12/10/2017
Meet Lizzie, a 4 year old Terrier mix who's chosen to defy the odds.
On October 31st, while Lizzie's mom was preparing to go out, she heard a yelp from the next room & rushed to see what had happened. She found Lizzie looking worried & a bit stiff, but could not determine what had happened. Lizzie walked across the room without a limp, so Mom decided to let Lizzie rest at home while she went out & see how she was doing that evening.
When Mom returned home, Lizzie failed to greet her at the door. She found Lizzie lying on her bed, unable to get up. Lizzie was rushed to emergency, where she was tentatively diagnosed with one or more herniated discs. She was completely paralyzed in the back end & barely able to move her head or front legs. Lizzie was then referred to a veterinary neurologist & Mom was quoted $10,000 for an MRI & emergency surgery.
This is where it gets complicated... disc injuries are not straight forward - some improve with surgery, some don't; some improve without surgery, some don't. One's first inclination might be to wait & see if the pet improves without surgery, but unfortunately, the longer we wait to perform surgery, the less likely a successful outcome becomes. Your second thought might be to take out a 2nd mortgage on the house & proceed to surgery, cost be damned, anything to fix your pup. The problem with this is that there is no guarantee, even with surgery, that your pup will ever walk again. So what would you do?
Lizzie's mom had to answer that question. She absolutely could not afford the surgery that MIGHT allow Lizzie to walk again, but she wasn't ready to give up on her happy-go-lucky, loving little friend. She declined both the surgery & the humane euthanasia that the doctors suggested.
That's when we met this amazing little angel who refuses to give up. When we first met her, Lizzie was unable to stand & was painful in her neck & back, but she had a sparkle in her eyes. We all decided that as long as Lizzie wanted to fight, we wouldn't give up either. Since then, Lizzie's condition has been managed with an anti-inflammatory, pain medications, VOM, Cold Laser & the love & devotion of her dedicated mom.
Within a few days, Lizzie's pain was reduced, she could support herself on her forelimbs & was beginning to move her hind legs & tail. The next week she was able to stand with her weight on her left hind leg if we helped her balance. A few days later, she was using her front legs to move herself about & when we placed her in a standing position for her laser treatment, she held herself up for almost 2 minutes. No one wanted to get their hopes up, but Lizzie's determination was contagious.
The following Friday, Lizzie arrived for her treatment while we were finishing with another patient, so we didn't actually see her approaching the coach. Since Mom typically carried Lizzie to the door & then set her down while she waited to be invited in, we weren't surprised to see her sitting there as the other pet left. Alyssa went out to tell Mom we were ready for Lizzie & then turned to walk away, only to stop short as what she had just seen began to register in her brain... & then she hollered, "Dr. Kelley! Lizzie's walking!"
Yes, it's true, there's still a little wobble in her step, but Lizzie is walking again. No question about what her mom was thankful for this Thanksgiving! Lizzie's going to continue to receive her anti-inflammatory & VOM & Cold Laser treatments, & she's still on strict rest, but in time, our little friend may be running to greet Mom at the door again. Please send some positive thoughts her way.
