12/24/12: Daily Life Is Finally Wonderful
For Arianna
Arianna had her visit with the Cardiologist
where they performed an Electrocardiogram
(ECG), an Echocardiogram, tested her blood
pressure, and did more blood tests. The
extensive exam revealed that Arianna has
degenerative mitral valve disease which has
resulted in mitral regurgitation. However,
at this point there is no secondary changes
to her heart and no medication is required
which is good news. Her blood pressure was
also slightly elevated. Surprisingly, there
were no heartworms that were visualized in
the pulmonary artery. The doctor said her
heartworm disease was minimal and suggested
that we take a conservative approach to her
treatment which entails continuing monthly
heartworm preventative medication along with
doxycycline. Barring any complications the
Cardiologist and Oncologist want to see
Arianna for a follow-up exam in 6 months. We
are hoping her health remains stable but it
would help to keep her in your thought and
prayers.
In the meantime, Arianna has
been relishing her new happy life. She has
become comfortable being spoiled and has
found her ‘voice”. She has started to bark
at things appropriately like a normal dog
which is nice to see. She also has become a
big “licker”….giving everyone frequent
kisses. There is no shortage of appreciation
from Arianna. She loves everyone and is
loved by everyone in return.
Arianna
is being fostered in the same loving foster
home as little Pinky who is also thriving.
They have become close friends and seem to
be helping each other heal…. physically and
mentally. All of us at NBR can think of no
better gift than to see the transformation
in both of these sweet girls. They are
finally getting the care, love, attention,
and respect that they were once sadly
severely lacking. To quote Arianna and
Pinky’s foster dad…”The best gift for a
boxer is another boxer. The girls like to
cuddle.”The new photos and videos speak
volumes.
Below is the latest foster
report:
“Watching Arianna grow
and develop a personality has been amazing.
She now weighs in at 62 pounds, 20 pounds
more than when she was first rescued. She is
very loving and thrives on attention. I do
not understand how anyone could be mean or
neglectful to this angel face.
She is
beginning to feel at home and believes
everything belongs to her, but does not mind
sharing. She has learned to play with a ball
and a frisbee and has trained each of us to
fetch and throw. She, however, has learned
to retrieve Ed's slippers (from the shoe
rack inside the bedroom closet) and all
stuffed animals.
Our goal is to love,
spoil and make her happy. You will be happy
to know she is well on her way to being the
princess she deserves to be.”
11/19/12: Look at Arianna!!!!!
11/4/12: Arianna Is Happy And Feeling Good
For Now
Arianna
was seen by an Oncology Specialist and the
news we received continues to give us hope
that she will have many good years ahead of
her. The type of rare cancer found in
Arianna’s kidney has a strong probability to
spread to other organs if it is not
encapsulated, but thankfully her tumor WAS
encapsulated. 20 to 25% of dogs can be
“cured” by surgery alone and we are praying
that Arianna will fall into that category.
Chemotherapy or radiation has proven not to
be affective for Renal Tubular
Adenocarcinoma but there are some drugs that
are being used experimentally. The doctor
felt that the best approach at this time is
to monitor Arianna closely and have her
examined every two or three months (blood
work, ultrasound etc).
Arianna’s
cancer diagnosis is complicated by the fact
that she is heartworm positive. The
Oncologist felt that the next course of
action is to return to the hospital in two
weeks to see him and a Cardiology
Specialist. They will perform more tests to
determine how Arianna’s remaining kidney is
functioning and whether there is any
incidence that the cancer has spread. Tests
will include a complete blood panel, an
ultrasound, and radiographs of her chest.
They will also do an echocardiogram of her
heart to assess the extent of her heartworm
disease and determine the best treatment
approach.
We can never predict the
length of a dog’s life but we can dictate
the quality of each dog’s life as long as
they are alive. We may not have answers
about whether or not Arianna’s cancer will
return however, one thing we know for
sure….. for now Arianna is having fun,
feeling good, and is happy happy happy! More
news to follow after her visit with the
Oncologist and Cardiologist.
We are
so thankful to Arianna's foster mom and dad,
Ed and Toni. They are as committed as NBR to
give Arianna every chance to get better.
They are lavishing her with the extra love,
care and affection which have made a
significant difference in the quality of her
life, and which will no doubt have an impact
on her health.
08/20/12: Bad News….Good News….Best News
Arianna’s multiple biopsy reports have come
back from the pathologist and there is bad
news and good news. The mass that engulfed
her kidney was a very aggressive Renal
Tubular Adenocarcinoma. The multiple small
skin tags on her leg and the small
blood-blister-like lesion on one of her
nipples was a low grade slow growing
Cutaneous Hemangiosarcoma . We felt very
discouraged when we heard this news but we
were quickly elated when we learned that the
nodule on her spleen and the masses in her
mammary glands were all benign. The fact
that the malignancies found were fully
excised, and neither of the malignancies
were repeated in the other masses the
surgeon removed, gives hope that the cancers
have not spread.
We have scheduled an
appointment with an Oncology Specialist to
review Arianna’s case since our vet thinks
she will be a candidate for oral
chemotherapy. We are optimistic that Arianna
will have many good years ahead of her.
The best news we have to report is that
Arianna is feeling GREAT and she has started
to act like a typical boxer. Her spirits are
extremely high and she is enjoying
life….obviously something she has not done
in a very long time, if ever. She has a
fantastic appetite and is gaining weight
steadily. She has begun to play with toys
and is thriving on the devoted attention
from her foster family. There is something
extraordinary about Arianna that captures
the hearts of all who meet her. We are
committed to doing everything we can to keep
her healthy and happy.
Please
continue to hold Arianna in your thoughts
and prayers and consider sending a donation
in her name to help with her costly medical
bills. We are always sincerely grateful to
have your support for these remarkable dogs,
and we are all blessed that we have the
opportunity to help them.
08/12/12: Arianna Is Doing Well For Now –
The Waiting Game
So far so good for
Arianna. She is recovering from her major
surgery today and is doing as well as
expected. She tolerated the multiple
procedures with no complications; no doubt
surgery went smoothly due greatly to the
expert skills of the surgeons, their ability
to complete the operation as quickly as
possible, and their meticulous care in
preparation.
Surgery included the
removal of Arianna’s diseased kidney, as
well as a portion of her spleen that was
marred with a small nodule that was
discovered upon the assessment of her other
organs. The doctors also removed 5 pea-sized
masses from her mammary glands, took off the
the small lesion near her nipple, and the
tags off her leg. They were also able to
spay her at the same time. All of the
excised tissue was sent to the lab for
biopsy and the results are due back sometime
next week.
Arianna awoke from
anesthesia quickly and was soon standing and
walking on her own. She is in a bit of pain,
which is to be expected, but she is being
given pain medication to make her
comfortable. She is being monitored in the
hospital with care around the clock, and she
will remain hospitalized for at least 4
days. The doctors have done their part for
now...and now we wait.
08/09/12:
Next 24 Hours Are
Critical For Arianna Life and
Death Surgery….Your Prayers Are Needed We received devastating news from
the doctor after Arianna’s ultrasound today.
They discovered that one of her kidneys was
obliterated by a large mass. They took a
sample of the tissue and sent it to a lab
for biopsy. A rush was put on the sample so
we will hopefully get the official results
by tomorrow. Unfortunately the initial
report classified the mass as a likely renal
cell carcinoma (a rare cancer of the
kidney).
The doctors have decided
that the best chance for Arianna’s survival
is to remove her diseased kidney as quickly
as possible so surgery is scheduled for
tomorrow morning. Anesthesia will be very
risky for Arianna and she will need
everyone’s prayers. We will report more
about her condition as soon as we get any
news.
08/08/12: More Medical Tests For Arianna
Arianna arrived at the animal hospital in
Maryland after a long 9 hour 45 minute relay
road trip driven by a group of fabulous
volunteers. We want to thank Sheri for her
amazing skill putting this transport
together and for monitoring everyone
throughout the day to ensure a smooth trip.
We are ever so grateful to Crystal
for the great care she gave Arianna prior to
the trip which made her strong enough to
travel; Crystal also helped by driving the
first leg of the journey. Arianna rode
shotgun with Crystal, and “she was the
perfect passenger :)”. A huge THANK YOU to
the other drivers, Rhonda, Laurel, Anne,
Jackie & Nat, Beth & Eric, Ana, and Tom &
Cindy. We truly appreciate every single one
of you. Everyone reported that Arianna was a
wonderful traveler. She made a lot of new
friends and continues to win hearts.
Since she arrived, Arianna has received a
battery of tests and four veterinarians have
been conferring to determine the best course
of action for treating her various medical
problems. The doctors have decided that the
most reasonable approach is to treat the
heartworms first and do so as quickly as
possible. They usually use a slower method
to rid a dog of heartworms, but Arianna has
other pressing medical issues that should be
addressed as soon as possible. She has been
taking Doxycycline for one month and has
taken her heartworm medication as they are
prescribed for pre-treating the worms. The
doctors have ordered the special heartworm
treatment medication and are ready to begin
as soon as the medication arrives.
The nodules in Arianna’s breasts have
reduced but there is still one nodule that
is a concern. She also has a purple lesion
near that nipple and has four small
wart-like tags on her rear leg. The plan is
to remove these “bumps” and remove her
mammary glands as a preventative. Poor
Arianna is at high risk for breast cancer
because she was bred so many times and a
mastectomy will eliminate that risk. She
will be spayed at the same time. Surgery is
planned for a week after she recovers from
her heartworm treatment.
Arianna is
looking better and has recovered from her
upper respiratory infection. She is now free
of her intestinal parasites, has gained some
weight, and is now 50 pounds (but still
needs to gain another 10 pounds). There has
been a concern this week because she has
developed another urinary tract infection
and the urine contained blood. They have
scheduled an ultrasound to look at her
bladder and kidneys and to collect a urine
sample directly from her bladder. We are
hoping for the best. Please keep Arianna in
your thoughts and prayers.
07/11/12:
Arianna’s Lack of Care is a Travesty to
Humanity
We responded to an
urgent plea to assist an emaciated boxer in
dire need. This poor girl was used as a
breeding machine and then dumped at a rural
shelter by her people. They told the shelter
that she recently had puppies which they
were keeping. She was in immediate danger of
being killed because she was surrendered and
in very poor condition. A volunteer from a
local Humane Society was begging for help to
save her. We saw her photos…..how could we
say no. We have named her Arianna.
Luckily we had an offer for a temporary
foster home and Arianna was retrieved from
the shelter only a few hours after we heard
about her. She has proven to be
exceptionally sweet and is very good with
other dogs. However, her health is another
story.
We arranged for Arianna to go
to the vet hospital for an initial exam. The
doctor estimates her age somewhere around 6
years. She weighs 42 pounds but should weigh
60 (vet said she was being starved). The
fact that Arianna’s condition came about
while she was in the care of people is a
travesty to humanity.
Unfortunately,
but not unexpected considering the neglect,
Arianna is heartworm positive. She also has
a urinary tract infection, an upper
respiratory infection, a cough, and has a
dark red bloody vaginal discharge. Her
mammary glands are still producing milk and
the doctor confirmed she has very recently
given birth. The doctor also palpated small
nodules in her breasts which we are hoping
will prove to be caused by fluctuating
hormones, however, only time will tell if
this is a major concern.
Arianna has
hair loss on her back which a skin scraping
determined to be bacterial. She also has
some cracked teeth which will need to be
addressed and will need a dental cleaning. A
fecal was negative but she was dewormed with
Drontal Plus just in case since fecal tests
are not always accurate. The doctor
prescribed the antibiotics Doxycycline and
Cephalexin.
We are arranging
transport to our vet in Maryland for Arianna
to receive a more extensive exam and
treatment. For now she is receiving lots of
loving care which she sorely needs. She is
being fed multiple small meals throughout
the day and we are hopeful she will gain
weight quickly. Thank You to Crystal for
caring for Arianna and getting her to
safety.
Arianna will need long-term
medical and personal care and she will need
a permanent foster home. You can help
Arianna by sending a monetary donation or by
offering your in-home care. She is a
wonderful sweet lady who deserves the best
and we are determined to make sure it is
provided. Please help us help Arianna.
Can you donate to help Arianna?
You can send a check directly
to: Northeastern Boxer Rescue
P.O. Box 95 Sunderland MA 01375. or use PayPal
makes it easy and secure to send
payments online via credit card.
