Beginning of week two for Maddie's medical care since she was rescued from that horrible couple in Young County, TX.

Today is Monday, one week after Maddie's awful "crash". I look back one week ago today, and am amazed that she is still with us. I think most of you are, too. At this point, her neurologist remains fairly convinced that she suffers from distemper in addition to her various other ailments. The reason for that is the fact that she has responded to the steroid therapy.

I didn't update yesterday, as the vet clinic did not have visiting hours and I didn't see her. Judging from the anxious e-mails I received, perhaps I should have posted a few lines, no matter how short. Her vet did call me yesterday after she had seen her, and there hadn't really been much change since Saturday when I last updated.

What struck me most as I went into the ICU was what appeared to be almost a "look" on her face. It's hard to describe, but she looked almost angry. I mentioned it to the techs, who said they had just moved her, and she doesn't like to be moved. She wasn't agitated, but looked genuinely irritated! I know it sounds strange, but you had to see it in person. It was almost amusing to see what constituted an "expression" of anything on her face.

Her eye contact was better today than before. I saw more of her eyes today than I did in the last week. Her nystagmus (rapid, jerky eye movements) has really decreased. This is one of the possible neurological symptoms of distemper. It was pretty bad a week ago. When she's resting, it's not really present. If they move her (which she hates), it'll make itself a little more apparent. Then it settles down again. She followed my hand movements well with her eyes, too. She would stretch her nose out to my hand when I reached in to pet her little head.

I asked how she was eating, and they gave me their usual reply-"like a horse". I guess I looked really dumbfounded, since her appetite was so awful before this crisis. As if to prove me wrong, they offered to let me feed her. They brought me probably what equaled a small tin of dog food. It's actually puppy food, high in calories and nutrients. I put it in front of her, and I couldn't believe my eyes! She gobbled it right down. I asked how often a day she eats, and they said she gets 4 meals. This was like an extra snack. We haven't been able to weigh her, as we just want to keep her quiet for now. I really don't think she's losing weight right now, judging from what she's putting away. She's also processing it. Apparently she's producing a decent stool. <---funny what makes your day, huh?

She isn't shivering like she was anymore, but she still needs a blanket to keep warm. She's still working on maintaining that body temperature. They have moved from IV antibiotics to oral, because she's eating so well. She remains on all previous antibiotics, as well as a low dose of Phenobarbital and steroids. Should she continue to improve, we're convinced it will be in the tiniest baby steps. They are talking about starting to slowly reduce the steroids later this week. We'll just have to see. Meanwhile, if she continues on this course, she will start a little tiny bit of daily physical therapy, to keep what little muscle she has elastic. We're still way too cautious to project beyond the next day or so. I'll visit her again tomorrow and provide another update. Please continue to keep Maddie in your prayers.

Regards,
Kate

April 24, 01 UPDATE:

Dear Friends - Kate is flying this afternoon/evening and asked me to convey her latest update on Maddie. Kate visited her around noontime and said Maddie continues to hold her own, with a slight improvement again today. The good news - they've removed her IV and she is taking all meds by mouth now that she is eating and drinking so well. Kate took her a soft fleece pad to rest on, and she loves it! She recognizes Katie and stretches her head out for pets . They started some gentle physical therapy - mostly just moving her legs a bit to keep what's left of her muscles elastic. Although her temperature is no longer fluctuating widely, she still needs a towel to keep her warm. Katie took some more photos, and will probably be able to send them to us on Thursday. Next update will probably be tomorrow afternoon or evening. As always, Katie sends her thanks for your continued support and prayers.

Lillian

April 26, 01 UPDATE:

I'd like to thank Becky Ramsey of Sheltie Rescue in Dallas for visiting Maddie for me on Wednesday when I was out of town. I'd also like to thank her for pulling our new boy, Benny, out of the Wylie Shelter so I could visit Maddie on Tuesday before I left for my trip. She has been a huge help and unwavering support for me in the past few weeks.

You will see a picture of Maddie taken on Tuesday before I left. It is the first close up of her face in over a week. This is because I did not want to risk the flash going off in her face after her seizure a week ago Monday. Perhaps it was coincidence, but she seized right after the doctor checked her pupils with a flashlight. I didn't want to risk that flash in her face after that. You'll see Maddie doesn't look as she did before the "crash". What I would say is that her face does look much better than it did last week. The picture may still be a shock to you.

I saw Maddie on both days right after her physical therapy and lunch. She was exhausted. She was sleeping pretty soundly when I walked in today. She woke up when I touched her cheeks and forehead. She knew me right away and enjoyed her pets. She is still eating and drinking very well. That is why they have removed all her IV's and gone to oral medications.

Our main concern with Maddie right now is that she has seemed to reach a "plateau" in her recovery progress. While our vet was somewhat encouraged by her initial progress, she is a bit discouraged with the lack of it now. What we're trying to determine is whether she's trying to gather strength to continue, or if she will not continue progressing from her present point. She hasn't declined, so to speak, but if she does not show some progress soon, that in itself will be a decline.

We want to give her every chance in the world to get better, but we need to balance that with humane considerations, too. We don't want to just give up on a dog who insists on eating as she does. What concerns us is that she hasn't really gained weight to speak of. Today we have begun to add powdered pancreatic enzymes to her food to see if they help her absorb her nutrients and medications a little better.

She has not demonstrated the ability to get up and support her weight, either. We are hoping her physical therapy will help her on the right track, and if the enzymes help her absorb more nutrition, maybe that will help.

Our other main concern is her lack of ability to maintain a constant body temperature. While her fluctuations are not near as bad as they were, they're not quite in control either. She will occasionally drop down to 97 or 98 degrees. She was actually sitting at 102 when I saw her today, which is good. Having a little towel on her as a blanket helps this right now.

We feel she deserves a few more days to try to pull herself out of this. One thing Marie Devaney and I have discussed is bringing her back to Cross Timbers Animal Hospital in McKinney (my vet's clinic). Here are our reasons: If the Surgical Center is not doing anything "specialized" to her right now (which they're not), there is no reason our vet can't support her. Her current caretakers are feeding, medicating and supporting her. We almost feel she may feel a little more "at home" with our vet who can do the same thing, including physical and possible hydrotherapy. The only difference is that they will not be there overnight. That is one of the considerations, of course. We want Maddie to be able to go outside (even if we carry her) and enjoy the fresh air and sunlight. Perhaps getting her out of the ICU environment may nurture her will to live a little better.

Last of all is our "last" consideration here. Should the time come that we must let her go, I am not willing to do it in the ICU environment. While the people down there are fantastic, professional, caring folks, we consider Cross Timbers more of a familiar place for Maddie. If we must do it, that is where I feel it must happen, among the people who cared for her first.

Please understand that we want to give Maddie every chance humanly possible, in as humane a manner as possible. We must be straightforward about what is happening here. All of you who care for her deserve no less than that. Please continue to keep her in your prayers, and I'll post a Friday update.

April 28, 01 UPDATE:

I didn't get a chance to update last night, it just got a little to busy on our end here.

Maddie made the trip to Cross Timbers just fine yesterday. I think now we did the best thing for her. The tech who carried her downstairs for me was a little worried she'd experience nausea from this much movement, but she was just fine. If you could only have seen her little nose stretch out and sniff the breeze when we walked outside! That alone made it worth it.

My friend and foster mom extraordinaire, Barb Boyle, made the trip with us, as well as Pablo and Sadie, my two springers. Barb sat in back with Maddie, and Pablo and Sadie sat in front with me. They gave Maddie the occasional gentle sniff, and were on their best behavior for the entire drive. Maddie was very alert the entire time, and showed no signs of nausea at all. She looked back and forth at Barb and I as we conversed, sniffed the breeze blowing through the window, and watched traffic. We took her out in the back yard at Cross Timbers, where she caught a few rays and absorbed some sunshine as they prepared her kennel inside. That's the picture you'll see attached. One of her prescriptions is to get outside and absorb some fresh air and sun. She watched the bugs and caught a few sniffs.

She seemed to make it through the night OK. I had to run down and pick up one of her prescriptions back at the hospital, then I went up and visited her. I'm headed back this afternoon to take her outside, work her little muscles, and talk to her. She seems to enjoy the attention, until she gets too tired. That fresh air and exercise does it to her, too. It's nice to have her closer again, and be able to visit her more.

Our main worries still lie with her ability to control her body temperature and the fact that she needs to start trying to get up. She is getting the excellent care she deserves at the hands of these people who love her so much. We're hoping to see some improvement soon. Please continue to pray for her, and I'll update later today or early tomorrow.

Kate



April 29, 01
I can hardly see through the tears to send this note from Kate.......

Dear Fellow Maddie Lovers,

Today Maddie gave me a sign. She let me know, without a doubt, that she was ready to go to the Rainbow Bridge. Deep down I knew she would let me know if and when she was ready, and many of you reminded me of this fact on a daily basis. I can only say that if you were there, you would have seen it, too.

I went in to visit her this afternoon after dealing with a broken vehicle in the morning. The kids in charge of her daily feeding and love-giving looked really sad. I could see it in their eyes before I went to her cage. She hadn't eaten a thing all day, and hadn't been drinking, either. They were heartbroken, because they had really tried to entice her to eat. They said she appeared not to even have the strength to do it.

I went in her room to see her. She had undergone a definite change since yesterday afternoon. Her eyes turned to see me, but she did not lift her head as much as she usually would. I do know that she knew me, and stretched her nose out ever so slightly when I went to stroke her head and speak to her. Her breathing was very rapid and shallow. I just knew. I called her vet and told her that it was time. She had seen her a few hours prior, and asked me if I was ready. I replied "as ready as I'll ever be".

We got her little bed, cushioned her with a bunch of towels, and covered her little body with one to keep her warm. We carried her outside into the yard, where there was sunshine and a little breeze. While we waited for Paige, her vet, I held Maddie and told her how much everyone loved her and that it was OK for her to go now. We sat like that for a good while, me talking to her, stroking her on her little blaze, as always. Her breathing evened out as we sat together and looked into each other's eyes. I can definitely tell you she knew it was me holding her. She never took her eyes off mine. Paige showed up in a little while and very gently put her to sleep as I held her in my arms and kissed her on the head for myself and for everyone else who loved her. Paige said Maddie probably wouldn't have made it through the night in that condition, and there's no way we would have let her go alone like that. As sad as we were, we knew we did the right thing.

Please check back soon on Maddie's pages for an epilogue. I have been compiling a list of her benefactors, and wish for everyone to see it. It's not quite ready yet, but will be in a few days. I can't thank everyone enough who has supported and encouraged us through this. It's like all of you were with us every step of the way. It meant so much to both Maddie and myself. Maddie is at peace now, and in a better place. All of us have a little Maddie angel watching over us now, waiting at the Rainbow Bridge.

Kate Kyer

Maddie's story ~ Week One

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