many of the things — including eye surgery — that we would typically need to see an ophthalmologist for.  In our case, the nearest one is Dr. Bill Yakely in Spokane, Washington.  Brenda consults closely with Dr. Yakely, and the result is that we have to make very few trips to Spokane for eye issues.

Dr. Yakely had encouraged Brenda to get an ERG machine so she could perform these tests herself.  When we had taken a blind puppy named Cody to Dr. Yakely several years ago for cataract surgery that restored Cody's vision, Dr. Yakely told me that only about 50% of the dogs he sees for cataract surgery turn out to be candidates for the procedure … and that's because the retinas aren't firing well enough.  So the ERG is the diagnostic tool that determines who is and who isn't a surgical candidate. 

Dr. Yakely had offered to coach Brenda on the use of the ERG and interpret the results for her.  If a dog turned out to be a candidate for cataract surgery, Brenda would refer the case to Dr. Yakely for the operation. 

Thus we were excited when Brenda recently acquired an ERG machine so we could test Charlie's retinal function without having to make the trip to Spokane — and Charlie was her very first patient!  In the photo at top, Charlie is "wired" with electrodes that "read" how his retinas react to a light flashed into his eye (from the yellow device Brenda is holding in that photo).

Here's another view taken during testing of his right eye:

Those electrodes are hooked up to a small white box that is connected to a laptop, and the results are projected in graph form on the computer:

We had different results from his two eyes, so we are going to wait until Dr. Yakely interprets the data and delivers his opinion.  Sorry to leave you holding on this one!

—

I took other animals to the vet clinic today, including little Teddy.  In addition to a dental, he'll have bloodwork, a urinalysis (he's peeing a lot), and other tests.  Here is Brenda listening to his heart:

She detected a fairly pronounced murmur, so he'll have an echocardiogram as well.  No results in yet on Teddy, but we'll keep you posted.  I left Teddy at the clinic, and as I walked out, I could hear him from the back, barking and barking from his cage — "I want to go home, I tell ya, so let me out of here!"

—

In response to yesterday's post about Twist's adoption, a number of people have asked how his buddy Oliver is doing.  The answer is:  He's fine!  He's running around and playing with blind Austin this afternoon, and he has plenty of other friends here.  No need to worry about him!

—-

This is the last week for the contest — voting
ends next Sunday, July 26th at midnight (PST).  Please enlist your
family, friends and colleagues to join you in voting for the ranch as
we count down to the finish line.  Remember, you can vote for us every
day in The Animal Rescue
Site/PetFinder's Shelter Challenge. 
Enter
"Rolling Dog Ranch" and our state postal code, MT for Montana,
and it will bring up our listing so you can cast your vote.

With one week to go, we're still No. 3, and that means a $3,000 grant if we can hold that spot!  Thanks for voting!

Chennell B. from Bozeman, Montana, contacted us last week about adopting Twist, our Dachshund with the rear leg that juts out at an angle.  Twist has been with us about a year and a half, and is a sweet, lovable guy.  He's a good-sized Dachshund with a very long body.  This handsome boy's only problem is that leg.  Yet, as I told Chennell in an email, "We don’t really consider him disabled because it just isn’t an issue for him.  He’s a real character, and there are times we wish that leg would slow him down a little!"  He is amazingly fast and agile, and when he wants to move really fast, he tucks the leg out of the way and takes off.

Chennell drove up from Bozeman this afternoon to visit Twist, and quickly fell in love with him.  At first Twist was oddly subdued, and we joked with Chennell about how we'd never seen him so mellow before!  But all it took was a walk alone with Chennell and a little one-on-one time, and pretty soon, well, Twist was a kissing fool:

So the deal was sealed with a kiss, you might say, and Chennell took Twist home to Bozeman with her.

Thank you, Chennell!

—

This is the last week for the contest — voting
ends next Sunday, July 26th at midnight (PST).  Please enlist your
family, friends and colleagues to join you in voting for the ranch as
we count down to the finish line.  Remember, you can vote for us every
day in The Animal Rescue
Site/PetFinder's Shelter Challenge. 
Enter
"Rolling Dog Ranch" and our state postal code, MT for Montana,
and it will bring up our listing so you can cast your vote.

With one week to go, we're still No. 3, and that means a $3,000 grant if we can hold that spot!  Thanks for voting!