Afghan Hound Noah's Bills
Donation protected
Very gratefull for any help for this amazing family Lisa and Kieth Stevens and daughter Casey who opened their home and hearts to Noah and Lena. The following was written by family member Casey Stevens: After the loss of two Afghans within the span of six months, we adopted sibling Afghan Hounds, Noah and Lena, from rescue on August 8th, 2020. They were the perfect pair, always playing, being goofy, and most of all, they are both so sweet.
On Thursday, September 24th, we noticed Noah was suddenly very sick because he was unable to eat anything. We visited a local veterinarian on Friday who believed he has salmon poisoning and put him on doxycycline. Noah wasn’t feeling better the next day, so we went back to the vet who did many more tests and based on a blood draw, believed Noah to have immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA), a condition where the body's immune system attacks and removes its own red blood cells, thus leading to severe anemia. We decided Noah would have a best shot at survival if we rushed him to DoveLewis ER & ICU Animal Hospital in Portland, Oregon, nearly three and a half hours away. Noah was admitted to DoveLewis Saturday night around 10:00pm.
Using an ultrasound and radiographs, they were able to determine there was a massive amount of fluid in Noah’s lungs and that he was not likely going to survive the night. The overnight veterinarian initially extracted approximately ¼ liter of a mixture of blood and inflammatory fluids. At this point we were contacted if we wanted to proceed with removing the remainder of the fluid in the lungs to try to see if the blood could have been caused by a puncture with the hopes that a surgery could save his life. The veterinarian ended up removing more than a liter of fluid total and was able to take additional radiographs of his lungs which showed what appeared to be a diaphragmatic hernia. They believed that the spleen had moved from the abdomen and was putting pressure on the lungs. They were not sure what caused the bleeding but thought if they could surgically fix the hernia, he could survive.
To move forward with the surgery, Noah first needed to have a CT scan which he needed to be anesthetized for. The doctors planned it so that he could go straight from the CT scan to the surgery so he would not have to go under anesthesia more than once. After a short period of time I got a call saying that the CT scan showed that there was no hernia, but instead that both of his left lung lobes were flipped, also known as lung tube torsions. They said they had to pull Noah out of anesthesia because they needed to consult with a radiologist to verify the results of the CT scan. Several hours later, the we heard from the radiologist who agreed that there was a lung lube torsion, but only on the upper left lung lobe, which was so inflamed that it has completely deflated the lower left lung lobe. Immediately after the radiologist confirmed, they put Noah under anesthesia again and prepared him for surgery to remove only the upper left lung lobe.
The surgery was successful to remove the lung lobe and Noah began to recover in the ICU at DoveLewis. Everything was normal for the first two days post-surgery. On the third day post-surgery I received a call stating that the amount of fluid in Noah’s chest was substantially higher than expected, and they would have to run some tests on the fluid because of its cloudy characteristic. After some testing, they determined that Noah was having a chylous pleural effusion, also known as chylothorax, which is a buildup of lymphatic fluid in between the tissues that line the lungs and the chest. They said that the amount of fluid buildup in his chest was too great to be able to pull the chest tube. They were unsure why he was having this effusion post-surgery, but following some more tests, they believe he likely has lymphoma. Testing for lymphoma can take some time, so while we wait for the test results, they have allowed me to take Noah home. Noah was in the ICU for a total of 5 days and 5 nights, and I am currently taking him into DoveLewis every morning to get his chest tube drained of fluid and have his vitals checked in case of infection. We are currently at $15,000 in medical bills for Noah.
Regardless of whether Noah has lymphoma or simply a rare case of chylothorax because of a different but unknown cause, Noah’s prognosis is very grim and are aware the more than likely we are going to lose this sweet boy. During the last two months since Noah was adopted with his sister, he has brought so much love and joy to my family. He is the gentlest creature I have ever seen, showing no reaction towards other dogs, cats, or even small rodents. Every single veterinarian, criticalist, nurse, and vet tech at DoveLewis have all commented on his sweet, loving demeanor and the way he looks at them with his big, beautiful eyes. He has been referred to as a muppet and a marionette doll. He has stolen the hearts of anyone and everyone who has met him and even some people who have not. My mom said that maybe one of the best things about Noah getting sick, is that he has now had the opportunity to brighten even more
people’s lives. We have tried and are currently still fighting with every fiber to save this sweet baby’s life, and any help financially would be more helpful than words can say. We are so grateful for all the love and support we have received through this extremely difficult, emotional, and exhausting process.
On Thursday, September 24th, we noticed Noah was suddenly very sick because he was unable to eat anything. We visited a local veterinarian on Friday who believed he has salmon poisoning and put him on doxycycline. Noah wasn’t feeling better the next day, so we went back to the vet who did many more tests and based on a blood draw, believed Noah to have immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA), a condition where the body's immune system attacks and removes its own red blood cells, thus leading to severe anemia. We decided Noah would have a best shot at survival if we rushed him to DoveLewis ER & ICU Animal Hospital in Portland, Oregon, nearly three and a half hours away. Noah was admitted to DoveLewis Saturday night around 10:00pm.
Using an ultrasound and radiographs, they were able to determine there was a massive amount of fluid in Noah’s lungs and that he was not likely going to survive the night. The overnight veterinarian initially extracted approximately ¼ liter of a mixture of blood and inflammatory fluids. At this point we were contacted if we wanted to proceed with removing the remainder of the fluid in the lungs to try to see if the blood could have been caused by a puncture with the hopes that a surgery could save his life. The veterinarian ended up removing more than a liter of fluid total and was able to take additional radiographs of his lungs which showed what appeared to be a diaphragmatic hernia. They believed that the spleen had moved from the abdomen and was putting pressure on the lungs. They were not sure what caused the bleeding but thought if they could surgically fix the hernia, he could survive.
To move forward with the surgery, Noah first needed to have a CT scan which he needed to be anesthetized for. The doctors planned it so that he could go straight from the CT scan to the surgery so he would not have to go under anesthesia more than once. After a short period of time I got a call saying that the CT scan showed that there was no hernia, but instead that both of his left lung lobes were flipped, also known as lung tube torsions. They said they had to pull Noah out of anesthesia because they needed to consult with a radiologist to verify the results of the CT scan. Several hours later, the we heard from the radiologist who agreed that there was a lung lube torsion, but only on the upper left lung lobe, which was so inflamed that it has completely deflated the lower left lung lobe. Immediately after the radiologist confirmed, they put Noah under anesthesia again and prepared him for surgery to remove only the upper left lung lobe.
The surgery was successful to remove the lung lobe and Noah began to recover in the ICU at DoveLewis. Everything was normal for the first two days post-surgery. On the third day post-surgery I received a call stating that the amount of fluid in Noah’s chest was substantially higher than expected, and they would have to run some tests on the fluid because of its cloudy characteristic. After some testing, they determined that Noah was having a chylous pleural effusion, also known as chylothorax, which is a buildup of lymphatic fluid in between the tissues that line the lungs and the chest. They said that the amount of fluid buildup in his chest was too great to be able to pull the chest tube. They were unsure why he was having this effusion post-surgery, but following some more tests, they believe he likely has lymphoma. Testing for lymphoma can take some time, so while we wait for the test results, they have allowed me to take Noah home. Noah was in the ICU for a total of 5 days and 5 nights, and I am currently taking him into DoveLewis every morning to get his chest tube drained of fluid and have his vitals checked in case of infection. We are currently at $15,000 in medical bills for Noah.
Regardless of whether Noah has lymphoma or simply a rare case of chylothorax because of a different but unknown cause, Noah’s prognosis is very grim and are aware the more than likely we are going to lose this sweet boy. During the last two months since Noah was adopted with his sister, he has brought so much love and joy to my family. He is the gentlest creature I have ever seen, showing no reaction towards other dogs, cats, or even small rodents. Every single veterinarian, criticalist, nurse, and vet tech at DoveLewis have all commented on his sweet, loving demeanor and the way he looks at them with his big, beautiful eyes. He has been referred to as a muppet and a marionette doll. He has stolen the hearts of anyone and everyone who has met him and even some people who have not. My mom said that maybe one of the best things about Noah getting sick, is that he has now had the opportunity to brighten even more
people’s lives. We have tried and are currently still fighting with every fiber to save this sweet baby’s life, and any help financially would be more helpful than words can say. We are so grateful for all the love and support we have received through this extremely difficult, emotional, and exhausting process.
Organizer and beneficiary
Angela Barrett
Organizer
Florence, OR
Casey Stevens
Beneficiary