VERY overdue update - 4.4.10
Sophia has fully recovered from her foot amputation. We just visited the vet yesterday and she is infection free. Her foot is healed. Her diaper is normally. She is rearing & ready to go!  This is a slideshow about 1 month after her surgery. She went back to visit her favorite photographer, Ixiana of Petographs. Ixiana also took pics of Sophia's foster siblings, Flannery & Biscuit (both have since been adopted). Happy Holidays Everyone!!!!! Sophia thanks everyone who helped her (and her mom) get through this trying time. Everyone's love, thoughts & prayers got us through this!  Update 12.15.09 sophia has to have her foot amputated at the hock joint. she is going in for surgery tomorrow. as many of you know, sophia's life depends on keeping her infection free. her raw, open foot is exposing her to multiple sources of infection.  this is a risk, after 6+ months of trying to manage, we can no longer take or try to contain. if it is given enough time to heal, the wound will close (as it it did on her other foot). so we have to remove enough of her foot so that she literally cannot reach the wound site while wearing her cone. The hock joint is the point on sophia's back leg below the knee.....like the ankle on a human. we are going to apply some of the money raised for her in the 1st year to this surgery. her foot is posing a threat to her life and we feel this is the best decision and preliminary use of the funds raised for her over a year ago. there were many reasons for us forming Curly Tail Pug Rescue....but sophia's case was definitely a critical turning point in our lives. her future care plan and need for a truly safe haven was the impetus which propelled us to form our own rescue. a rescue where dogs like sophia get a chance... please keep her in your thoughts tomorrow as she is being admitted @ 10:30am. we will post an update either tomorrow evening or thursday morning. The Distlefink is the good luck bird of the early Pennsylvania Dutch.
The two birds gives a "double measure of good fortune. This is especially helpful during life's trying times. The Trinity tulips stand for faith, hope & charity..... .....faith in yourself, faith in what you do and faith in your fellow man. The scalloped border symbolize ocean waves for smooth sailing through life. Update 12.07.09 it has been a while since we have been able to do a sophia update. so many have still been so supportive and send her items she needs and thoughts of well being! we thank everyone for keeping sophia in their thoughts!!!!! all of the money raised so far for sophia ($7100.00) is still in her personal bank account and has not been touched! --------------------------------------------------------  as usual, we didn't expect another turn in the road for her. but we are always ready and we always figure it out (somehow!). she had been having severe diarrhea on and off for these past months since her birthday and we weren't sure why. sophia needs her diet to be VERY carefully managed. the lightest change in anything, mainly protein, can cause her bowels to react VERY poorly. we ran batteries of tests b/c, as we know, infection will end up causing her the most danger. we have kept her infection free since she came into our care WITHOUT the use of traditional antibiotics. so we were anxious to control the loose stool b/c that is quite dangerous for a pup in diapers 24-7. she had started chewing on her feet last spring after sustaining an injury from a foster puppy. her foster brother, butter, was trying to play with her and nip at her feet to get her to play. he didn't understand that she could feel his puppy antics.....and it caused a minor puncture wound. unfortunately, sophia's supersonic sense of smell (like all of her other incredible powers) enabled her to smell the wound and the licking began. then the licking turned to chewing and next thing we knew, we had a MAJOR problem! since then, sophia has had a portion of her left foot removed and ALL of the digits on her right foot removed as well. she is not fully healed but is almost there. the challenge was keeping her from hurting herself further and in addition causing very dirty diapers. because sophia's spine is curved, she was able to maneuver out of every preventative contraption we could think of. we used foot splits, ace bandages, tons of gauze, HUGE cones (anything & everything)....she was always able to contort her body in order to access her foot. she is even more inventive than she in flexible! but we learned, ingesting the wound area caused the loose stool....who would have guessed?!?!?! we have put her on an Rx diet of I/D (which we hate to do but have no choice) and daily doses of tylan powder to try and control her inflamed bowels. she is on the mend but not fully there yet. we will post more pics and videos over the last few months but wanted a quickie update and to show off her beautiful doe eyes! This is a slideshow about
1 month after her surgery. She went back to visit her favorite
photographer, Ixiana of Petographs. Ixiana also took pics of Sophia's
foster siblings, Flannery & Biscuit (both have since been adopted).
Click here to donate: Sophia's Therapy Chip-In or Surgery Chip-In Sophia's First Birthday Party - 6/20/2009! Springtime Sophia - May/June 2009     Sophia hasn't been feeling too well. So she comes to work with me on tough days. This is her cuddled in her blanket and Oliver's shirt to keep her warm and comfy! 6-3-09  Sophia hops in a cab and come to work with me!
2-5-09
Update 2-2-09 Sophia went to see Dr. Solomon with me this past weekend. She is just over 7 mos old and a whopping 5.5 lbs!
We are still on target to get her the surgery when she turns 1 y/o. Dr. Solomon confirmed that we need to get her as healthy and as strong as possible to make her candidacy for surgery that much better.
We are on the right track. Sophia continues to be infection free and is the happy, fireball of a pug puppy that she always has been.
Click here: Update 11-08
   AMC Photographs © 2008 Kerrie Merullo
'Original' Saving Sophia Blog
Sophia is a pug puppy who was born with Spinda Bifida. There is not much documented information about Canine Spina Bifida, so we have been relying on using the human experience and research available to help give us insight.
Sophia's biggest threat to survival is infection. With paralysis and her being 100% incontinent, she is prone to recurring UTIs which are more complicated in her case. I didn't think UTIs were that big of a deal when they 1st told me but...... Because of her disease and internal deformity, UTIs can VERY easily spread to her kidneys causing kidney failure. The same type of infection can cause Sepsis which is the following: Sepsis is a serious medical condition with all characterized by a whole-body inflammatory state. The body may develop this inflammatory response to microbes in the blood. The related layman's term is blood poisoning. The bubble on her back is incredibly dangerous because it is prone to bacterial infections. Because that bubble is filled with spinal fluid, an infection there would go straight to her brain, causing Meningitis and effect her Central Nervous System. This would cause soaring fevers, severe pain throughout her little body and she would not likely survive. |
Supplies for Sophia
Wet I/D Food: $33/case x 2 cases/month = $66
Diapers: $13/package x 4 packages/month = $52 Wipes: $5/refill pack x 3 packs/month - $15 Baby Powder: $6 bottle x 4 bottles/month = $24 10% shipping costs --------------------------------------------- Total per Month: $172.70 TOTAL per YEAR: $2072.40 Sophia's Wishlist
Updated 12.7-09 We use only the cleanest and healthiest products for Sophia & our Curly pups. All geared towards keeping her infection free. Size 16-25lbs (She is getting longer!)
Chlorine Free Diapers offer soft, cloth-like comfort and premium
absorbency. In addition to keeping Sophia dry, the super absorbent
polymer is non-toxic and hypoallergenic.
Kaolin and slippery elm bark in this baby powder absorb wetness and
relieve chafing and prickly heat. This 100% talc-free formula uses
cornstarch, instead, to keep baby's skin soft. Phthalate- and
paraben-free.
The words to this song truly speak to me
and my experience with Sophia....and how we are learning new things every day
....Who's to say what's impossible?
Upside Down by Jack Johnson - Lyrics Who's to say What's impossible Well they forgot This world keeps spinning And with each new day I can feel a change in everything And as the surface breaks reflections fade But in some ways they remain the same And as my mind begins to spread its wings There's no stoppin' curiosity I wanna turn the whole thing upside down I'll find the things they say just can't be found I'll share this love I find with everyone We'll sing and dance to Mother Nature's song I don't want this feeling to go away Who's to say I can't do everything Well I can try And as I roll along I begin to find Things aren't always just what they seem I wanna turn the whole thing upside down I'll find the things they say just can't be found I'll share this love I find with everyone We'll sing and dance to Mother Nature's song This world keeps spinning and there's no time to waste Will it all keep spinning and spinning round and round and Upside down Who's to say whats impossible and can't be found I don't want this feeling to go away Please Don't go away is this how it's supposed to be |
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Curly ER Stickers Curly Quote of the Week I ask people why they have deer heads on their walls. They always say because it's such a beautiful animal. There you go. I think my mother is attractive, but I have photographs of her. ~ Ellen DeGeneres Curly Social NetworksRick Springfield.........supports Curly Tail Pug Rescue!  CTPR |
Saving Sophia |
