Can we turn on our heart light one more time?


October 16, 2001
Cameo has a grade 4-5 heart murmur...a hole in her heart, and she is not going to live long without your help. She needs surgery to fix it and to live. I am taking her to Texas A&M University Vet School, for the operation TODAY, right now. We need to raise $800.00 more dollars to pay for this surgery. I am going there on faith. Can you help Cameo?

Small Paws® Rescue: How to Donate Using a Credit Card

---

October 17, 2001 5:30 P.M.
UPDATE
We are now here at A&M vet school. They have just confurmed that Cameo does have a PDA heart murmur, grade 5, and is a candidate for immediate surgery tomorrow. She is coughing, Her lungs are filling with fluid, and they are giving her lasix, tonight. We got her here JUST in time, Praise God in the morning!

Here is our little Miss Cameo, stealing hearts at the front desk of Texas A&M School of Veterinary medicine. The "stealie" is one of my favorite people here, Lucy!


Here she is with her FABULOUS cardiologist, Dr. Sonjia Gordon, and 4th year vet student. Jeff Harrison. This is the fifth PDA procedure that Dr. Gordon has performed for us!


As I was leaving I met a precious little weenie booger, (Daschund) who had come all the way from Los Angeles, for the very same procedure, to be done by Dr. Gordon. Five month old "Delilah's" Dad raised money for her surgery and his trip by having car washes and garage sales.

I will have another update tomorrow after the surgery wich will take place at around 3:00 P.M. in order to give the lasix time to work. PRAY people pray!
(This is the only baby I have ever seen, at this age, who can stand up and do the "Bichon Wave", if you wave your paws..er uh..your hands at her. I am in trouble here, and trying not to look in her eyes.:) Thanks to ALL who have helped to make this life saving surgery possible!

---

October 18, 2001

Hi you guys,
Cameo is all right but…they could not do the coil technique procedure on her. Her veins are too small. When they got it there, in surgery, the catheter would not go up there.
I asked Dr. Gordon about maybe "growing her a little", to get the veins bigger, but she reminded me that Cameo is already "wet"…she has liquid building up on her lungs, and she simply can not wait for help.
So, tomorrow (pray it is tomorrow, they are going to try for tomorrow) Cameo will have the traditional rack the chest open procedure to repair this heart murmur.
The first thing that came to my mind was when we lost baby Stetson, when he had this same procedure. Dr Gordon told me to tell you guys, lighting does not strike twice. The mortality rate for this procedure is only 2 out of 100. She feels this is the only hope o saving baby Cameo.
The surgery will be done by Dr. Theresa W. Fossum, DVM,PHD,Diplomate,ACVS. She is the Read Chair in Veterinary surgery Professor and Chief of Surgery.
In other words, she is the best there is in the whole country practically and she is right here where we need her. She was not available for little Stetson's surgery. Stetson was so tiny. Just 2 pounds, he was born prematurely and it was jst not meant to be. Cameo is a healthy girl, but for the hole in her heart.
Well, that' all for now. I will know in the morning if they can do the surgery tomorrow. If they can, we can go home on Monday. If not, it will be on Monday and we can go home on Wednesday. I am seeing if there is anyway our fairy God Pilots, can get Dale down here for the weekend, so we can have a little fun time while we are waiting. More as it comes in…sorry the news is not better, but it will be soon…I promise!
Love, Robin
P.S. There was a Bichon named Rippy there, who had just had disk surgery. His Mom invited me to come into the visiting room, after she learned who I was and I know that we now have a brand new Small Paws® supporter. Rippy will get to come home on Sunday. Also, Delilah, the wienie booger's PDA repair was 100% successful. She goes home tomorrow.

---

October 22, 2001 4:00 P.M.
Cameo is out of surgery!
Cameo survived the surgery and is in recovery now! I will go there at 6:00 tonight and get pictures for you guys.! The surgeon said the murmur was HUGE, especially for a baby her size. But she is ok now!

---

Here is our little baby doll just hours after surgery.

Her was sooo sweepy...



She seemed to know me. Cameo is on "good drugs" to kill the pain. I leaned over her and promised her she would not remember this, and it would be all worth it, someday. I told her, "You just hide in the bushes and watch... you just you wait and see. This is all going to be worth it, one day...I promise you baby...I promise you."

---

October 23, 2001

Cameo is doing much better! This picture was taken yesterday on my way out of town. She wagged her tail and kissed my hand. It looks like she is saying thank you to all of you!


She is wearing her little t-shirt, and is no longer on morphine, but instead, a milder painkiller, now. Tomorrow, she will get to go home with one of our Houston Texas volunteers! She did the wave, in the arms of the vet student. She is still a charmer! Thank you all so very much for helping!

---

October 25, 2001

Cameo went home today!

Volunteers, Andra Heitzman and Terri McLain drove to Texas A&M to pick baby Cameo up, and took her home. Andra is adopting her! Here are the pictures of her homecoming!

Look at that baby's face!

One of the doctors at Texas A&M painted this precious T shirt for baby Cameo!

Here is Cameo's new mama, baby talking to her new baby Cameo!

Thanks to ALL of you for saving this baby!:)
_______________
November 9 Update!

Look how happy Miss Cameo is now, at her new home in Houston! She got her first grooming done today! They are in love with her, thanks to your generous contributions for her surgery!



Even Maggie, Cameo's new big sister is thrilled to have baby Cameo to join their family! Cameo is now a normal puppy with a normal life span!