| STAR |
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| UPDATE 3/29/08 - I haven't updated on Star in a while, and I apologize for this. Star had been very sick over the past two months with a very rare and very severe lung disease. We had been making weekly trips to Orchard Park Veterinary Medical Center, many times on emergency basis... and she had been admitted to the ICU on several occasions... She had started to finally show improvement on a very high dose of Prednisone, but 2 weekends ago, she became very sick again... our last hope and option was to bring her to Cornell for a lung biopsy. I picked her up from Orchard Park, and after discussion with our doctors, decided to give her the last fighting chance at Cornell to see if we could get an exact diagnosis...at this point she was stable for travel. Unfortunately, upon arrival, she had a significant amount of fluid around her heart in addition to the fluid in and around her lungs... her oxygen levels were very low, and they had her on oxygen since I got her there.... After doing an ultrasound
on her heart, the doctors found a mass in her heart- and that combined with her very diseased lungs and low oxygen levels made her a weak candidate for anesthesia and surgery (she would have needed a complete thoracotomy(sp) and I could not put her through that...) it was unlikely she would have survived the anesthesia and surgery, let alone recovery and healthy life thereafter. Very sadly, I had to do what was in our girl's best interest... as Star passed away on March 19th. Eric and I are absolutely devastated and heartbroken... she was truly the best little girl we could have ever asked for. We miss her and love her so much. Please keep Star and our family in your thoughts. In loving memory of Star. 3/19/08 - I just wanted to let the rest of you know that Star passed away on March 19th. She was doing okay on the Prednisone, but 2 weekends ago, she just wasn't quite right. Her breathing was more rapid and I brought her into Orchard Park on emergency basis, and we were discharged thatnight as everything came out normal. I still didn't feel comfortable, but her gums and temp were fine, and her x-ray showed no decline, so we went home. That was on a Sunday night. The next day, she collapsed going up the stairs and when I checked her gums they were white, so I raced her back to OP, and at that point in a matter of less than 24 hours, her condition had regressed to the very beginning, and worse. Again she was admitted to the ICU, and all the doctors were stumped...I went in on Tuesday to visit her and they told me to start thinking about what I might need to do, but that if I wanted to hang on to one last chance, I could bring her to Cornell for a lung biopsy. I picked her up from OP the next day, Wednesday March 19th. I started having doubts when they were discharging her, but I knew it was do or die, and she was stable enough for the car ride up to Cornell. I really knew this was our last chance for any kind of answer regarding her disease and condition. We got to Cornell around 4:30, and they immediately did a physical on her, and found a significant amount of fluid around her heart, and needed to tap the fluid immediately. The doctor said she would be back in a half hour and after over an hour, I was extremely worried and knew things were not good. Her doctor told me that they were not able to drain the fluid because her lungs had so much fluid in them and were in the way... (something like that, I was so upset, it was hard to focus...) She also told me they did an ultrasound and found a mass in her heart, in addition to her very diseased lungs... obviously I couldn't find anything out about the mass without them going in-- at this point, I had to decide to have the doctors do a complete thoracotomy or let her go. Star was already on oxygen as her levels were very low, and she was not a good candidate for anesthesia and probably would not survive that surgery. I couldn't put her through the surgery since it was so risky, and I already felt so guilty and selfish for dragging her up to Cornell in the first place.... I didn't want her to die alone in surgery, so I made the decision and she went peacefully in my arms. Eric and I are so devastated over this loss, since we were really hanging on to Cornell as a miracle. I agreed to an autopsy since her case was one of a kind and no one really knew exactly what illness she had, but we won't get the results back for several weeks. She was so special and we miss her and love her very much. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. UPDATE 2/9/08 - Star is continuing to do well in our home. She graduated from her "continuing education" obedience class the last week in January. She loved attending class... there were 4 dogs and all were girls! She passed with flying colors! Star had a cough that seemed to only act up when she got excited, but we took her to the vet regardless. She had an EKG done, and our vet also did a heartworm just to be 100% sure. All checked out fine. A week after, her cough seemed to be a little more prominent, so we went back to the vet, and she was put on amoxil and temaril, and she's been good since she started it. Today is her last day of the meds... The vet said that although she had her kennel cough vaccine when we first brought her in November, she still could have had a slight cough... but all is well now. Star has had a couple of accidents in the house, but we continue to work on that. She is scared of loud noises, and if something scares her while we are outside, such as the garbage truck, she won't go potty. So, we just make a few extra trips outside throughout the day. Other than that, she and Zeus continue to play well and enjoy the company of eachother. We love having two boxers, and would never go back to having just one!! Star really is such a sweetheart and snugglebug, and so playful! She is not a fan of being in the snow, although she and Zeus have had a few fun romps when we've had a few feet of fresh fluffy snow! Even still, we can't wait for the weather to get nice so we can "really play" outside! UPDATE 12/17/07 - Star is continuing to do very well in her new home. She went to the vet a few weeks ago, and everything checked out okay. She is officially enrolled in a continuing education obedience class; her first class was last Thursday, and she did great! We have lots of homework to do, and she loves all the treats for good behavior. She does wonderful around the Christmas tree; she doesn't even seem to notice it (while our other boxer likes to scratch his back under it :) Star is the biggest sweetheart, and she fits perfectly in our home. She and Zeus are great for each other. We are so lucky to have adopted her! UPDATE 11/25/07 - Star has been adopted! She truly is a sweetheart! She is adjusting very well to our home. She did fine on the car ride home, a little nervous as expected. We introduced her to our other boxer, Zeus, outside and went for a walk together last night. Ever since then, she and Zeus have been playing non-stop! :)Zeus and Star are only 4 months apart, so they seem to have the same energy level, however, I think she is tiring him out! Zeus hasn't met another dog that could keep up with him, so she is a great playmate! She loves the dog toys, especially the rope ones, as her foster parents told us. Both did great at bedtime, and snuggled right into bed with us. She has an appointment with our vet next week for a general physical. More updates to follow as we get to know her better! 11/24/07 - Star has been adopted! 11/14/07 - Star arrived here on Sunday and she seems to have settled in quite well. She is a very beautiful white boxer with a black/brown patch from her right eye to her ear. Her previous owner didn't feel she was able to give her the attention she deserved. Star is great around my 4 teenagers and my neighbor's 4 year old granddaughter. She also grew up around a cat. We have found out that Star is scared of the vacuum cleaner, even though it's not running she'll run off to the other room. She plays great with my 2 other boxers, but it took her a bit to realize what the dog toys were actually for. Now she won't stay away from them. Whenever anyone comes home from work or school she doesn't jump on you she actually looks like she has a set of hydraulics in all of her legs. One minute she'll have all four on the floor and the next it will be zero. It's actually really funny to watch her do this. Star is a big bundle of fun to play with. She plays non-stop everyday until she sees that I'm getting into bed and then she's right there beside me ready to go to sleep as well. Star enjoys going for long walks but the sound of the passing cars seems to frighten her a bit. She also doesn't seem to mind being in the crate that we have if we have to go out for a bit. This little girl would be a great addition to any family. She loves to cuddle, play, and is a great joy to have around. |
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| Name: Star State: NY Age: 1 year Weight: 54 lbs Sex: Female Neut/UTD: Yes/Unsure Coat color: White Docked Tail: Yes Cropped Ears: No Children under 4: Unsure Children over 4: Yes Separation Anxiety: Unsure other Dogs: Yes Cats: Yes Crate trained: Unsure House trained: Yes Obedience Trained: No Leash trained: Yes Attending obedience: No Microchipped: No Adoption Fee: $300 |
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