URGENT--POWER OF THE PAW NEEDED FOR MY TIGER

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"No matter how little money and how few possessions you own, having a dog makes you rich."

-- Louis Sabin
 
 
My dearest friends, I have some very bad news.
 
My Tiger dug a hole in his back yard, got out and was attached by a dog this afternoon. My Mommy was off today to go to the eye doctor and had just gotten home when Sandra called and told Mommy that she had an emergency. OMD, not my Tiger! Mommy called Dr Briles, Shelby & my doctor, and he said for us to bring him right over. When Sandra and a friend came to get Mommy, my poor Tiger was breathing very heavily and his poor little heart was beating so fast in his chest and you could tell he was in a lot of pain. 

He was very lethargic and cried when you touched him.

Mommy & Sandra both cried when they put one of those thingies on his face, but he was in so much pain that they were afraid he would fight them.

Tiger gots chest trauma because the BIG bad dog had Tiger in his jaws around his middle. They  shaved some of his hair where he was swollen.

Dr Briles has his thumb in Tiger's side. The BIG bad dog didn't break the skin but Dr Briles could feel a torn muscle between his ribs. He needed x-rays to see what damage there was to his insides BUT Dr Briles said he needed to go to an Emergency Room and it would be best to have them done there so he gave Tiger a steroid shot and a shot for pain and binded his chest very tightly..... 

But to do that they had to steal most of my Tiger's beautiful blond hair.

My Tiger's hair.

Tiger was in pain & cried a lot while he was being bandaged so Mommy and Sandra were both crying too.

It didn't take long for Tiger to knock out. Once his chest was bond tightly, his breathing became almost normal. So Mommy paid $81.50 and they hurried over to the emergency room.


Mona's Mommy here.......

I am so thankful I was at home when Sandra called so I could help her. Sandra was frantic. Thank goodness, there was a friend who drove her to get me and she didn't have to drive alone. He cried so much when she tried to pick him up after the attack, that she carried him in a box lid. She was so scared for Tiger since she actually saw the attack. It was very difficult to see poor Tiger gasping for breath and his heart racing. As you know Sandra is the only one working right now and has no spare money. I had just gone to the credit union earlier in the day to get some money out to pay a bill but Tiger is Mona's love and right now he is more important then that bill. I can always make more money but not another Tiger..


When we got to the emergency room, he was whisked away and they started treating him right away. Then the doctor came and spoke to us. She was very concerned because there was air under the skin and she said she needed to do the x-rays to see how much damage there was.
After they were done she called us back to show us the X-rys. His right side is OK but his left side has 2 broken ribs, torn muscles between his ribs and a hole in his lung. They wanted to keep him overnight because the next 24 hours are critical but Sandra wanted him home. She has taken care of dogs with Parvo, all of which survived and she's almost like a nurse. Look how well Shelby is doing under her care. She will need to give him Pedilite ever two hours and monitor him very closely to see that the air in his lungs doesn't choke him. The doctor said sometimes the hole in the lung will close on it's own but if not he may need emergency surgery. He will need complete rest in a crate, no excitement (easier said than done with Tiger) and feed him baby food or chicken & rice. He has an antibiotic, a pain medication and Rimaldy to take. I couldn't keep track of all the medications and times to give them and I admire Sandra so much for having the strength to do this. If he takes a turn for the worst during the night, we will rush him back there. If that happens he will have surgery right away. If he holds his own under Sandra's care, she will take him to my Vet to have his dressings changed on Monday. Then we are looking at 4 to six weeks, maybe longer, for him to heal. So we brought him home after paying $400.00. They had him on morphine, when they brought him to us. I sat in the back sit with him, in his box lid again, and for my peace of mind had my hand on his side making sure he was still breathing. I'm sure I won't sleep much tonight and I know Sandra won't. I think Sandra is afraid how we will pay for it if he needs surgery, around another $1500.00, but we will manage.   

Tiger at the emergency clinic. He is so much better already and was waging his tail as the vet tech was carrying him to the car.

Back in the car going home in his box.

He finally feel asleep with his head in my hand.


Sorry to be so long winded, but as most you know by now, when I get upset about something like this I have to let off steam. Please keep Tiger in your thoughts and prayers. I will keep you posted.

Mona's Mommy, Sarah

& Love, kisses and {{huggies}} to all from Mona

PS....Sandra is still without a computer at home but can access her blog thru her cell phone so please go over and tell her that the Power of the Paw is coming right at Tiger.