...Sometimes we need a little time...
...A touch of patience...
...A pinch of faith...
...Sometimes all we need is a chance...
It was nearing the end of my shift. It had been one of those long, grueling, 12 hour days I was still growing accustomed to. I was busying myself with washing down the treatment tables, when I heard the call for assistance to the parking lot. Animal Control was bringing in a dog.
They'd found her in a ditch, unable to move. Our initial fear was she must have been struck by a car. We brought her in on a stretcher, doing our best to shift her as little as possible. Even in her weakened state, she offered up a flip of her tail as her brown eyes gazed up at us imploringly. Once we got her inside and set her on the treatment table, it became apparent she was covered in ticks.
When I say covered, I mean this dog's ears could not fold down for all the ticks attached to the insides of them. You could not run your hand through her fur without encountering hundreds of the swollen parasites. Most of the doctors and techs were creeped out by how many there were. I pulled a pair of hemostats from the drawer, along with a specimen jar filled with alcohol, and went to work. I kept having to sop up blood from her ears as we pulled the ticks off, so that it did not run down into her canal. The doctors performed their exam.
They could find no source for her paralysis. No signs of trauma. She was not underweight. Outwardly, she appeared to be a perfectly healthy dog. Except she could do no more than twitch her tail. I continued to pull of ticks, while others began to stand around and wait for further instructions, too grossed out by the amount of ticks still attached to the dog.
The doctors were reporting their speculations to the animal control officer who brought her in. Without any signs of trauma, the believed the cause to her paralysis to be either a neurological issue, or possibly tick paralysis. Despite the fact she was covered in the little bloodsuckers, tick paralysis is extremely rare. The doctors suggested that the officer keep her in the clinic overnight, give her a chance to see if she'd come to once we removed all the ticks.
Evidently, that option was either too hopeful, or too costly. The officer spoke briefly with his superiors. They decided to put her down.
Their decision reached me just as I had gently maneuvered the dog onto her other side so I could work on that side of her neck and face. I looked down, and this beautiful dog's warm, brown eyes still gazed up at me...so trusting.
"No... We have to give her a chance. We can't just put her down without giving her a chance."
The doctor sighed and eyed me over her clipboard..."We don't have much of a choice." She wasn't heartless. She didn't want to put the dog down anymore than I did. But, you learn a difficult lesson working in this field...you can't save them all.
"Let me take her. Will he sign her over to me? Let me get these ticks off of her tonight. If she doesn't improve by morning, we can euthanize her then. I just...I can't let this happen without giving her a chance."
The doctor nodded and turned to converse with my shift leader. They left the room to address the matter with the Animal Control officer. He agreed to sign the dog over to the clinic. After a few signatures, he left.
I stayed 2.5 hours past the end of my shift, plucking the ticks from this poor dog. I filled two specimen jars, and then some. By this time, she could just barely lift her head, and she appeared to be trying to move her legs. I fed her a bowl of food, and some water, both of which she consumed readily. After setting her up in a run for the night, with a thick bed made of blankets, I turned out the light and left.
This is what she looked like when I left her. I still had to support her head a bit to get her to lift it... 
The next morning, I arrived early. I came in the back door, where the kennel was, and went straight to the dog's run. She was laying in her bed of blankets at the back of her run, and I felt my heart sink a bit. Crouching down low, I stuck my fingers through the grate and kissed to her. To my utter amazement, she hoisted herself up onto all fours, and walked eagerly to greet me! I swung open the door and ran my hands all over her, smiling through the tears in my eyes.
To everyone I bumped into that morning, I proudly proclaimed: "She's walking!"
Later that afternoon, despite the dog's miraculous recovery, we discovered another disheartening piece of the equation. She was very heartworm positive. Having gotten this far, I was not about to give up on her now. I spoke briefly with my office manager, and had them draw up an estimate for what it would take to have her treated and spayed. They were very generous. I went home, and I began to share her story.
Through the good wishes and donations of many, 'Bailey' not only lived to walk, run, and play, but she is now free of heartworms, spayed, and living in the lap of luxury with her partner in crime, 'Ginny.' From day one, she was one of the sweetest, most loving dogs I have ever encountered, who had a kiss and a wag of her tail for everyone she met. She has a buoyant sense of humor, and delights in getting as much affection as possible.
These pictures were taken the day she amazed us all by walking...
Thank you, Bailey...for showing me that sometimes, all we need is a chance, and some one who believes in us...
This was one of my favorite rescues, who I encountered and saved last summer while working in Decatur, GA. I thought you guys would appreciate her story.  |
by Aneira Haimati on February 19th, 2010, 9:24 pm 
