Spicy's fighting journey
Donation protected
We want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the love and support that you have already given to our Red Puppy, Spicy. She had a very rough start to her life and has been permanently disfigured because of it. What this means is that she has no ear tips and she will have to have her eye removed and sewn shut when she is about 5 months old. She also will require surgery on her face and lip due to a lot of scar tissue, which we massage throughout the day while we also administer eye drops to keep her eye moist.
Spicy is a fighter with a fiery attitude and “spice” for life. So thank you for helping with Spicy's surgery! We are so blessed that you want to contribute to her recovery and quality of life! The money you are donating will be used for her surgery. If you would like to read her full story I have posted it below. Please proceed with caution though as there are Graphic Photos that follow. We hope that our tragedy can be a learning experience both for other first time breeders as well as ones that have been doing it for years. Warning Graphic Photos Below.
Spicy at 10 weeks
Right to left: Spicy, Clara, Venkman
When her scab was completely off.
All dead tissue lifting off of her face.
Tub feeding
Saturday morning around 4 am
Nov 16th where her ears were already shrinking and her face turning black.
Initially when our dog River (Spicy’s Mother) was confirmed to be pregnant we were overjoyed. She was found to be carrying four puppies at her ultrasound and she had a pleasant and healthy pregnancy. As it came time to prepare for the births we followed the information that was given to us precisely and prepared a whelping box accordingly. We were mentored to have the whelping box’s temperature set to 80 degrees Fahrenheit and to use a recirculating water heating pump, which was set to at least 95 degrees Fahrenheit (although it was covered by several layers of padded material so that the puppies would not make direct contact).
The information and guidance that was given to us was done in good faith and with the best of intentions. In fact this set up of heated whelping pins is quite common and is used by many reputable breeders. This can be seen throughout the internet and various literature. We have since learned some breeders even recommend keeping the circulating water pump as high as 105 degrees Fahrenheit (the belief is that it will kill off the herpes virus). Unfortunately, as we learned too late, this is not the ideal set up and it was too hot for our puppies and their mother. As we later came to find out, through the diagnosis of three separate veterinarians, the heat in the whelping box created necrotic tissue in the extremities and lil red puppy, Spicy, suffered the most from it. She lost her ears and almost her toes. She has scars on her left front leg and the top of her head as a result of what the doctors call a “perfusion issue secondary to overheating”.
It was a Wednesday evening when it came time for River to give birth. She was panting heavily and was very thirsty, though we attributed this to the birthing process. On Thursday morning we began to see the first signs of a puppy being birthed. However, it was not moving. We did all we could to try and revive her and ultimately rushed River and her puppy to the Emergency Vet. Unfortunately, the doctors could do nothing for the puppy and we lost her. Our hearts were broken.
River was immediately prepped for an emergency C-Section. As we would come to find out, all three of the remaining puppies were born in distress and each one had to be revived and brought back to life. At this point we were just thankful that River and the puppies were ok and we assumed that we had made it through the worst of it.
After getting the ok from the doctors we headed home with River and the puppies. Spicy had a lot to say and was the loudest of the bunch. She would move all around the whelping box and that’s when we started calling her Spicy Peanut- because it sounded like a racing dog's name.
The next morning (which was Friday) I noticed her ears had started to turn black at the tips. This is the point where her ears started to scab up and shrink. She also got a small scratch on her face that turned into an abscess over Friday night. We rushed Spicy to the ER in the early hours of Saturday morning and she was immediately put on antibiotics and probiotics. Unfortunately, the abscess started to drain into her nose and she couldn't breath very well. Saturday night we were given the fright of our lives when she stopped breathing. Luckily she was in my hands when it happened and while it was terrifying I was fortunately able to revive her.
We immediately rushed Spicy to the ER again that night, her second visit just that day. We were watching her nonstop and sucking the drainage out of her nose that night and into Sunday night as well. We were in constant fear of her not being able to breathe again.
Later on Sunday the swelling went up into her right eye and ruptured the eye lid. Sunday night we were back in the ER, this time with all the puppies and River so that everyone could be evaluated. Green boy was completely fine but Blue Girl was getting scabs and pus on the tip of her ears. We were worried and wanted to understand why this was all happening to the puppies and if it was a bacterial infection or something else. We eventually came to find out that it was due to thermal damage created by the heat from the water pump, which amplified the infection from the scratch and then turned into facial necrosis. Since the puppies didn’t have antibodies yet the infection went wild in the hot whelping box. At this point I questioned the quality of life for Spicy’s future and contemplated putting her down.
We struggled through that Sunday night, constantly clearing out her nasal passage. Monday morning we once again made a visit to the ER to have the puppies veterinarian, Dr. Hess, look at Spicy and give us her professional opinion. Dr. Hess said that Spicy’s vital signs/reflexes were perfect and that she had a feisty personality. While she could not promise her future, she said that her ears and face were all cosmetic issues and she believed Spicy had a great chance to pull through if we could beat the infection. We didn't know if she was going to have an eye (or if she would be able to see from it) and we didn't know what Spicy’s ears would look like after all the healing, but we did know that at such and early stage in her development there was a great chance that she could recover.
With renewed hope and encouragement by Dr. Hess we began laser treatments everyday for a week. This would eventually stop the infection as well as the drainage into her nose. We also totally changed course on how we had the whelping box set up at our home. Had we continued on the course that we were on with the whelping box we likely would have lost Spicy as well as the other puppies. Luckily we were blessed to have an amazing breeder friend who came over, examined our whelping box, and told us that we needed to change everything immediately in order to save our puppies. Through her expertise we learned that the ideal situation for a whelping box should be in a quiet room that is heated 76 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit for the 1st two days and then it can be lowered to 75 degrees until the puppies can regulate their body temperature. There is no need for a recirculating water pump as the mother should be the heating element for the puppies (which also helps with the bonding instinct).
We immediately implemented her suggestions and kept a close eye on how the puppies acted with the temperature. At 73 to 74 degrees they huddled together and when it got to 76 degrees they fanned out. Once we removed the recirculating water pad everyone was happier. River wasn't panting and the puppies began to thrive, especially Spicy! She was a fighter from the get go!
Although the puppies and mother were happier and beginning to thrive we still were not out of the woods yet. Spicy had so much pain in her face that she was unable to nurse on her mother River. We did the only thing that we could and began tube feeding her. My husband and I had to work together to tube feed Red girl every two hours morning, day, and night for the first 2 weeks of her life. Sometimes this could take as long as 45 minutes to complete as one of us held her and the other held the tube. We both never got more than an hour of sleep during those first two weeks before we had to be back up to feed her again. While it was exhausting it was worth it to help save her.
On Thanksgiving Day, Spicy was able to latch on to her mother River for the first time. We cried tears of joy and were so thankful that she was able to do that! Spicy loved nursing and got stronger on River but we still had to tube feed her in order to help her gain weight. This was still a tough process but we were able to push out feeding times, meaning that we could get about two hours of sleep before we had to feed her again.
At three weeks of age the scab on her face began to lift off and by the time she was 4 weeks and 2 days old the scab completely came off. Once Spicy was on semi-solid gruel (puppy food) she began to gain weight fast and was always the one to eat the most! We were so happy that she was doing well and beginning to improve.
At six weeks of age we met with Dr. Roberts, the best ophthalmologist in Colorado, at Animal Eye Center in Loveland to see the status on her eye. Unfortunately he confirmed that Spicy was blind. Since the bottom eye lid was missing he recommended that the best course of action was to remove her eye and sew it shut. He also suggested that she might need some reconstructive surgery on her lip as well.
Even though Spicy has only one good eye it doesn't slow her down! As of 11 weeks of age she can sit, down, heal on a leash, and sit when not in motion. She loves people and is very sweet. Everyone who has met her instantly falls in love with her “spiciness”! It is our hope that she will become a therapy dog for children with disfigurements like she has. We want to help her through her surgeries and when she is all healed up, we want to find someone who does therapy work with children. She is a fighter and the sweetest thing that I've had in my life. Thank you for all your support and kind words about this Spicy lil Peanut!
Right to Left: Venkman, Clara, Spicy, River
All dead tissue lifting off of her face.Tub feedingSaturday morning around 4 amNov 16th where her ears were already shrinking and her face turning black.Initially when our dog River (Spicy’s Mother) was confirmed to be pregnant we were overjoyed. She was found to be carrying four puppies at her ultrasound and she had a pleasant and healthy pregnancy. As it came time to prepare for the births we followed the information that was given to us precisely and prepared a whelping box accordingly. We were mentored to have the whelping box’s temperature set to 80 degrees Fahrenheit and to use a recirculating water heating pump, which was set to at least 95 degrees Fahrenheit (although it was covered by several layers of padded material so that the puppies would not make direct contact).
The information and guidance that was given to us was done in good faith and with the best of intentions. In fact this set up of heated whelping pins is quite common and is used by many reputable breeders. This can be seen throughout the internet and various literature. We have since learned some breeders even recommend keeping the circulating water pump as high as 105 degrees Fahrenheit (the belief is that it will kill off the herpes virus). Unfortunately, as we learned too late, this is not the ideal set up and it was too hot for our puppies and their mother. As we later came to find out, through the diagnosis of three separate veterinarians, the heat in the whelping box created necrotic tissue in the extremities and lil red puppy, Spicy, suffered the most from it. She lost her ears and almost her toes. She has scars on her left front leg and the top of her head as a result of what the doctors call a “perfusion issue secondary to overheating”.
It was a Wednesday evening when it came time for River to give birth. She was panting heavily and was very thirsty, though we attributed this to the birthing process. On Thursday morning we began to see the first signs of a puppy being birthed. However, it was not moving. We did all we could to try and revive her and ultimately rushed River and her puppy to the Emergency Vet. Unfortunately, the doctors could do nothing for the puppy and we lost her. Our hearts were broken.
River was immediately prepped for an emergency C-Section. As we would come to find out, all three of the remaining puppies were born in distress and each one had to be revived and brought back to life. At this point we were just thankful that River and the puppies were ok and we assumed that we had made it through the worst of it.
After getting the ok from the doctors we headed home with River and the puppies. Spicy had a lot to say and was the loudest of the bunch. She would move all around the whelping box and that’s when we started calling her Spicy Peanut- because it sounded like a racing dog's name.
The next morning (which was Friday) I noticed her ears had started to turn black at the tips. This is the point where her ears started to scab up and shrink. She also got a small scratch on her face that turned into an abscess over Friday night. We rushed Spicy to the ER in the early hours of Saturday morning and she was immediately put on antibiotics and probiotics. Unfortunately, the abscess started to drain into her nose and she couldn't breath very well. Saturday night we were given the fright of our lives when she stopped breathing. Luckily she was in my hands when it happened and while it was terrifying I was fortunately able to revive her.
We immediately rushed Spicy to the ER again that night, her second visit just that day. We were watching her nonstop and sucking the drainage out of her nose that night and into Sunday night as well. We were in constant fear of her not being able to breathe again.
Later on Sunday the swelling went up into her right eye and ruptured the eye lid. Sunday night we were back in the ER, this time with all the puppies and River so that everyone could be evaluated. Green boy was completely fine but Blue Girl was getting scabs and pus on the tip of her ears. We were worried and wanted to understand why this was all happening to the puppies and if it was a bacterial infection or something else. We eventually came to find out that it was due to thermal damage created by the heat from the water pump, which amplified the infection from the scratch and then turned into facial necrosis. Since the puppies didn’t have antibodies yet the infection went wild in the hot whelping box. At this point I questioned the quality of life for Spicy’s future and contemplated putting her down.
We struggled through that Sunday night, constantly clearing out her nasal passage. Monday morning we once again made a visit to the ER to have the puppies veterinarian, Dr. Hess, look at Spicy and give us her professional opinion. Dr. Hess said that Spicy’s vital signs/reflexes were perfect and that she had a feisty personality. While she could not promise her future, she said that her ears and face were all cosmetic issues and she believed Spicy had a great chance to pull through if we could beat the infection. We didn't know if she was going to have an eye (or if she would be able to see from it) and we didn't know what Spicy’s ears would look like after all the healing, but we did know that at such and early stage in her development there was a great chance that she could recover.
With renewed hope and encouragement by Dr. Hess we began laser treatments everyday for a week. This would eventually stop the infection as well as the drainage into her nose. We also totally changed course on how we had the whelping box set up at our home. Had we continued on the course that we were on with the whelping box we likely would have lost Spicy as well as the other puppies. Luckily we were blessed to have an amazing breeder friend who came over, examined our whelping box, and told us that we needed to change everything immediately in order to save our puppies. Through her expertise we learned that the ideal situation for a whelping box should be in a quiet room that is heated 76 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit for the 1st two days and then it can be lowered to 75 degrees until the puppies can regulate their body temperature. There is no need for a recirculating water pump as the mother should be the heating element for the puppies (which also helps with the bonding instinct).
We immediately implemented her suggestions and kept a close eye on how the puppies acted with the temperature. At 73 to 74 degrees they huddled together and when it got to 76 degrees they fanned out. Once we removed the recirculating water pad everyone was happier. River wasn't panting and the puppies began to thrive, especially Spicy! She was a fighter from the get go!
Although the puppies and mother were happier and beginning to thrive we still were not out of the woods yet. Spicy had so much pain in her face that she was unable to nurse on her mother River. We did the only thing that we could and began tube feeding her. My husband and I had to work together to tube feed Red girl every two hours morning, day, and night for the first 2 weeks of her life. Sometimes this could take as long as 45 minutes to complete as one of us held her and the other held the tube. We both never got more than an hour of sleep during those first two weeks before we had to be back up to feed her again. While it was exhausting it was worth it to help save her.
On Thanksgiving Day, Spicy was able to latch on to her mother River for the first time. We cried tears of joy and were so thankful that she was able to do that! Spicy loved nursing and got stronger on River but we still had to tube feed her in order to help her gain weight. This was still a tough process but we were able to push out feeding times, meaning that we could get about two hours of sleep before we had to feed her again.
At three weeks of age the scab on her face began to lift off and by the time she was 4 weeks and 2 days old the scab completely came off. Once Spicy was on semi-solid gruel (puppy food) she began to gain weight fast and was always the one to eat the most! We were so happy that she was doing well and beginning to improve.
At six weeks of age we met with Dr. Roberts, the best ophthalmologist in Colorado, at Animal Eye Center in Loveland to see the status on her eye. Unfortunately he confirmed that Spicy was blind. Since the bottom eye lid was missing he recommended that the best course of action was to remove her eye and sew it shut. He also suggested that she might need some reconstructive surgery on her lip as well.
Even though Spicy has only one good eye it doesn't slow her down! As of 11 weeks of age she can sit, down, heal on a leash, and sit when not in motion. She loves people and is very sweet. Everyone who has met her instantly falls in love with her “spiciness”! It is our hope that she will become a therapy dog for children with disfigurements like she has. We want to help her through her surgeries and when she is all healed up, we want to find someone who does therapy work with children. She is a fighter and the sweetest thing that I've had in my life. Thank you for all your support and kind words about this Spicy lil Peanut!
Right to Left: Venkman, Clara, Spicy, River
Organizer
Christie Henriksen
Organizer
Littleton, CO