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Misty's Story |
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Misty at 10 1/2 months!
Meet Misty!
This is Misty. She is now eleven (11) months old. On her last trip to the vet (16 Sept.) she weighed in at 64.8 pounds! Her story starts like so many; she was whelped in a backyard by someone who only wanted to profit from her and her brothers and sisters.
I came about her in an unusual sort of way. My cousin (who I will refer to as "George") knew I had been wanting a dog. I had just bought my own home and moved to the country where I would have room for a dog.
George came to me one day and asked if I would be interested in a Rottweiler puppy. Well now. I had only wanted a Rottie for about fifteen years! He told me that there was a man he had heard of that was going to be giving away some pups when they were old enough. The reason (supposedly): they were too old to have their tails docked.
I said I would love to have one. A couple of weeks later I obtained a male mixed breed I call Gruff. I forgot about the offer of a Rottweiler pup; who would really give away a Rott-n-pup anayway?
On the second day of January I was going to find out!
Misty Arrives!
Saturday had been a hectic day for me; I had been at church all day and had only been home for about an hour when someone knocked on my door. I went to look and it was George. I invited him in and he asked if I would still be interested in one of the Rott-n pups (Just on Christmas Eve I had been told that the person who had these puppies was going to get their tails docked and sell them after all.) He said he knew I already had Gruff, but wanted to know if I would like a Rottweiler too. Or did I think they would get along?
Well, I started to think about it; after all bringing another dog in was going to be a little more than I had planned on. About the time I got started thinking George says, "Would you like to see one? I have one of them out in the car."
Talk about your basic setup! Well, I said sure---it won't hurt to look anyway. Hmmm...right.
And there she was; a small, skinny bundle of black and brown fur. I took her in my arms and fell in love. Misty convinced me in a heartbeat that she belonged with me. I looked at poor old Gruff and said, "Well Gruff. Looks like you will be going to the vet for sure in a couple of more months!
After George had left I took a close look at this poor bag of bones. George had said she had been left on the back porch with her parents and had no contact with people. I could believe it; she would shy away when I came close to her. I thought the best way to start with her was to fatten her up some, so I put out a bowl of food. She fell to with gusto!
The Wyrm Cometh!
For the next three days she steadily gained weight. Her coat was nice and shiny and she appeared completely healthy. I made a terrible mistake though that nearly cost her her life. I had been watching her for signs of worms when she went to do her business and I hadn't seen anything. I assumed after a couple of days that her parents owners had wormed her.On friday morning when Misty threw up I still wasn't too concerned; Gruff had done the same thing about a week ater I brought him home (I figured it was a change in diet.) But, Friday night Misty threw up again and this time there was a worm about six (6) inches long in her vomit. I watched her throughout the night and she threw up two more before morning. As soon as the vets office was open I called and they said bring her in.
Bad News From The Doc!
After running some tests on her I was told she had round worms and hook worms. She was severely dehydrated (I had noticed she wasn't drinking and had wet a wash cloth and moistened her lips with it. She would eagerly lick the moisture off, but she just couldn't get enough that way.) Dr. Marsch gave her three shots. He also gave her a syrnge full of medicine. He told me that she would probably die, but if I would get her some pedeolite and give it to her every ninety (90) minutes that that would help the dehydration. He also gave me some more medication for her to take. He said if she lived to bring her back in three weeks to worm her again.Well, I was determined that she was going to have every oppotunity to live she could get. I took her home and began to give her the pedeolite just like the doctor ordered (and would continue to do so for the next forty-eight hours) along with her worm medicine.
Triumph!
Finally, on Sunday night, Misty got up and wondered over to her food dish. She sniffed but walked away. My heart sank. She had not eaten since friday and the little skinny puppy that came into my home and my heart was re-emerging.About two hours after her first exploration of her food dish she went back. Sniff. Hmmm...Sniff, sniff, sniff. Hmmm! Chomp! She started to eat! My heart was lifted from black despair.
I took her back and had her wormed again three weeks later just like the vet said, and since then Misty has continued to grow! She is now eleven (11) months old and weighs about 70 pounds. Her and Gruff are best friends, and I couldn't ask for a dog with a better temperament!
The Future
The future looks good for Misty now. She has twenty-five acres to play on with Gruff; of course, I don't let them out to roam on their own...I always go with them. Also, they have a nice fenced in back yard now (I just built it over the weekend!)I will try to update this page in the future with more pictures of this once scrawny puppy! In the meantime Gruff and Misty say: Bow Wow!!!
UPDATE! 04 JAN 01 Misty now weighs in at 65.7 pounds! She is 22" at the withers and seems to be in no particular hurry to finish growing. I think she is sneaking up on it! She just turned one year right before Christmas, so she should still grow some more. At least NOW she isn't scrawny!
Misty just came home from the vet's office where she weighed in at 72.5 pounds! She hasn't grown any taller, but she is expanding outwards! Misty aslo has a new sister to play with. You can read all about her here on her own page: Brandi's Story.
Well, since the last update Misty has gained another 8 pounds! That's right! She now weighs in at 80 pounds!!! She just doesn't want to do everything at one time. Her and Brandi are in a race; Brandi leads right now...she weighs 85 pounds. I'll keep you posted on the leader! In the meantime: Here's a great big ol' sloppy rottie kiss for ya'!
After over 11 years Misty is now fighting for her life. She has been diagnosed with heart failure. The vet has started her on Lasix and some other meds, but doesn't hold out much hope. Neither Misty or me has given up yet though. She is breathing easier but will not eat anything. My hope now is she will pass to the Rainbow bridge peacefully in her sleep. (EDIT: This was not to be.) She is and has always been a good girl. She deserves that much. Meantime, I keep praying for her. Be at peace Misty T. Bear. And know that you have been and always will be loved.
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