She was four years old
and destined for euthanasia. Why?
Because of a severe skin condition.
Keira’s first family “gave” her to
someone to watch for them two years
ago, and then decided they didn’t want
her back. Her “second family” already
had two Goldens, and couldn’t afford
to spend a lot of money on tests
trying to diagnose her problem. So
she just received superficial care,
and even that was not consistent. As
a result, this sweet, friendly girl
spent a great deal of time out in the
backyard or tucked in the corner of a
room. Thankfully a friend told them
about GRRI-NJ. Rescue was her last
chance.
Upon
arriving at the house to do an
evaluation, our volunteers were
cheerfully met by an obese, 110-lb.
Golden. She was happily trying to play
in the backyard with a chocolate lab and
one of her puppies, the result of an
accidental breeding the prior year. Her
size – and possibly her medical
condition - was definitely causing
problems with her mobility.
The skin covering her
entire body looked like blackened
elephant hide. It was mostly dry, scaly
and flaking. Some areas were moist,
others were caked with a smelly
residue. Large patches of fur had
fallen out. A severe odor emanated
from her body. Her nails were so long
they were beginning to curl. This was a
dog in need of immediate veterinary
care.
A foster home was
quickly arranged, and before she knew
it, Keira was in another home. She
was placed on a diet with a premium
dog food. Within days she was
examined by a veterinarian who was
horrified by her condition. She
suspected a severe yeast infection. A
full blood panel and thyroid panel was
done, and in the interim she was given
two oral medications for her skin
condition as well as a medicated
shampoo to be applied three times a
week.
Test results revealed a
severe case of autoimmune thyroiditis.
She was placed on Soloxine, and given
a holistic “detox” procedure called
NAET (Nambutripad’s Allergy
Elimination Technique). This is a
technique that uses biomagnetic energy
to eliminate all types of allergies
and related diseases.
After
several weeks, Keira started to become
lethargic again and wouldn’t eat. She
was becoming nauseous from the oral
medication. Thankfully at this point she
had improved enough that the
veterinarian was comfortable stopping
them. Furthermore, her weight was now
down to 85-lbs!
A
downy fur was starting to grow on the
bald patches, and the blackened areas
were sloughing off revealing pink
healthy skin. Her remaining fur was
becoming soft and glossy. She was
energetic, running and playing. She
was ready for adoption.
At this point we had
entered the holiday season and all
adoptions were on hold ‘til the New
Year. However, we did allow the
family we selected to come and meet her
and agreed that they could adopt her
after Christmas.
Today,
Keira is happy, content, and thriving in
her forever home. Her name – which is
Gaelic for “Fiery Red” – now reflects the
condition of her beautiful, healthy coat
and her fiery personality.
It’s hard to believe that
this dog almost lost her life because of
a yeast infection caused by a severe
thyroid condition. Thanks to the
wonderful care and love she was given by
her foster home, and to the funds
available in the GRRI-NJ Joann Smith
Memorial Fund, (http://www.grrinj.org/jsmf/)
she was able to receive the medical care
that she needed so that she could go on
to lead a happy, normal life with her
new family.
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