Torteval Irish Wolfhounds

23 March 2006
Lauren writes: "Texas A & M is such a wonderful place - their facility is top rate. We really loved all the doctors and vet techs there. We checked Shea in on Monday (20th). They ran blood work and did an ultrasound of her liver. They actually found the intrahepatic shunt on the ultrasound, and they scheduled the shunt surgery for Wednesday morning but she started to run a high fever on Tuesday afternoon, and the fever spiked to 104 on Tuesday night.

Shea had been diagnosed with HOD (hypertrophic osteodystrophy) in early February and the doctors think she has a bacterial infection in her bones from the HOD causing her fever to spike. They did some additional research on HOD in Irish wolfhounds, and found that it can cause bacterial infections in the bones.

They were concerned about septic shock if they moved forward with the shunt surgery. All five of the surgeons agreeded to wait on the shunt surgery because of the risk of shock and futher bacterial infections. They started with high doses of antibiotics on Tuesday (via the IV) and when the fever and bacterial infection are under control, they are going to proceed with the shunt surgery.

So, we made the decision to leave her at Texas A & M. They might do the shunt surgery in a couple of days, or it could be a week. Sean and I agreed that it would be best for her to stay there (with 24 hour care and IV antibiotics). It broke my heart to have to leave her, but I know that she is getting the best care right now.

I got a call from the internal medicine vet this morning. Her fever has gone down and she is doing really great. She also did good during the night.

Thank you for all your prayers."

24 March 2006
"Shea's fever spiked again last night, so they are keeping her on the antibiotics, but they think the fever might not be from a bacterial infection but just from the HOD.

They are just going to monitor her fever and proceed with the surgery when they feel comfortable. If they cannot get her fever under control by the end of next week we will probably go and pick her up and postpone the surgery for a month or so. The good thing is that she is not "critical" right now and we want to make sure she is healthy enough to do the surgery. I feel that if she was critical, they would take the chance and proceed with the surgery."

27 March 2006
"Shea spiked fever (to 104-105.5) on Friday night, but was okay all day on Saturday and Saturday night (as far as the fever is concerned). Now, Dr Willard thinks that the fever is a direct result of the HOD, and not a bacterial infection - especially since she is still spiking a fever after being on two antibiotics since Wednesday.

He is going to meet with the other three doctors assigned to her case on Tuesday, and they are going to make a decision about the surgery. Dr Willard does not want to take the risk of waiting a few months and then have Shea become critical, but he is really hesitant about going through with the surgery with any signs of high fever. He said we might have to "bite the bullet" and proceed with the the shunt surgery and hope she pulls through.

I talked to Dr Willard for a while yesterday. It is a catch 22 - if we do not do the surgery, she will have a very slow and painful death. So, Sean and I have accepted that surgery is the only option and we know that Texas A & M is one of the best places for her to be. If she does not make it through the surgery, at least she would have a painless death. It makes me tear up to even think about it, but I guess we would just start over with a new wolfie puppy."

28 March 2006
"They are going to schedule the liver surgery for tomorrow. Dr 'Willard is going to call and confirm what time the surgery is scheduled for.

I am very relieved that they are going to proceed. He was very upfront and honest with me about the fact that Shea might not make it through surgery, or we might have to put her to sleep after the surgery (if it goes just horrible and the coil gets infected), or we might have a VERY successful
procedure and a VERY healthy wolfhound.

Sean and I know that this is her only chance at a "normal" life - and her only chance to make it.

I will let you know what time it is scheduled for. I am going to be a nervous wreck tomorrow - I am already getting nervous right now.

Thanks for all your help and prayers. I means so much right now."

30 March 2006
"Shea was in surgery for about two hours.They got the stent in, but then started having trouble getting the ring to take in the shunt.Shea started to have heart arrhythmias, and the cardiologist was concerned about keeping her under the anesthesia, especially with the arrhythmias.

Dr Willard said that she did really good with the anesthesia through the procedure. They are going to keep her in ICU tonight and tomorrow morning. The vets are going to meet tomorrow morning to schedule the next surgery to put the ring in - probably for Friday.

So, it is not great news . . . but, things did go well with the anesthesia and she did not have any MAJOR problems. I am just a little upset that she has to go through another surgery. But, we are one step closer to having her come home."

31st March 2006
"Shea is still in intensive care, but doing really great. Dr Willard said that she is eating really good - and not having any problems. The only thing is that her front leg is sore from the IV, but they are planning on removing that and cleaning it up.

The second part of the shunt surgery is now scheduled for Monday. All the doctors are very happy with the way things went yesterday and her recovery today, and they feel more comfortable proceeding with the surgery simply because she is doing very good right now.

So, we have some good news. I will keep you all posted if anything changes.
Thanks for all the prayers and support."

4 April 2006
"They have moved the surgery to Wednesday as they are having new surgical equipment delivered today, and the cardiologists wanted to wait so that they can use the new equipment.

Dr. Willard said that Shea was active over the weekend, and back to eating well since the procedure last week, so that is a very positive sign.

Keep the prayers coming!"

6 April 2006
"Good news!!! The surgery went really great. Shea went into the surgery late this afternoon. She did extremely well. The shunt was much larger than expected, and they put in multiple coils. They had some trouble getting the first coil in, but it was smooth sailing after that. She is coming out of the anesthesia right now.

I am just really happy that all of this is behind us now. I know that the next 24 hrs will be touch and go - they are planning on keeping her in ICU until Friday morning. So, we should be able to pick her up on Saturday or Sunday.

Thanks so much! Keep the prayers coming - I know we are not 100% home free just yet."

7 April 2006
"Shea is doing great, and we are picking her up on Saturday. He even said we could get her tonight, if we were in Texas but I dont want to rush it. I am just so excited to get my little moster! I can already promise you that I am going to start crying when I see her."

10 April 2006
"I just wanted to let you know that Shea is just PERFECT!!! I can already tell that she feels 100% better from the surgery - I have never seen her run, play, and smile like she did on Saturday and Sunday. She truly is a changed dog. Her coloring has changed a lot as well - he is more grey and
wheaten with a lot of red. Her face has more "feathers" and she really looks like a wolfhound now.

I was really worried that she might not remember us, but she bolted toward us as soon as she saw us in the waiting room. And, she was very excited to be back at "her house" - she played with her toys until 4:30am on Sunday. She was just so precious. She keep bringing toys to the bed for me
to play with her. My mom came over yesterday, and Shea just attacked her with kisses.

Other than where she was shaved for the three procedures - her stomach, the back end, both front legs, one back leg, and her neck - you would NEVER know she had major surgery. The "scar" from the shunt surgery is about 1-2 centimeters long on her neck. And, she does not have any stitches at all. I was concerned about using a neck collar and leash since they went in through the jugular vein, but she has been totally fine with the neck collar.

Of course, her bathroom schedule is off. I was up with her about every 1.5 hours during Saturday and Sunday night. At least, she remembered to come and wake me up. And, she is really starting to lose baby teeth. She lost four while she was at Texas A&M and three yesterday. Her gums are very sore, but I kept giving her ice every hour and that seemed to help a lot. Any suggestions - is ice the best thing to do with sore gums?

From here, we will repeat the fasting bile acid test in a month. Of course, if she starts up with fever or "bathroom issues" we will take her to the vet ASAP. Dr. Willard said that normally they would see those signs in the first 24 hrs after surgery, but that we should just watch for everything. We are keeping her on the special dog food for right now, and will start adding in some more protein in a few weeks.

Thank you all so much for all of your care and concern. I really did not know if I she was going to make it through all of this. Emotionally, I would not have been as strong and hopeful as I was without your prayers, help, and advice. I will send pictures of her tonight or tomorrow."

22 April 2006
"Shea is back to her old tricks. I guess she is in the terrible twos stage - she is just out of control. Yesterday, she never even took a nap or calmed down until I got back home from work. At least, she is feeling good and she really looks like a wolfhound now. She is just adorable. She weighs around 60 lbs. We repeat the fasting bile acid test in two weeks."

5 June 2006
"Shea is doing MUCH better - a complete turn around from where we were a few weeks ago (when the blood tests were not as good as the vets had hoped). Teresa Kuntz recommended a natural, anti-inflammatory supplement, and we saw a change from the moment Shea had the first one. She has been taking them for about two weeks - we have not given her pain medication in that time and she has had a ton of energy and has not experienced any leg pain."

11 October 2006
"Shea is doing great. We had one minor HOD episode about a month back - we thought she was bloating and rushed to the emergency clinic. Our vet thought she had a bug and an HOD flare up. Other than that, she has been fabulous, though still small at around 80 lbs

For the most part, she is very obedient, as long as fruit is not involved - she LOVES peaches! Last month she figured out how to use a chair to reach the table to partake in breakfast of peaches, milk, and cereal. Of course, she was a complete mess!"