Rebel's Story

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Rebel's Story

2007

Rebel is black and white, currently 5.8 pounds, 10-1/2" tall. He was rescued from a Houston puppymill, within days of dying of starvation. He had severe periodontal disease and infected teeth. His ears were scratched raw from yeast infections. He has tested positive for heartworm and has a heart murmur. X-rays show the right side of his heart is larger than the left. But, his will to survive is strong. Careful feeding and antibiotics have started his recovery. He has the sweetest personality and craves affection. He loves to be with his person either cuddled on their lap, or curled up next to them.

Rebel's foster mom writes:
He is small but leggy. He is a mere shell of what he will be. Rebel is exactly why Pap911 rescues mill dogs. He was only a short wait from death. Even with antibiotics and good food, he is still quite weak. You put him in your lap, caress him softly, and he will sleep forever. Makes you want to cry.

Rebel's care and return to health will take a sizeable amount of funds.
If you would like to donate to help Rebel, you may use the Paypal on our site, and write in Rebel's name.

Foster mom’s report on our Rebel's brush with death--

Monday a.m. 2/19:
Rebel crashed last night. We do not know why. I woke up in the early a.m. hearing him vomiting. I got up and there was and vomit everywhere. About 7 a.m. he started to vomit blood, lots of it. We got him to the vet, his temp was 95! He was put into the oxygen box on warm IVs. His liver showed complete malfunction, all of his tests were way off the charts. His WBC count showed massive internal infections, there was very little protein in his liver. Check his pancreas too. The doctor said he could be in line for a transfusion. He is in extremely critical condition. 

Monday p.m.
When I went in, everyone said he had perked up and was wagging his tail. Well, when I saw him, he didn't look very well. I held him in my arms wrapped in his blankie, the IV tubes in him. I put him on the pad on the exam table as he seemed to want to stretch out, and he just laid there. Then he vomited up clear fluid and crashed again. His gums and lips went white. We rushed him to the back and put him back into the oxygen box. After a few minutes, he started to get some color back. The pancreas test won't be back until tomorrow.

Tuesday a.m. 2/20:
Pancreas test is normal!! Yayyyy! One major hurdle. Rebel had bloody diarrhea this morning. His temp is back up to 100 (but it was yesterday too) so I keep my fingers crossed. He is of course on heavy antibiotics and various IV cocktails. What is thought is he has a raging gastro infection. No answers as to why, except they feel he already had it. But with antibiotics he started on before I got him, and finished up here, held it back. When started on Doxycycline, it came back like a ton of bricks crashing on him. Apparently, it's a mild antibiotic, as it is part of his Heartworm work.

Basically, he went from extremely critical to guarded. Our babies from the mills just don't have what it takes to fight such big battles, especially when he was already critical with heartworms, starvation, and infections. I am going back in this afternoon. Please pray for our little baby boy. Let him know we all love him.

Tuesday p.m:
We went in after work and stayed with Rebel. He recognized us, but is so sick and weak that he couldn't acknowledge it. He couldn't even wag his tail. It was all I could do to keep from crying, to see the suffering in his eyes. He wouldn't eat for them, so they will probably syringe feed to get something solid in him. We can only go one day at a time. I left my sweater for him to lay on. 

Wednesday p.m. 2/21:
He's doing better. When they brought him up, he was alert, and started wagging his tail when he saw us. The doctor said he couldn't believe how much better he was today, compared with how poor he was yesterday. His phosphorous is back to normal, albumin is up a little, liver enzyme test hadn't come back yet. He has been eating today. If his albumin keeps going up, even slowly, they will wait on any plasma. If it won't go up on its own, then we will probably have to give him some. All of this is a little encouraging. 

Thank you everybody for your prayers. I know they worked. My vet practically said that the amount of Rebel's improvement from yesterday was a miracle. Rebel was so happy to see us. We gave him lots of kisses and ear scratches. He loves butt scratches too : > ) I had him wrapped in my sweater and held him, humming, while he dozed off. He loves it when I cuddle, and hum to him. 

Thursday p.m. 2/22:
Rebel was so happy to see his mommy and daddy today, wagging his tail and giving kisses. Then I just held him and he relaxed and would doze off. He is improving. Very slowly, but improving. They said he’s eating well and his spirits are high. They even got a bark out of him today. :) His organs seem to be normalizing, but his liver is a problem. His albumin is going up a tiny amount every day. This is the good direction. Today he was 2.0 (normal is 2.6). He had started at 1.7, then 1.9 yesterday, and 2.0 today. So we are hopeful it will keep going up. He still has blood in his intestines, but we are hoping it is his gastro infection and will get better with his meds.

He is taking flagyl, clavamox, low dose pred, and sulfazalozine. The pred is low dosage because it isn't good for his heart. But, it's needed to fight the inflammation in his intestines. Lord have mercy, this is such a tough call on which direction to go. Don't forget, this little boy has a heart full of worms too. 

He should be able to come home tomorrow. 

I must be tired. Thank you everybody for your prayers and positive thoughts. My vet even said today, he would never have believed that Rebel would make it, from the condition he was last Monday. He's never seen such a dramatic turn around. I told him Rebel had lots of people praying and pulling for him. He said that was the second time today that he's heard about the power of prayer.

Friday p.m. 2/23:
Rebel came home with us today. He is doing so good. You would never have known that this dog was near death on Monday. My vet is shocked, he can't believe it himself. Thanks for everybody's prayers. I know that's what did it for him.

First thing Rebel did when we got home, was run zoomies around the house with Bitty. Then he pulled all the toys out of the toybox, and ate a big meal. He's happy to be home. We will take him back in next week to make sure his liver albumin and other enzymes are normal. Keep your fingers crossed. 

5/3/07:
Rebel had his second shot yesterday, and last shot today. He is doing great! He is 7.5 pounds now and a happy, energetic boy. My vet truly cannot believe this is the same dog carried into him barely alive, (3 times, remember). Every one of Rebel's bones is nicely padded. We just need to keep him quiet for another month and he's done with those horrible heartworms. 

Rebel will need to have his dental and neutering done in a couple of months.

June 14, 2007:
Rebel went to see his doctor today. My vet could not believe this was the same dog that I originally brought in. He went over him, checking lungs, etc., kept listening to his heart, he even took him over to a clock and listened and counted. He listened four different times. He said that if he were seeing this dog for the first time, and listening to his heart, he would not be sure that he even had a murmur. He said that he would write in his chart, that this dog may have a murmur, but it would be so faint that he couldn't be sure. He would write it down to check it again later. Maybe grade 1. Rebel had a grade 4 murmur when he went in to vet in January. He said from the way he is looking and recovering, he very likely won't have any murmur problems. His lungs are completely clear. So different from the fluid-filled lungs and labored breathing he had at first.

He is amazed at how completely healthy he is. It was funny, but he said that with Rebel's health history and brushes with death, he felt that there should be something he needed to work on with him. He said in about 3 months Rebel should have a regular heartworm check to verify they are all gone. That's standard procedure of course. But, he sees no problem with a dental in July. No sooner, we all agreed no hurry.

Update July 3, 2007  Rebel's Dental
We came close to losing our Rebbie.  I knew he was in pain from the teeth, I just didn't know how awful it was going to be.  The procedure took about 4 hours I think.  My vet was very careful with him.  He had to have 11 teeth extracted, there was not much cleaning possible.  In getting them out, a great deal of bone came with them.  His bone was so thin in his lower jaw that his jaw broke when the canines came out.  Also, the nerves were exposed on his canines.  Most of the bone in his lower jaw had reabsorbed, or whatever the term is.  He stopped on one of his teeth midway back, and just cleaned it.  That tooth if pulled, would have broken his jaw in a second place and would have made rewiring his jaw impossible.  There is very little bone there.  He said at that point he would have had to make a metal plate for the jaw.  The tooth will be fine. 
Rear teeth and pockets went way back up into his head and one particularly behind his left eye.  He worked very carefully on that tooth to make sure nothing punctured the sack behind his eye, which would have popped his eye out.  Luckily, it wasn't bone pulling away, but blood pooling behind his eye causing it to bulge out.  He worked very carefully, (did I say he was careful?) and slowly, in order for the blood to reabsorb.  It is still bulging a little and really red.  Whe Dr. Sanders got busy on his surgery, he knew this was going to be a long one, but the eye bulging out took him by surprise.  He didn't know what was happening behind the eye, until he stopped, investigated, and realized it was blood pooling, not any bone breaking and puncturing the sack.
Rebel's jaw is wired right now, and would be in excruciating pain if he wasn't on strong pain drugs.  I know there must be stuff I am missing.  Rebel got a strong pain shot before surgery, and when done.   He will be getting gruel for some time until his pain lessens and he can eat on his own.  My vet says his recuperation will take a few weeks.  I am exhausted and worried sick of course.  Rebel is laying in a crate right next to me, so he can rest and not be bugged by the other dogs.  They all sniffed him over so gently when we came home.  I had to syringe gruel down him this evening so he could get his strength back and not go into shock.  I just want to hold him and let him know his mommy loves him, but I'm afraid of hurting him.
I'm sure I'll probably remember other things he told me.  It was all so much so absorb and try to remember.  I was just in shock at how bad his teeth and jaw were, and the surgery having to be so delicate to save his jaw, his eye and possibly his life.  Please pray for him, he will need everyone's help again to get through this. 

Update 7/10/07
  Rebel is doing great.  He is recovering from his dental so quickly,  racing around the house again,  playing with his foster sister Bitty.  They love to wrestle.  The poor boy is having to learn how to use his tongue all over again.  He looks so cute with a tip of it hanging out the side.
Rebel's jaw has healed and he is doing great.  We are giving a well deserved rest before neutering.  Rebel is available for adoption now so we may review applications to find him the best home.  He will be neutered before going to his forever home.