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Pixie was turned over to KPR because her breeder could not
afford her medical care, and the vet told her that her
only other option was to put Pixie to sleep. Thank
goodness the breeder found KPR! Pixie had bi-lateral
congenital elbow luxation, in other words, she was born
with both of her front elbows out of joint. She could not
stand up straight, or walk on her paws like she should.
Instead, she walked on her elbows or would hop like a bunny,
with her paws facing sideways.
UPDATE January 30, 2008
- Pixie is doing great, growing like a weed, although a
rather small weed at that, but still ... she's growing.
She came through her last surgery well ... that
operation straightened out the bones in her right
forearm, finally allowing her to walk on both front
feet.
When you think of all this
little dog has had to endure ... well, its an amazing
story that she's a sweet and well tempered as she is ...
so many cuts and stitches and casts ... and she took it
all without complaint. Stick her in a pair of twin casts
and she refused to give up her mobility, learning
instead to rear back and pick up those casts and move
across the floor like she was fitted with a walker. She
has always met every challenge better than anyone could
have hoped. No other dog pushes her out of mix ... ever.
When it comes to treats, she is the first one in line.
Finally out of casts and off medications, Pixie had what
almost amounts to a real growth spurt ... darn near
topping out the scales at seven pounds, which to our
eyes is is huge. All the surgeries worked well. She will
never run like a regular dog, but she's walking on both
front legs, and running in a bunny hop Pixie style. Her
motion is a little stilted and stiff, but that matters
little to her. She thinks she's as big as dog as any we
have.
Pixie loves going outside, and loves running through the
snow, dipping her nose and eating as much snow as she
can. She jumps in the middle of any dog play that erupts
around here. She and Pip play well together, and she's
even managed to charm Bo into game or two.
All is all, Pixie is leading a great life and she owes
it all to everyone who donated to her cause and gave her
to the chance to just be a great little dog.
UPDATE December 17th
- Pixie had her second surgery on December 11th. She
came through with flying colors! The vet says we have
every reason to believe that the surgery will be
successful and she will be able to walk on her leg! She
is already using the leg more than she did before, the
cast aids her in walking and learning to use it. Her
foster home reports that she has had no pain issues and
was her usual self by the next day - barking and
harassing her foster brothers to play with her.
December 4th -
Pixie had her cast removed on Tuesday November 27th.
One of her legs looks great and she is trying to learn
to use it. The other leg, however, did not respond well
to the initial surgery and as she grew, the bone twisted
inside the cast. Always a risk when working with such tiny bones.
Her paw turns upward and she walks on the top of her paw
instead of on the pads like she should. She cannot
continue to walk like this as she grows, the top of the
leg is not intended for this purpose and will ulcerate
and certainly lead to infections and amputation. So now
Pixie needs yet another surgery to give her a shot at
being able to walk. Her other front leg is not strong
enough to support her body weight, she needs BOTH legs
to help her get around. Even with both legs fixed, she
will never be able to run like a normal dog, but perhaps
we can help her be able to at least walk.
We have over 80 dogs in the rescue right now and our
funds are limited. We want to do everything we can to
help Pixie and all the other dogs, but we can't do that
without your help!
Pixie is a fighter - she has
such a spirit. She has no idea that there is anything
wrong with her! She loves to play and be held and is
eating and growing normally in every other way. We want
to give her a chance at being as normal as she possibly
can, even though she will never run and play like a
normal dog, we would like for her to be able to walk. It
takes so much effort for her to get anywhere with her
leg like it is.
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