March 15, 2004
Gem of the Day: Always look at what you have
left. Never look at what you have lost.
~Robert H. Schuller~
Heaven's Nine Newest Bichons
(Many thanks to "Zac's Mom" for
this beautiful memorial page, "Where the Roses Never Fade.")
Please scroll to the bottom of this newsletter,
to see a special poem
dedicated to these precious Bichons.
Dear Small Pawsers,
Welcome to the newest members of our online
mailing list, especially if you have recently
seen us featured on Animal Planet.
Small Pawsers everywhere welcome you with
open arms, and we hope that you enjoy "reading
Small Paws."
If you are new to Small Pawsing®, this may
look as if it is coming only to you but really
it is going out to fellow Small Pawsers all
across our country and in several foreign
countries as well. Please turn up your speakers.
We have music for you.
If you did not receive the last newsletter
that we sent, here it is.
http://www.smallpawsrescue.org/pup3/march9.html
For those of you receiving the Small Paws
Rescue newsletter for the first time this
evening, please let me assure you that this
is not a normal newsletter.
We have never, ever, had anything so sad
happen, in the almost six years since our
beginning back in the summer of 1998. Sadly,
today, we had to euthanize the Brucellosis
positive Bichons, we recently rescued from
Iowa.
As many of you know, we recently rescued
19 Bichons from a commercial kennel in Iowa.
After initial testing at our local veterinary
lab, to our shock and horror, twelve of them
immediately tested positive for Canine Brucellosis.
This is the newsletter I sent out that day,
explaining how terrible this diagnosis actually
is.
http://www.smallpawsrescue.org/pup3/february21.html
We followed the advice of Cornell University
and sent in twelve blood samples to them,
to confirm what the local tests had told
us. The Cornell Brucellosis NYSDL blood test
is supposed to be 96% accurate for positive
results and 100% accurate for negative results.
The good news was that one of the dogs, one
of the babies, a young female named Sammi, born 12/2/02, age 1, had previously
had two FALSE positives, and was now testing
100% negative, thanks to the NYSDL blood test. Sammi is saved. Thank God for that.
Cornell told us that the only way to be absolutely
positive about the others...100% positive,
( before I was going to give any order to
euthanize ANY Bichons, I needed to be 100%,
no mistake about it, positive) was to submit
blood from each of the dogs, for cultures
to be grown in their laboratory over a ten
day to two week period. This would be a fourth and final test, so
there could be absolutely no doubt, that
the Brucella Canis organism was indeed alive
and growing in these dogs.
In the past few days, nine of the eleven
all came back positive, with two coming back
inconclusive, and Cornell has recommended
retesting in 4-6 weeks for those two. Those
two dogs, still alive and in isolation tonight,
are Bennie, a male, born 9/28/02, age 1, and
Sophie, (Sammi's sister) a female born 12/2/02.
Earlier in the week, 11 year old Buttons,
woke up dead in her cage at the vet's office.
One week ago yesterday, Connie, age 8 went
down and could not get back up.
Since we did NOT have a for sure positive
culture test back for Connie, we did everything
we could to save her life. Dr. Russell came
in on a Sunday and began IV fluids.
By Friday, she had gone downhill even further...just
as the news of results of the positive cultures
arrived via fax, from Cornell University.
She and the others, were 100% positive. I
told Dr. Russell to go ahead and put Connie
down right then.
The reason we waited until today to euthanize
the other seven, is something that I hope
will give each of you a bit of comfort and
some hope for the future.
Thanks to our Louisiana Team Leader, Diane
Lewis, we have been working very closely
with an Veterinary Infectious Disease Specialist
from LSU, named Dr. Phillip H. Elzer. Dr. Elzer has dedicated his life to the
study of Brucellosis, and even has the disease
himself.
He tried to arrange it so that we could send
these dogs to LSU to participate in a possible
research project, but the University didn't
want to accept the liability for it's students,
and I know we can all certainly understand
that.
Dr. Elzer had even considered adopting one
of the younger babies, but after learning
that the Brucellosis cells are actively growing,
and being shed, he just couldn't put his
family at risk.
It seems that this has never happened before
anywhere in the country. This many Brucellosis
positive dogs, TRULY 100% NO DOUBT POSITIVE,
that are actively shedding the virus, all
showing up in one location.
Because of these incredible findings, it
only made sense to say yes to Dr. Elzer's
request. First, he asked permission for our
name, Small Paws Rescue, to be used in the
Veterinary Journals that will display his
findings from research that will be soon
done.
You see, after each of the seven were euthanized
today, tissue and organ samples were harvested,
and sent to LSU in the special testing kits
that just arrived, in HOPES, that a vaccine
for this horrid disease can be found.
Since this many positive dogs have never
been in one place, this is an extraordinary
find to the research community.
When Dr. Elzer asked me for permission to
harvest these samples after euthanasia, he
was doing it so very gingerly, afraid that
I might say no.
You know what I told him? I told him that
when I die, to cut me up, spread me around,
and share whatever can be used for someone
else, because where I am going, I WILL NOT
NEED THIS CONTAINER, THIS BOX THAT ONCE HELD
MY SPIRIT, ANYMORE.
I felt the very same way about these precious
Bichons, today. Because they lived...and
because they died, the probability of a Canine
Brucellosis vaccination being discovered,
is much greater tonight, than it was last
night.
Because they lived and because they died,
maybe we will be the last ones to mourn over
this dreaded disease in the future.
We have this letter for you tonight, from
Dr. David Russell, of the Small Animal Clinic of Tulsa.
<Date: 3/15/2004 1:21:24 PM Central Standard
Time
From: mail@tulsavet.com
To: pup3@aol.com
Dear Small Paws Members,
As you know, Small Paws Rescue recently rescued
several bichons from a breeder in Iowa. We
routinely run a screening test for Brucella
canis in all dogs that come from the breeders.
The initial tests showed that 12 were positive
for Brucellosis. The test that was run is
very sensitive, which means it is possible
to have false positive results. We submitted
additional blood samples to Cornell University
to confirm the diagnosis. Only one of the
results was negative, 2 were inconclusive,
and the rest were positive. They recommended
retesting the 2 inconclusive dogs and all
of the negative dogs in 4-6 weeks and submit
a blood culture for the positive dogs. The
blood cultures were also positive for brucella.
Robin and I have both spoken with numerous
experts about Brucellosis to determine if
there are any new treatments for this disease.
The current recommendations are 4-6 weeks
of antibiotics and surgical sterilization.
Unfortunately, this treatment does not completely
eliminate the organism from the body. Although
the chance of human exposure is low after
treatment, no one could assure us that the
risk is zero. Based on this information,
Small Paws Rescue and I agreed that these
dogs would not be placeable and euthanasia
would be the best option.
Sincerely,
David Russell, DVM>
I wanted you all to know that we offered
to pay for another vet tech to come into
the vet's office, after hours, to help Doc
to set these precious Bichons free, today.
Both of our vet techs, Crystal (a Bichon
mom who has adopted from Small Paws) and
Kathy, who loves these Bichons like they
were her own, have become so special to us
here at Small Paws.
You should see the huge map of the USA these
ladies have made and placed in a frame on
the wall of the clinic, with colored pins
marking the cities where you, the adopters
of these fuzzy white ambassadors for Small
Paws, live. Each Bichon that has gone home
to you, from the Small Animal Clinic of Tulsa., is marked on that map with a brightly colored
blue, green, yellow, or red pin.
Kathy was off today, but Crystal said she
wanted to be there to lovingly hold them,
and talk to them as they left us. Both Crystal
and Dr. Russell were dressed in protective
clothing, (masks, gloves, etc.) to insure
no further exposure to either of them.
Neither Bonnie or I were able to be there
while they crossed, due to infectious nature
of this disease.
You know, I have always told you that I never,
ever worry about a dead dog. I never worry
about them because I KNOW BEYOND A SHADOW
OF A DOUBT WHERE THEY ARE.
I worry about the thousands of dogs of every
breed who sit in cages in commercial kennels
across our country tonight, waiting...waiting
for someone to come and take them into loving
arms.
I worry about the tens of thousands of dogs,
who through no fault of their own, are suffering
with broken bones and injuries in understaffed
and over populated shelters across our country,
all because neither their mother or their
father were spayed or neutered.
I worry about the animals everywhere across
our globe, that are suffering untold horrors
and pain.
I DO NOT WORRY ABOUT THESE PRECIOUS BICHONS
WHO WENT HOME TODAY. They are sitting at the right hand of God,
tonight, having the time of their lives!
I KNOW THIS AS SURE AS I AM TYPING TO YOU
TONIGHT.
For many of you, this news may be hard to
process. I hope this story may help you.
It is 100% true. I know, because I wrote
it.
Sparkey's Story: A True Story of Loss.
I know many of you have been wondering if
we would get our money back from the seller.
Last Friday we deposited a check from him
in the amount of $5790.00. He refunded the
purchase price for each of the eleven Brucellosis
positive dogs.
Oh, one more thing. Dr. Elzer tells me that
the chances of Bonnie Ferguson, our Executive
Assistant, and I having contracted Brucellosis
from these dogs from handling them once for
a period of about 15 minutes, the day we
unloaded them, is very, very minute. He said
in order for a human being to contract this
disease, they would need to be handling the
dogs, day in day out for several weeks or
months.
I think that's everything for tonight. Please
feel free to share this newsletter with your
other lists and rescue groups.
Thank you all for being patient with me over
the last few weeks. I know I have been quiet.
It has been one of the most difficult things,
with which I have ever had to deal.
The reason we try so hard to avoid euthanasia
is that we believe that these precious Bichon
spirits can be a blessing to a human being,
to give and receive love, sometimes these
little fluffs may be the only love that a
person has in their lives at a particular
time.
But with this dreaded diagnosis, there was
just no blessing to be shared.
Tonight, I have total peace in my heart.
That comes from your continued prayers for
us. Of this I have no doubt, and I thank
you from the bottom of my heart.
Tomorrow, I will drive over to bring back
seven more of our beloved breed from the
commercial kennels of Missouri. Tomorrow
is a new day. Love, Robin
Heavens Newest Bichons
By Robin Pressnall
Don't cry for us! Our spirits are free.
To stay there with you, was just not to be.
God holds us close now, in His big loving
arms.
You know even He, can't resist our Bichon
charms!
He sees us blitzing with unabandoned glee,
Young and healthy and happy, you see.
For in our new home, there are no more tears.
No sadness, no illness, no time, and no years.
Now we all have a real family!
Moses walks us daily, and Noah gives us treats!
No more wire for us, we now run on a lawn,
With Matthew and Mark, with Luke, and with
John.
Our days are filled now, with joy beyond
belief!
Please don't spend too much time there, in
grief.
Remember we nine, and the few days that we
shared.
After our working days were over, we know that you cared.
We know that you loved us, all nine, sight
unseen.
We all loved you too, and one day 'twill
be...
We will all come and greet you, when you
too, shall pass.
Remember we nine are in a loving home, at
last.
Gone, but never, ever forgotten.
SHAWNEY FEMALE 10/22/02 age 1
JANE FEMALE 11/2/98 age 5
MURPHY FEMALE 3/4/97 age 6
SMURPH FEMALE 3/4/97 age 6
MITZY FEMALE 7/14/97 age 6
SUGAR FEMALE 10/7/96 age 7
CONNIE FEMALE 1/30/96 age 8
ANDY - MALE 7/1/93 age 10
BUTTONS-FEMALE 2/19/93 age 11
Robin Pressnall
Executive Director
Small Paws® Rescue
Gospel CD: It's A God Thing!
Singing for Small Paws®
The Heart Murmur Repair Bichons Reunion Page
Small Paws® Rescue: Bichons Available for
Adoption
Small Paws® Rescue: The Gift Shoppe
Small Paws® Rescue: Visa, Master Card, American
Express, Discover Card
Robin's Canine Cancer Files