July 2003:
My Little Old Man
I met Alex one day driving down the road. I stopped at a stop sign and as I looked to my right this skinny virtually hairless dog caught my eye. He had a collar and was walking rather slowly. I stopped my car hoping to help the little guy home. As I approached this poor little dog I noticed he had no tags. He couldn’t hear too well because he was older and had severe ear infections. His eyes were infected, his nails were about and an inch long and he smelled really bad. I felt so bad for him how could anyone neglect this innocent creature. I brought him to a couple of animal hospitals in the area to see maybe if they knew him. They did not. I was also told by my vet he was anywhere between ten to fifteen years old. I was than asked if I wanted to keep him I should run a battery of test. My heart sank. I knew I could not take him home. I already had two Wheaten Terriers, Jake and Bailey, a nine-month-old baby and my cocker spaniel, Joshua passed away one year ago. I knew where I had to go next, the dreaded animal shelter. I couldnt bear to see him go. I cried and cried. This nice woman who ran the shelter saw I was upset. She told me she knew someone who could help place “Alex” in a home. I felted a sense of relief because I knew he would not be adopted from the shelter because of how he looked, smelt and his age. This woman called this angel and she said she would pick her up. I left my number for this kind individual and asked if she would call me so I could find out Alexs future (In the meantime I hung lost posters in the three surrounding towns where I lived to see if I could find the owner. Of course nobody called. I thought that was probably the best thing since they neglected this poor little animal).
A few days later I received a call from Karen and she said she had someone to adopt him. I felt good but, at the same time sad because I had developed a bond with the little guy. I told Karen if anything fell through to please call me and I would try and take him but the chances were slim. Well Karen called back and told me the woman could not adopt Alex. She told me she was going to have to bring him back to the shelter at the end of the week and have him destroyed. She couldnt keep him she already had too many animals.
I WOULD NOT let this poor dog be destroyed. I knew I had many medical bills ahead of me. Alex was put on eye drops for his eye infection, Baytril for his respiratory infection (he had massive amounts of mucous draining from his nose and eyes. He had so much mucous that one of his nostrils was closed shut many days), steroids, ear drops, antihistamine and ketoconazole. He was diagnosed with Malassezia along with a host of other problems.
I have had Alex now for about one month and he has turned around so much. He has become a member of my family. At first because he apparently was sleeping in the streets where he was always disturbed he probably never had a good sleep. Whenever he would sleep he would jump, startled if approached. Now he sleeps like a baby. He initially could barely walk. He still has some problems but he runs and plays with his toys and has a great appetite. He no longer has mucous discharge. He is very sweet dog everyone loves him.
I wanted to extend my thanks to Westie Med for helping with Alex’s medical bills. I am sure Alex appreciates it as well. I am glad I was able to help my little old man. Thank you again.
Sincerely, Connie P. Blue Point, NY
Alex has a skin condition called Malassezia (yeast infection of the skin). This condition is becoming more and more prevalent among Westies. Westie Rescuers are seeing cases of this all over the country. This condition is very treatable…if treated properly. To help other Westie owners, we are making information about this condition available on our web site. You can read about it here: Malassezia.