Skin Infections – WestieMed

Journey

March 1, 2020February 26, 2021 by westiemed in Stories

March 2020

My beloved 14-year-old Westie Baxter passed on Christmas Eve, 2019. He was my first Westie and he fought a long hard battle with Westie Lung Disease. It was a devastating loss for me. Baxter was the last of my three dogs. Lexie was a Corgi and my first, then along came Wiley a mixed breed, and finally, Baxter came into my life. Both Lexie and Wiley passed away in 2016 leaving just Baxter and myself and we bonded very closely for the next 4 years. Christmas was very hard and to wake up without my faithful friend Baxter was so hard to get through. It was the first time in 15 years I didn’t have dogs around me and it was an extremely empty feeling. Christmas came and went and each day that passed was harder and harder without Baxter. I determined that although each person is different in how much time they need to process and accept a loss, I determined for me personally I needed a dog sooner rather than later and so many are in need of help.

I learned from my good friend Michele that a little white Westie was found in Kansas, wondering alone and out in the middle of nowhere near an Indian Reservation. He was in bad shape and covered in yeast and mange. He we very underweight. The person who found him brought him to the nearest Animal shelter many miles away. He underwent emergency evaluation and care. They helped him get stabilized and attempted to locate his owners. They even advertised that he had been found. No one claimed him. Many shelters can only give dogs so much time before they must make room others. Luckily, the shelter knew a true a Westie Warrior based in Kansas named Penny Reames of Northern New England Westie Rescue. They called her and told her about this amazing Westie that was found. Penny went directly there and took one look at him and knew she had to take him to her rescue which helps Westies from Kansas area out of bad situations like auctions and puppy mills then transports them to New England for permanent homes. Michele and Penney are friends and through them I was presented with the opportunity to have an amazing Westie that was named Journey! Penny named him that as no one knew what this little dog’s actual journey was. He was feisty like my Lexie. Found wondering covered in mange, like my Wiley, and he had a sweet loving spark in his eyes like my Baxter. After seeing Journey’s picture, I knew I had to have him and to help him. I felt very good vibes and signs from all of my three dogs that Journey should be mine.

Journey came into my life on February 10, 2020 and I picked him up in New Hampshire after his transport from Kansas. I entered the rescue with Michele with me and Journey ran right past her and everyone else and jumped right into my arms and couldn’t get enough of me! Everyone was shocked as it was like our destiny was sealed. When Journey entered my house it felt like my 3 dogs had a divine conversation with him prior to his arrival. He knew where everything was, jumped right up on the sofa with a toy and made himself right at home as if he had been living with me all along. He was so well mannered and housebroken but just a little rough around the edges in his play which was a bit rough. He quickly picked up on what was acceptable and not. Prior to Journey’s arrival I purchased probiotics and immunity boosters and omega 3 oils to help work on his skin and coat. I immediately brought him to my veterinarian for evaluation and skin scrap, blood work and special shampoos. His ears had yeast in them as well and needed to have a good teeth cleaning with a few extractions. It was determined after testing that he also suffers from KCS as his eyes were not producing tears.

Today Journey is showing much improvement with dips twice a week as his hair is starting to grow in. His eyes are now producing tears but he will need lifelong medication to help with that. He loves to go on hikes and long walks and is a very playful and happy little guy. So thankful to Northern New England Westie Rescue for saving Journey and bring him into my life. I am beyond grateful to WestieMed for their generous help towards the much needed care that Journey needed and will continue to need. We thank all the great people at WestieMed for their dedication, love and support for this amazing breed.

Dan

Update February 22, 2021:

I appreciate this group so much but it’s been a long crazy year. Journey just celebrated his 5th birthday , well I am calling him 5 no one really knows his age but most are in agreement 4-6 range. He is doing for the most part really well. I do have him now at a dermatologist and we have created an immunotherapy allergy protocol for him which he just started. It’s pretty expensive but I am determined to do my best for him. I did allergy blood testing and he is allergic to 13 items common to New England. The immunotherapy should help but can take awhile to start to see improvement. He is very itchy at times. Other than that he is doing well, full of Westie energy and happy. I will enclose a few pics. In July I took another rescue named Willy, he a 14 year old Westie with not much hair, they asked if I would give him a good retirement and since no one wanted him , I couldn’t say no, he is a really great Westie just like Journey. I hope all is well at WestieMed and thank you all so much for what you do. I will keep you posted on Journey’s progress.

Photo is from his Birthday, which was also the first day he came to me a year ago!

Take Care,

Dan

Kiki

September 1, 2018December 23, 2020 by westiemed in Stories

Kiki is a Westie female about 5 years old. She came from an East Bay (California) shelter on July 9, 2018, with a terrible skin condition and two diagnosed mammary tumors. She was not spayed and appeared to have had multiple litters of puppies. The shelter believed she was a breeding dog. She weighed in at a skinny sixteen pounds. She was picked up as a stray.

Kiki was placed in a foster home and baths were immediately started along with a vet appointment to get medications. Kiki responded to her new environment immediately with medication, diet, baths, lots of love and toys.

A consult was arranged to evaluate her tumors and a suspicious cyst on her side that appeared to be a sarcoma. Surgery was scheduled for August 2, 2018, in an effort to get her skin condition under better control before surgery. Her skin infection posed a risk of infection. Her surgery was fairly successful per her oncologist. She recovered quickly and without any infections but Kiki’s oncologist did not feel the margins were sufficient on the cyst (sarcoma) and follow-up treatment was needed.

After evaluation of the treatment options, it was decided the best option for Kiki and her long-term survival was a second surgery called a ‘scar revision’ on the sarcoma to get an adequate margin although it could do some muscle damage. The surgeon felt she would bounce back from the second surgery quickly. There is very little medical evidence to support radiation in the treatment of mammary tumors in dogs. A second opinion was sought from another oncologist who reviewed Kiki’s medical records. He also felt the scar revision surgery was Kiki’s best option.

A scar revision surgery was performed on August 30, 2018. The oncologist felt the news was excellent on the second surgery and there was “complete excision” and “no further treatment is needed for “the cancer”.

Barbara Mordy
Westie Rescue and Placement (WRAP)

Update July 2019

Kiki was adopted on October 4, 2018. Unfortunately, her cancer returned and her adopters paid for two additional surgeries before she passed away on June 3, 2019. Here is her obituary:

Kiki came to WRAP on July 9, 2018. She was found on the streets of an East Bay city in very rough shape. She had terrible skin issues and had obviously been used for breeding. She had two large mammary tumors- which we knew were probably cancer. Barbara did not have a foster home for her, but she was definitely a Westie, so my husband and I agreed to foster her. Kiki came into our home silent and depressed. Her first surgery was 2 weeks later. She had mammary cancer and a sarcoma. Her recovery went well and with each day we could see her spirit get brighter.

This spirit was simply amazing and we adopted her. She loved to play with toys; she always wanted to be on our lap….we even built a little box for her to get on the sofa herself.

Kiki was a godsend for us. She reminded us how we can take our health for granted. She was so happy each day, playing with toys and our other two Westies. My husband fell in love with Kiki, and they had a special bond. He got on the floor to play with her most mornings, and Kiki would bark at him when he did not. Kiki loved sitting on my husband’s lap when he read the paper in the morning. It was their routine.

She became the happiest little Westie we had ever seen, and we adored her!

Kiki made me laugh….I mean really laugh every day! Kiki had plenty of Westitude and oh, how she loved to boss me around! Especially when it was time to eat! I have many videos of her and I am so thankful for them.

We had to say goodbye to Kiki on June 3, 2019. We spent the morning holding Kiki, taking turns doing so. Even to the end, she was loving. She had stopped eating, though, and we know she was in pain. We had to let her go, but we miss her to this day. She died in my arms, resting on my shoulder. Eleven months with Kiki was not enough time. Eleven years would not have been enough time. That BITCH cancer took another sweet life. We have had a lot of Westies. They all ARE and WERE special and wonderful, but there was something extra special about Kiki. She was one of a kind. She reminded us to stay in the moment and to take each day as precious.

I know in time I will laugh again. And yes, we will foster again after our hearts have time to heal. Don’t be afraid to foster. You might get lucky enough to find a Kiki.

Sir Travis

March 1, 2018December 23, 2020 by westiemed in Stories

My husband and I knew that we wanted to get a dog as soon as we had a house. So, in September of 2017, after we’d settled into our home, we began searching for our furbaby. Our search took us to a high-traffic, high-kill shelter in Newark, NJ. We were immediately taken in by a little white face. His name, according to the cage, was Travis, and when we took him outside he was calm, gentle, and a great walker on the leash. We knew he was the one. We had to wait until his stray hold was up, but when it was, we went back immediately and filled out the paperwork and waited for them to have him neutered. We added “Sir” to his name because we knew we were going to treat him like nobility!

We brought Sir Travis home that Friday night. He had been in the shelter all week awaiting his neutering, but he kept being rescheduled, and we couldn’t let him languish there any longer. He was curious about his new surroundings, but never seemed nervous or scared. He took to my husband immediately, giving him kisses and following him around. However, we knew something was wrong when he kept shaking his head. We knew we had to take him to the vet in the morning.

Saturday was awful. After a mix-up at a local vet’s office, we wound up at a clinic with a crowded waiting room and a long wait. A few hours after arriving, we got the awful news: not only was he older than we’d been told, but his ears had large growths, one of his testicles was enlarged due to a tumor, and his skin was infected. We were also told he was deaf. This particular veterinarian advised us to bring him back to the shelter and to reconsider if we wanted to invest so much money in an older dog.

We went home absolutely devastated. Even though we’d only had him for a day, we were in love, and our sweet little dog with so much love and gratitude deserved so much more. We resolved to do whatever we could to help him and to seek a second opinion, and whatever the outcome, we were going to show him as much love as we could.

The veterinarian we saw on Monday confirmed the initial diagnosis: he was likely closer to ten years old, and indeed his ears, testicles and skin were in bad shape. However, this vet saw his potential. We started a treatment plan to tackle his immediate problems: multiple ear infections (bacterial, fungal, and yeast), a fungal skin infection, and a very sensitive stomach. The goal was to get him strong enough for surgery to take care of his larger issues.

September was a very challenging month, with many setbacks. Travis wound up with stomach infections, likely untreated from the shelter, resulting in diarrhea and frequent vomiting. At one point, he needed to be hospitalized overnight because he couldn’t keep anything down. We feared for the worst, but he bounced back. His ear infections also proved difficult to treat, and he needed multiple medications to get rid of them. Slowly, though, he gained some weight, grew back his fur, and showed signs of overall improvement. He settled into our home seamlessly, quickly claiming his spot on the couch! Even the vet was surprised by how well he was doing with the treatment. He underwent surgery in early October to be neutered and to remove the largest growths in his ears and the excess skin around his testicular tumor. He made it through with flying colors.

In the months since his surgery, Sir Travis has continued to thrive. His fur is thick and full now, and his stomach issues have resolved, perhaps in part due to no longer being in constant pain and discomfort. We still have to flush his ears each week to keep recurring infections at bay, and he is still almost completely deaf. But looking at him now, you’d never know what he’s has been through. Through it all, he’s been the sweetest, gentlest soul. Even with the constant medical procedures, he’s never shown anything but love, trust, and infinite patience. We’ve learned so much from him, and are looking forward to a lot more time with him!

As a pair of teachers, taking on a surprise special needs dog has been financially daunting for us, but we are incredibly grateful to everyone at WestieMed for helping us with the costs associated with Travis’ treatment and surgery! Your generous grant will help us continue to manage his care and give him the best life we possibly can.

Kristi Delfino

Addie

January 1, 2018December 23, 2020 by westiemed in Stories

Addie’s rescue story began in April 2016 near Memphis, TN. Her former owner finally did the right thing and surrendered Addie to Westie Rescue, Tennessee.

Addie was a very malnourished 11 lbs and almost hairless with lesions all over her skin. She had been living in horrible conditions for the entirety of her first six years of life. Having been fed table scraps with little to no outside access and no clean indoor space. Her foster mom tells us that Addie had almost no muscle mass and could not even jump onto the couch. She was afraid of not getting another meal. It took endless love and patience from her foster family for eighteen months before they even considered that she might be ready for adoption.

That’s when we discovered her on Petfinder.com fell right in love! We have a fourteen and half year old Scottie who was missing his former Westie friend, Fiona (a prior WestieMed grantee) who passed in July 2017. Addie’s foster mom Sandy brought her over to our house. Our Scottie and Addie got along right away and Addie stole our hearts.

On our first visit to the doctor with Addie in November, we were advised that she had skin and ear infections. We are still treating those. We’ve sent out for cultures on both to be able to treat those in a more targeted fashion. We tested for low Thyroid, and Addison’s which came back negative, but with very high chances of Cushing’s. We’re still waiting for those results.

We know she may not grow back much, if any, of her hair. We just want to make sure she gets into a good place where her skin and ears are no longer infected and causing her pain.

She’s such a Westie girl! She loves to chase and dig after anything in her yard. She has a blast jumping onto the boulders in our backyard to get a better view of said varmints and she loves to torture her brother Jack every chance she can!

Thanks to all involved in her rescue and for those whose support today allow us to get her the care she deserves.

The first picture of Addie was taken the day she was surrendered. The photo of her with muddy paws was taken last Sunday.

Wendy Eubank

Update March 1, 2018

Addie is doing well. She does have Cushings, we are beginning treatment for that as well as getting her started on allergy drops.

We look forward to being able to give back to WestieMed.

Best Wishes,
Wendy and Lonnie Eubank

Update July 9, 2018

Firstly, we want to thank you all again for giving us a big help in Addie’s continued medical treatment.

Months ago, Addie’s skin was dry, blotchy, flaky, crusty, etc. and it caused her to do a lot of scratching and chewing. With the combination of medicines, medicated baths, and diet, within the last month, her exposed skin has finally become soft and smooth, and she only has a couple of hot spots on her front legs. It’s a huge improvement! We know that she will most likely never grow hair back, but that’s okay with us. We think she’s adorable, and as long as she’s comfortable and happy, we’re happy. Plus, it’s an excuse to keep her covered in plaid in cooler weather! For the summer she has on a UPF t-shirt so she won’t get burned.

Addie was diagnosed with Cushing’s, for this, she is on Vetoryl once daily. She has been ricocheting from skin infections to ear infections, but they seem to be subsiding. She takes two Apoquel a day, and one Atopica once daily. She went through blood allergy testing (her skin could not handle the skin testing) at Blue Pearl Veterinary Specialists and is on a customized a serum twice a day. She’s on a wheat gluten-free diet and we add salmon oil to her food. She gets weekly double-medicated-shampoo baths. And recently, it was determined that she has dry eye, so she receives two eye drops twice daily.

She lets none of the above slow her down! She is a 200% Westie girl – chasing squirrels and rabbits daily. This weekend she discovered frogs! As she starts to feel better the more open she becomes to playing with her new brother, four yr old Scottie Logan. We hope to keep her conditions under control and hopefully, more improvements will come with that.

Wendy & Lonnie Eubank

JuJu

December 1, 2017December 23, 2020 by westiemed in Stories

In September I was web surfing and found the Rescue Westies of Missouri site. I filled out an application of interest, since a month before we had lost our previous Westie “Cutty” to cancer, and were missing our little boy. My wife and I had decided we would never have another dog because it was so painful to lose them. Then I received an immediate response that our application was received, but there were not dogs available. I had mentioned in the application we had spent thousands on our precious little boy, because of a congenital heart condition, and we were not ready to handle another Westie with significant issues. I received a Facebook post of an abused dog that found a forever home, with the caption, “you can’t change the world, but you can change the world for someone”.

Approximately ten minutes after being told there were no dogs available, we received the first picture of JuJu in the cage, sadly we were to find out that she was significantly better in that picture, then when she was found. My wife and I looked at her, and after we quit crying at the sad shape she was in, we called and talked to Sue Hon about this rescue. The hope was she would get better, may grow hair, but was deaf, and there was no one interested in her.

We told her it would be a week before we could drive across Missouri to see her. We set up a time and one week later got to meet JuJu. The rest is history, she was ours, and we promised to change her world, she cuddled up to us and seemed to say, OK let’s go home.

We have had our little girl for two months, the second picture shows her love to watch her iPad, and relax on the porch.

She has had multiple vet visits, medications, and special food. She was referred to a Dermatologist after there was minimal improvement, on a closer exam, and, skin, tissue, and hair analysis, a new care plan was developed.

It will be a long road for her, at least a year of medications, three times a week shots, special shampoo baths, and a strict special food diet. BUT the good news is she is showing some improvement, all open areas of skin are closed and healed, she seems happy with us, and is completely comfortable taking over the entire king-sized bed we sleep in.

Our lives are better because she is in it, our first Christmas will be special. Life is what happens after we make our plans, next year will she have hair, be beautiful, and forget what had happened to her, I don’t know the future but she knows we are hers and we love her.

David

Update June 2018

It is good to hear from you, and that you remember our little girl JuJu. It has been a long struggle with some successes, since October when we adopted her. I think the best way to say it is, two steps forward and one step backward. She continues to get significant swelling in her feet, she has one spot on each foot and the base of her tail that she will attack and still chew and lick raw. She continues to get recurring ear infections.

Now the good news, she is down to just weekly allergy shots, they had hoped it would be only every other week, or be done with shots by now. They are thinking she will never be able to stop them. We are transitioning her into nonprescription food, god love her she is so spoiled with daily deli-sliced meat and scrambled eggs, we joke that when it is time to start, the hair/coat diet she will turn her nose up at it. The positive side is that digestive wise she tolerates the change. All her skin cultures are returning negative, that means all the yeast, staph, MRSA infections are gone, and all her skin is intact with no open areas. Her ear infections are less frequent and she actually had periods when both ears are clear and healthy.

The Dermatologist and the two vets that care for her, feel that her allergies are what continues to be the underlying problem, and it may a full year of the continued treatment and shots before it is completely under control.

Her hair has filled out well on top and neck, and portions of each leg and feet have filled out some, but her belly remains pretty bald, with little fuzz developing, they are not sure due to the skin damage if she will ever get hair in those areas. We have the most incredible dog groomer that hand trims her, to make her look as much like a Westie as possible.

Being deaf, she can’t hear when we tell her how much we love her, but she does allow us on our king-sized bed at night and she has learned to share our pillows with us. She loves to go on walks, has developed a friendship with a neighbor Westie (Phoebe) and a Corgi (Wally). She finally has started to smile from time to time and not have such a sad look as she did for so long. She will let you hug and hold her for hours on end if she has finished her napping. When we take care of the grandkids when they are ill she always sits by them and watches over them the whole time they are here.

The Dermatologist thanks us for being so diligent with her. She claims to be putting her daughter through college on our fees, always happy to support higher education. We are blessed that all the people working with her are as caring and concerned for her as we are. Truly we had hoped she would be this beautiful healthy white Westie by now, but that dream is still some time in the future.

JuJu

December 1, 2017February 7, 2020 by westiemed in Stories

In September I was web surfing and found the Rescue Westies of Missouri site. I filled out an application of interest, since a month before we had lost our previous Westie “Cutty” to cancer, and were missing our little boy. My wife and I had decided we would never have another dog because it was so painful to lose them. Then I received an immediate response that our application was received, but there were not dogs available. I had mentioned in the application we had spent thousands on our precious little boy, because of a congenital heart condition, and we were not ready to handle another Westie with significant issues. I received a Facebook post of an abused dog that found a forever home, with the caption, “you can’t change the world, but you can change the world for someone”.

Approximately ten minutes after being told there were no dogs available, we received the first picture of JuJu in the cage, sadly we were to find out that she was significantly better in that picture, then when she was found. My wife and I looked at her, and after we quit crying at the sad shape she was in, we called and talked to Sue Hon about this rescue. The hope was she would get better, may grow hair, but was deaf, and there was no one interested in her.

We told her it would be a week before we could drive across Missouri to see her. We set up a time and one week later got to meet JuJu. The rest is history, she was ours, and we promised to change her world, she cuddled up to us and seemed to say, OK let’s go home.

We have had our little girl for two months, the second picture shows her love to watch her iPad, and relax on the porch.

She has had multiple vet visits, medications, and special food. She was referred to a Dermatologist after there was minimal improvement, on a closer exam, and, skin, tissue, and hair analysis, a new care plan was developed.

It will be a long road for her, at least a year of medications, three times a week shots, special shampoo baths, and a strict special food diet. BUT the good news is she is showing some improvement, all open areas of skin are closed and healed, she seems happy with us, and is completely comfortable taking over the entire king-sized bed we sleep in.

Our lives are better because she is in it, our first Christmas will be special. Life is what happens after we make our plans, next year will she have hair, be beautiful, and forget what had happened to her, I don’t know the future but she knows we are hers and we love her.

David

Update June 2018

It is good to hear from you, and that you remember our little girl JuJu. It has been a long struggle with some successes, since October when we adopted her. I think the best way to say it is, two steps forward and one step backward. She continues to get significant swelling in her feet, she has one spot on each foot and the base of her tail that she will attack and still chew and lick raw. She continues to get recurring ear infections.

Now the good news, she is down to just weekly allergy shots, they had hoped it would be only every other week, or be done with shots by now. They are thinking she will never be able to stop them. We are transitioning her into nonprescription food, god love her she is so spoiled with daily deli-sliced meat and scrambled eggs, we joke that when it is time to start, the hair/coat diet she will turn her nose up at it. The positive side is that digestive wise she tolerates the change. All her skin cultures are returning negative, which means all the yeast, staph, MRSA infections are gone, and all her skin is intact with no open areas. Her ear infections are less frequent and she actually had periods when both ears are clear and healthy.

The Dermatologist and the two vets that care for her, feel that her allergies are what continues to be the underlying problem, and it may a full year of the continued treatment and shots before it is completely under control.

Her hair has filled out well on top and neck, and portions of each leg and feet have filled out some, but her belly remains pretty bald, with little fuzz developing, they are not sure due to the skin damage if she will ever get hair in those areas. We have the most incredible dog groomer that hand trims her, to make her look as much like a Westie as possible.

Being deaf, she can’t hear when we tell her how much we love her, but she does allow us on our king-sized bed at night and she has learned to share our pillows with us. She loves to go on walks, has developed a friendship with a neighbor Westie (Phoebe) and a Corgi (Wally). She finally has started to smile from time to time and not have such a sad look as she did for so long. She will let you hug and hold her for hours on end if she has finished her napping. When we take care of the grandkids when they are ill she always sits by them and watches over them the whole time they are here.

The Dermatologist thanks us for being so diligent with her. She claims to be putting her daughter through college on our fees, always happy to support higher education. We are blessed that all the people working with her are as caring and concerned for her as we are. Truly we had hoped she would be this beautiful healthy white Westie by now, but that dream is still some time in the future.

Charlie Bear

October 1, 2017December 23, 2020 by westiemed in Stories

Charlie Bear was found wandering the streets of Denton in Manchester. He had been wandering a while and was hard to catch, because of his fear of humans. The lovely lady that found him couldn’t keep him as she had an elderly and poorly dog herself so he was taken by the dog wardens to Manchester Dogs Home. A worker there soon realized he was a West Highland Terrier with lots of problems. She knew he would struggle in the kennel’s environment as it is very stressful and not the right place for a scared little dog! She contacted a breed-specific rescue on Facebook and I was asked if I wouldn’t mind going and collecting him, fostering him with the view of getting him well and re-homed when the time was right.

When I collected him, I won’t lie he smelled very bad! His fur around his back end was completely matted to his skin with urine and feces. In fact, his fur was matted all over his little body, his skin was terrible underneath and he needed to be completely shaved so we could treat his skin. His ears were completely blocked with infection, fur, and general dirt from being left for so long. He more worryingly had a problem with his left eye, it appeared to be much smaller, very angry looking and had shrunk back into his eye socket. He also had a nasty cough. He was in such a state I rushed him straight to my Vet for a complete assessment.

Charlie Bear had numerous and repeated tests. He was anesthetized and sent for several x-rays, they actually found he had a fracture of his skull and left eye socket! He had suffered a blunt force trauma to the head/face and this had caused his left eye to die. I was advised he would be better off having his eye removed as it was causing him constant pain. A set price was arranged with the rescue group and Charlie Bear had lots attended to while he was asleep. He had his eye removed, both ears completely cleaned, he was castrated, he also had another x-ray to rule out Westie Lung Disease because of his coughing. He doesn’t have WLD thank goodness! Unfortunately Charlie Bear continued to show signs of being unwell, and the rescue decided that his chances of being re-homed were unlikely, I was at this point asked to become his forever foster Mummy. I jumped at the chance to help this little boy flourish as much as he could.

Charlie Bear has sadly developed Epilepsy, his seizures are very distressing to watch, but I do my best to comfort him. They have in recent weeks become worse in severity and length. On a recent Vet visit I was asked again if they could refer him for an MRI scan to try and find a cause, the Vet at the time suspected a brain tumor, which has scared me no end!

I have had to put the Vets off previously because sadly the original rescue that rescued Charlie Bear has now abandoned him and withdrawn his funding. I am now part of a small fundraising group whose main priority is Charlie Bear but we are only very small and cannot cover the whole cost on our own. With WestieMed’s help we will now be able to get Charlie Bear his MRI scan and know what, if anything, we are fighting. Thank you doesn’t seem enough.

Emma Dean

Update July 9, 2018

I had managed to save enough to take Charlie Bear and his brother on a little holiday to the beach which they loved.

Charlie Bear has had his MRI and spinal tap tests, they thankfully showed no tumor or brain abnormalities. They looked at his spinal fluid and that showed no signs of infection or foreign bodies. The specialist diagnosed Idiopathic Epilepsy but isn’t completely convinced because he doesn’t have a typical seizure pattern or reaction.

He was started on Epiphen tablets but we’ve had to increase these three times now as he’s gone on to develop cluster seizures on top of single seizures. His liver isn’t liking the medication so that is reacting and showing signs of stress. I started him on Milk Thistle hoping it will help but sadly it isn’t. His latest increase has caused major skin problems so we are waiting on a phone call from his Vet, he has developed hive-like spots and is almost ripping his fur out. Despite all this, his personality shines through.

He learned to play but only with certain toys when he wants. He is very loving but also very cheeky! He decided to help himself to the sausages earlier because the door had been left open slightly, but I wouldn’t have him any other way.

Thank you again for the help in getting his tests, without your amazingly kind generosity I’d be struggling to get him diagnosed.

Kind Regards.

Emma Dean (Mummy Bear)

Kramer

September 1, 2017December 23, 2020 by westiemed in Stories

Kramer has had skin problems for as long as he can remember and his family, who loved him very much, contacted Westie & Scottie Rescue Houston for ideas to help him feel better. We spoke with them about diet and medical care. They adjusted his diet and took him to specialists who prescribed medicated baths and medications. All the while, Kramer’s family was also dealing with other family members’ medical issues and, when it became too much for them, asked that WSRH take him in.

Kramer was a happy boy despite his obvious misery so we rolled up our sleeves to try to get him feeling better. Our vets at Bear Branch Animal Hospital assessed him and helped form our initial course of treatment which included continuing restricting his diet and his anti-fungal medication, antibiotics, prednisone, and medicated baths. Although skin scrapings did not show any mites, the blackness around his eyes, ears, and sides made us suspect he might have demodectic mange so we added Advantage Multi to his regimen and, when he started to improve, we started to wean him from his medications. Kramer was able to stay off prednisone long enough to get a much-needed dental but his skin started getting worse again so the vet recommended putting him back on a short course to try to get through the issues.

Over the next months, we continued Kramer’s regimen of antimicrobial and anti=fungal baths along with medications and restricted diet and he seemed to improve and then he would suddenly get worse. We tested him for thyroid conditions, which showed normal, but biopsies of his skin showed the presence of resistant staph infection, requiring specific antibiotic treatment. Following a three month course of the antibiotic determined to combat this bacterial infection, tests showed it had cleared and another resistant bacteria presented, requiring a different antibiotic. We also had allergy tests done to determine if there were any environmental causes, but he only showed sensitivity to Black Willow trees and cat dander, neither of which are in his immediate environment.

We have considered Kramer to be like an onion, peeling one layer of issues after another, as we continue to treat fungal and bacterial infections. We are grateful to WestieMed for assisting with the process to rule out some issues and, hopefully, get a handle on what is needed to get and keep Kramer healthy. We look forward to his finding a forever home where he can live happily and healthily ever after.

Maggie Escriva
Westie & Scottie Rescue Houston

Update July 11, 2018

Kramer turned six yesterday so it seemed a good time for another update. As you know, he found his furever home with a longtime Westie rescue volunteer who will continue his regimen and keep him feeling good.

Kramer’s mom works from home and says he is her shadow, always nearby watching what she’s doing.

We are grateful to WestieMed for the assistance that enabled us to continue testing and treating Kramer until we could get through the itch. He has a good life ahead of him now that all the infections are gone.

Kind regards,

Maggie
Volunteer, Intake Coordinator, WSRH

Nemo

May 1, 2017December 24, 2020 by westiemed in Stories

Nemo came to us in terrible shape. He was found as a stray and picked up by animal control. The shelter contacted the owner and his owner said they gave him to another family member. When they were contacted, they stated they did not want him anymore. Nemo was found over 100 miles from his “home”. It was revealed that Nemo was left in a cage for most of his existence. As a result, Nemo had fourteen broken and fractured teeth from trying to chew his way out. This is no way to live!! The shelter asked us if we would be willing to take him on as his skin was a horrid mess, his eyes were infected and so were his ears and were coming down with kennel cough. He was in such bad shape that the shelter thought this two-four year old was a senior! For several weeks, we worked on his skin with medicated soft brush baths and medication. Just recently, we had a complete dental done on Nemo and our vet said that based on the lack of calculus and tarter, Nemo is believed to be around two to for years old at the most. Well, this makes absolute sense because fostering Nemo is like fostering a puppy!! Nemo has been with us for several weeks and already has shown vast improvement. His skin is healing beautifully with the help of medication which he is no longer taking and medicated baths twice a week. His coat is getting thicker by the day and his skin issues were caused simply by neglect. Tender loving care, nutritious meals and a routine he can count on is all he asks for.

Nemo is the sweetest boy around! He gets along with all his foster and resident siblings and does his best to get someone to play with him. He keeps himself entertained by laying on his back, tossing toys up in the air and he loves to eat! He loves the dog park and sleeps soundly in his crate at night and gets run of the house during the day. Nemo will be ready for his very own home soon but the cost to get him this far has been substantial. It can take a lot of money to reverse all the neglect caused by others, but thanks to WestieMed, Nemo has received everything he needs to start a brand new life.

Karen and Kay (Westie Rescue of Orange County & Beyond)

Update January 29, 2018

Our sweet Nemo was adopted by Paul in May. He looks absolutely stunning and is doing extremely well.

His new dad reports that he loves car rides in his new car seat, walks perfectly on a leash, and he completed obedience school with flying colors. Nemo loves to throw his toys in the air with his nose and catch them without a worry in the world.

Years of neglect came with expensive veterinary bills and we couldn’t have done it without you.

Thank you WestieMed for all your help with Nemo!

Karen Simondet
Westie Rescue of OC & Beyond

Wally

January 1, 2017December 24, 2020 by westiemed in Stories

On November 29, 2016, we received a call from a woman who stated that her daughter has a Westie that she wants to euthanize due to his skin problems. She sent pictures of the dog and the neglect was so severe that we asked her to bring him to us the very next day. Wally arrived in terrible shape. He was grossly underweight and every bone in his body protruded through. For a dog his size, he should be about eighteen pounds. His eyes were covered in discharge and he screamed when his ears were touched. He smelled so badly and it was quite obvious this dog had never been bathed. By the time we got home, his car seat was covered in yeasty crust.

Wally was taken to our vet the next day to treat his ears and eyes, blood work and a skin scraping to rule out mites. His ears were full of bacteria, rods, and cocci. His dental was put off for a while so he had a chance to heal and gain some strength. Yesterday, his dental was done and he was found to have many fractured teeth and the roots were rotted and some parts missing.

On top of being incredibly sweet, this little guy is a trooper! He is so appreciative of his baths and absolutely loved getting all the muck scrubbed off. He is looking better and better every day. Someone is going to get an amazing dog! Wally’s care has been costly! Unfortunately, such neglect requires extensive medical care.

Karen Simondet and Kay DeLoach
Westie Rescue of Orange County & Beyond

Update January 29, 2018

It took all of two months to get Wally back to his normal self after such a long period of neglect.

In January, Wally was adopted and joined a family with two other Westies. Wally is on the right.

Though he still has an occasional skin flareup, his Mom and Dad stay on top of his care and as such, he has grown a beautiful full coat.

Thank you WestieMed for sponsoring Wally!

Karen Simondet
Westie Rescue of OC & Beyond