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I wrestled with this article
for a while. Happily, SND has helped A LOT of DOBES since the
last newsletter was published. I considered doing a story
highlighting some of the Dobies, but couldn’t bring myself to
eliminate anyone. Each dog is special and has a very special
story. After all, they are why we are here. Please allow me
to introduce you to our very special Dobes. ~ed.
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Amber
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Amber and her pups
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Amber was found in a field in Louisiana with her 12 newborn puppies. She was
brought to SND’s attention by Kimberly Capella-Gowland of Gulf Coast Doberman
Rescue. The lovely 4 – 5 year old fawn mother went to Kim’s house on December 23,
2002.
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Amber and pups were immediately taken to the vet for the usual exam
and heartworm test. Amber tested positive for heartworms. Dr. Teresa
Gernon commented on the fact that Amber’s discharge was still bright red,
and instructed Kim to keep an eye on her after prescribing an antibiotic.
Kim continued to monitor her, and on Christmas Day in the midst of all the
family festivities, Kim noticed that Amber was not being herself. She
wouldn’t eat and her gums were as white as a sheet. Her bedding was soaked
with blood. After a desperate search to find a vet on Christmas Day, Dr.
Scott Gernon agreed to meet Kim at SSAH. After the four hour trip to Baton
Rouge Amber’s cell volume was only 10% and she was continuing to hemorrhage.
She was given a whole blood transfusion, which raised her cell volume to 20%,
but by the next morning, Amber was hemorrhaging again. After numerous
transfusions, she was diagnosed with Von Wildebrands’s Diease, a disease
similar to hemophelia in humans.
Throughout her ordeal, Amber continued to be an excellent mom to her puppies.
Amber continued to improve, and her puppies were weaned and placed in foster
homes, and soon afterward adopted. Amber has recovered and was adopted in
June, 2003.
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Brady
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Brady
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Gayle Hall of CARA Dobe Doberman Rescue in Charleston, SC
brought Brady to SND's attention. Four month old Brady was
diagnosed with Right Aorta Arch . A cord from the aorta that
drops off at birth was still attached and wrapped around her
esophagus preventing her from eating; she would regurgitate her food and was losing
weight fast.
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The vet recommended immediate open-heart
surgery. Brady's chances of pulling through were
questionable, and she spent several days at the hospital and
even went home with the vet a few nights, but this little
Dobergirl is a fighter and managed to recover from her
surgery.
She still requires a special diet and elevated feeding but
after being adopted by a vet tech who aided in her care, she
is living the life of a spoiled doberbrat!
Tiffany expressed her gratitude, "I am so happy that Gayle
Hall with Caradobe Rescue and the people at Doberman911 gave
her a chance for life. Most people would have let her go at 4
weeks of age. We are so lucky to have her; she has brought
much joy to our lives." Brady was 5 months old in December,
and happily celebrated her first Christmas as a happy,
healthy pup in a loving home.
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Bowie
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Bowie
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Bowie is a 4 year old black and tan male, who owns SND
member, Kim Somjen. He is also distinguished by having the
most expensive rear-end in Dobe history! See his pictures
and read more about this special boy, his human, and all of
the many surgeries to correct his hernias in the article,
Meet Bowie, A Very Special SND Dobe, on page 6.
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Chance
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Chance
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SND learned of Chance from Kim Todd, in the Florida panhandle.
Kim has done rescue work for 11 years. In September, 2002,
she pulled a male Dobe of approximately 8 years from a local
shelter. He had open sores on him and was nothing but skin
and bones. Kim had him examined by her vet and it was suspected that he
had prostate problems.
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SND authorized payment for the vet to
do a full blood work-up and hip x-ray. It turns out that his
most serious problem was a BB lodged in his hip! This was
removed and he made a full recovery. Kim said, "I have seen
my share of problem dogs. This one is not, he may have some
medical problems but his spirit has been broken and I would
like to help him get it back." After surgery and lots of
TLC, Chance gained 25 pounds and found his forever home!
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Chiquita
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Chiquita
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Poor little Chiquita was thrown out the window of a moving car,
at 6 weeks of age! She was rescued and turned over to CARMA
(Companion Animal Rescue and Medical Assistance) in Corrales, NM,
where she was immediately taken to a vet. While the X-rays
initially showed nothing broken, the exam did show a large
inguinal hernia in her abdomen. The Vet said it
would eventually need surgery to repair. However, the
hernia grew substantially larger within a 36 hour period so
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Chiquita went back to the vet. The vet then found a fracture
in the left front paw (requiring a soft cast) and a fracture
in the left back paw (hard cast) and scheduled surgery for
the hernia. She came out of surgery without any complications
and has recovered nicely. We are also happy to report that
Chiquita has been adopted!
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Cleo
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Cleo
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Cyndi Swanson, a Dobe rescue person in Chapel Hill, NC brought
Cleo to the attention of SND. She is a 6 - 7 year old fawn
female, docked and cropped, with one floppy ear, a decent
coat for a fawn and a great temperament. She had been
displaced due to a divorce. Upon being brought to rescue, Cleo was taken to the vet for
an exam.
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She tested positive for heartworm and had mammary
tumors, which needed to come off immediately. SND members
assisted with the cost of the surgery. The tumors were
removed and found to be benign, and now Cleo now has a new
shapely figure. Cyndi said that you couldn't tell she'd ever
been bred! Cleo has been on Ivermectin since being taken into
rescue, and no longer shows symptoms of heartworm infection.
Cyndi says, "She is very much the Velcro Dobe, always
underfoot with her head in someone's lap if they are caught
sitting down"! "Cleo is a wonderful housedog. She has not
had any accidents in the house and is very quiet. She is
great with our children and other dogs and will make a
loving companion for someone who has time to spend with
her," Cyndi added, noting that Cleo is now available for
adoption.
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Dion
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Dion
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Dion is a wonderful boy rescued by our friends at Doberman
Assistance Rescue and Education and is now under the the
loving care of his foster mom, Jeannie. Dion has come a long
way from when he was first found starved and abandoned, but
he has yet more hurdles in front of him. Dion has several issues: he's been diagnosed with Dancing
Doberman Disease. This causes his hind legs to dance about,
seemingly uncontrollably, when he
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stands still. There is
typically supposed to be no pain associated with DDD, just
a problem with the neurological communication to the hind
legs. Dion, unfortunately, also has a problem with his front
end. He can't stretch out and run like other dogs. His front
legs, particularly his front right leg, will only go so far
forward, causing Dion to lurch when he tries to run and play.
The worse part is that whatever is causing this problem is
also causing Dion pain. You can see it in his eyes as he
longs to go play with the other dogs but instead lies down,
trying to get comfortable. DAR&E has done many tests on Dion
trying to discover the source of this sweet boy's pain, but
they have been inconclusive. Dion still does enjoy life.
His pain is managed through medication. He gets sad/
frustrated at his physical limitations, but, in true Dobie
fashion, pushes on. DARE and SND continue to search for the
diagnosis of Dion's problems so that one day he can live a
normal, lively life.
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Emma
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Emma
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Emma Lou is a beautiful 10-month-old white (“albino”) Dobe in
Pennsylvania. SND learned about her in August 2002 from our
friends at Delaware Valley Doberman Pinscher Rescue and Assistance.
Emma broke her leg in May 2002 and had it fixed. She wasn’t
confined and as all Dobes will do, she romped around and
broke the leg again
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and it had to be reset. By the time the
leg was broken a third time, DVDPA stepped in and had
orthopedic surgery performed. This time Emma is got the
supervision she needed and made a nice recovery. She is now
doing well and living in foster care.
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