April 26th, Melanie FB page update
Hi it’s Melanie again from the South Wood County Humane Society Foster Program and I wanted to share with you my update. I had my corrective eye surgery and I wanted to personally give Dr. Rasmussen, Tara, Jody and the team at All Care Animal Hospital in WI Rapids a big bear hug and butterfly kisses. The morning of my eye surgery did not start out like a normal day, as I did not get my yummy kibble after I have been practicing and practicing with my foster mom to eat in my crate. You see I had concerns, okay maybe a tiny fear… of being in a crate and eating all By Myself, so my foster mom crawled inside my crate to help me get over my concerns. Foster mom and I have been having breakfast and dinner in my crate Together! And sometimes my foster brothers and sisters join me in my crate for family time. My foster mom calls it “dining out with her pal Melanie!” I’m over that concern now and when I did not get my yummy kibble the other morning I knew something might be up!
Okay back to my surgery day story… For moral support my foster mom and Rachel one of her dog loving employees took me to the vet’s office. The big scary metal blue door slowly opened and I could feel my heart racing. I lowered my body to the ground to move slowly through the passageway as my foster mom encouraged me to walk in. I heard my name being spoken by the team at the clinic and immediately I felt safer and they welcomed me with open arms and my body perked right back up. My foster mom shared with them my little secret that I get worried sometimes about new things and that I might pee a little bit when I’m unsure or scared. My foster mom then spoke with Tara about the Entropion eye surgery and she promised they would take very good care of me. I looked up and saw my blue life line connected to my pick collar being handed off once again to another stranger. I had to be brave, I thought like my new foster mom was teaching me. As time passed I heard lots of strange noises as they prepped for O.R. but I don’t remember what happened after that. All I know is I woke up and my eyes hurt but the fuzzy painful eye lashes that have been rubbing the inside of my eyes for so long were no longer causing my eyes to burn. Which was a Good Thing!! I was so good after surgery they let me hang out at the reception area under the desk so I could rest my soft fuzzy head onto Jodie’s lap and on her shoes so I could be touching someone at all times and feel safe. It’s kind of a habit of mine to be close to people or canine because I couldn’t see. All of a sudden my body woken up to an explosion of smell that filled my nostrils and ran down my spine. I just had to get up and see (now that I can see) where that Amazing SMELL was coming from. So while the front desk staff was busy working with customers I slowly raised my body up and slinked out to follow my nose which led me to the top of a counter to eat a Pizza… BURP!! What can I say, I’m an 8 month old puppy that did not have breakfast and I was Hungry!!
As the sun started to set my foster mom came to take me safely home, and guess who was in the van? My snuggle bear Foster Dad!! It took me a bit to get into the van because I’m a little worried about getting into strange vehicles. You know the old saying don’t get into strangers vehicles… I know my foster mom and dad are not strangers but the van is strange. That night my foster angels put cool compresses onto my eyes to reduce the eye throbbing. She even played this “Spaw Music” to relax me so I could fall into a deep healing sleep. My foster mom even gave me a “Spaw Massage” to loosen up my tense muscles from the stressful day I had. My foster dad did what foster dads do best, offered his comforting body to ease my stress, so I laid on top of him to feel his warm healing energy.
When it was time for bed I did the most amazing thing with anesthesia in my system, pain killers on board and the cone of shame on… I leaped right into the giant King size bed to join my foster mom and dad for a night of rest. I waited for my foster mom to get tucked into bed, then I gently placed my two front paws onto her stomach and slowly melted my sore head on top of her chest. I softly placed my muzzle next to her warm cheek and started to fall asleep. I heard my foster mom whisper to my foster dad and say… “This is the first time in 30 years of rescue that I’ll be sleeping with my head inside the cone of shame.” My foster mom laced her finger together and peacefully placed them onto my spine to reassure me that she would be there all night. As the night drew long my foster mom became worried about me because of my labored breathing from the anesthesia. My heart would race and I would start to breathe heavily into my foster mom’s ear until finally I would take a slow deep breath and let it out and my heart would calm down. This went on for hours but lessened as the night became dawn.
As day broke it was back to normal with having breakfast in my crate. I was so excited to eat that I ran right into my big crate All By Myself. Though I got my Head Stuck… and had some issues turning around, foster mom to the rescue and helped me maneuver around with my cone of shame so I could face the front. My foster mom even held the bowl of food up high so I could eat from a raised dinner like the big dogs do here.
In the morning I heard my foster mom on the phone speaking to someone at the shelter about my surgery. She sent them photos of my eyes and I overheard them discussing how much it cost. My foster mom thought I was sleeping on a dog bed in her office but I was eavesdropping on her conversation… I opened one eye once I heard the swooshing sound from the Kleenex box and I thought my foster mom was going to wipe my eyes again from the goober that keeps melting out of them. No… I watched my foster mom gently touch her cheek and wipe a tear from her eye. I overheard her say something about how important the Shelters Medical Sponsor Donation fund is and that they always need to raise money to pay for major surgeries like the Entropion Eye Surgery I just had and for Crises Situations like the Miniature Pinschers last year that needed their help. My foster mom said she would contact her fellow dog peeps to see if they could help and she would start asking around to see if other animal lovers were willing to help the Shelters Medical Sponsor Donation Fund so foster dogs like me and other animals in their care would have the funds available when they needed it the most. I wish the Vet’s offices took treats for cash payments because I would give back all of the treats my foster mom has given me to help full up the Shelters Medical Sponsor Donation Fund.
I’m slowly recovering and very grateful for the Shelter’s Foster Home Program. I’m living in a very calm and loving home with “Spaw Music” to help me get back on my 4 paws again. My eyes still hurt and I keep them shut most of the day because of all the intense swelling (sorry for the graphic photos of me not at my best… but my foster mom said it was educational for others to learn about the Entropion eye condition I have) but the good news is when I do open them I can see without the painful eyelashes rubbing on my pupils. I give my foster mom and dad a lot of hugs and tell them how grateful I am to have them. And special hugs and butterfly kisses to the staff and volunteers at SWCHS for welcoming me at their doors. I have 2 weeks of recovery before I have to go back to the vet’s office and have them take out my stitches. That is where we will learn if the surgery worked or if I have to have this eye surgery again to fix these eye lids.
Bear Hugs & Butterfly Kisses… Melanie
P.S. I am not listed on the shelters website yet because I’m under medical care, but my paws are crossed that a loving family that is willing to help me overcome my concerns/fears will soon fill out an application to adopt me. My foster mom says that she thinks my fears will quickly melt away now that I can see things.