Linus 03-022 [1]

Sponsored by:

 Paul and Mary T.
"Linus, you may be 'one hot mess,' but you are soooooo loved! Please get well soon! Welcome to RAGOM!"

Tuesday, 7/9/2013:

Once a RAGOM dog, ALWAYS a RAGOM dog. Linus was adopted as a young pup, and has found his way back to rescue as an 11-year-old senior boy. Linus was surrendered because his family was unable to provide proper and necessary medical care for him, and he was in desperate need of care. We are thankful they chose to do the right thing for this sweet boy and let us help him! I can promise that he is in good hands, and is receiving loads of love.

When I first saw Linus, I immediately melted. He has the sweetest, most adorable face! My attention immediately shifted to a very large, external mass on his abdomen. Softball-sized and angry-looking, it was clear this needed immediate attention. He was unable to lay down comfortably and was chewing on it, a sign of obvious discomfort. He also had an abcess on his tail that was full of dried blood. Along with these things, his ears were very dirty, his toenails were so long he was having trouble walking, and his eyes were full of green discharge. However, he still greeted me with a wagging tail! What a boy!

We made our way to the vet a few hours after his arrival to get a handle on what needed to be addressed and to begin on the road to help Linus feel good again. The doctor suggested removal of the abdominal mass as soon as possible, his tail area was shaved and the wound cleaned (it was so bad that dead maggots were found when cleaning the area), both ears were examined and found to be infected, he had severe dental disease, he was also diagnosed with dry eye, a condition in which the eyes do not produce tears and the eyes lack moisture and become very irritated. His dry eye is severe, and he suffered substantial vision loss due to his lack of treatment. The good news, his blood work came back looking good and his heartworm test was negative. :) Yay!

We scheduled the mass removal and dental cleaning for the next day, and left the vet with antibiotics, 2 eye medications, ear medication, and some pain medication! We arrived back home, and Linus found a soft dog bed he liked. :) I told him that everything was going to be okay, and that I already loved him and would do everything in my power to help him feel better.

Wednesday, 7/10/2013:

I dropped Linus off at the vet at 8:00 am for his surgery. He reluctantly went into the back, and I got teary-eyed saying goodbye. I knew he was in great hands, but couldn't wait to bring him back home! The vet called me in the afternoon to let me know that surgery to remove the mass was successful. They were able to get the entire thing with clean margins. The tumor was very vascular and required an extensive removal of skin, so his incision has quite a bit of tension on it. This means he is on strict rest (he's happy to oblige). His teeth were cleaned, and his tail absess cleaned and drained. While he was under anesthesia, the extensive matting behind his ears was also addressed. The hair had formed baseball-sized mats, and they were so heavy and so tightly adhered to the skin, one side was successfully shaved, the other while being shaved revealed an open wound caused by the extent of the matting. This was cleaned, clipped, and sutured closed.

I picked Linus up last night and brought him home (we stopped at Dairy Queen for a little ice cream treat, but he wasn't interested ... yet!). He ate a small meal and took his medicine and rested well all evening.

Thursday, 7/11/2013:

Linus has some pep in his step today! :) He is eating with gusto and taking his meds like a champ. He is so tolerant of me cleaning and medicating his eyes and ears, I think he knows it will help him feel better. Because the dry eye condition went untreated for far too long, he has VERY limited vision. He can probably only see shadows. He navigates our house just fine, though, and even (slowly) does the stairs without a problem.

Linus is an amazing and truly special dog. Even though he had to endure pain and neglect, which no animal deserves, it didn't break his spirit or his ability to love. Only good things for Linus from now on. He's an angel boy who is learning all about what it means to be spoiled and loved like crazy! Please keep him in your thoughts as he continues on his road to recovery! More updates and pictures soon. Prepare to fall in love...