Special Stories
Rosie is a 2-year old female Schnauzer who was involved in a very unfortunate incident.
One day Rosie spotted some neighborhood dogs being taken for a walk by their owners. She was on her way across the street to greet everyone when the unthinkable happened - she was struck by a car.
Rosie’s owner took her to Sunnybrook Animal Hospital. He found out that she had a fractured femur and that it would be very expensive to perform the necessary surgery in order to save Rosie’s life. Rosie’s owner was unable to pay the costs, and he surrendered her to Sunnybrook.
The people at Sunnybrook brought Rosie to the Animal Welfare League. They assumed that shelter veterinarian, Lavinia Tulcan, would be able to perform the necessary surgery so Rosie could be saved. But the shelter did not have the necessary tools and Dr. Tulcan would not be able to perform the procedure without assistance from another veterinarian who had the proper equipment.
Dr. Tulcan contacted Dr. Hall from Southwest Verterinary Clinic. Dr. Hall agreed to help, but the surgery would cost $1,000.
In the meantime, Rosie’s neighbors who witnessed her accident asked her former owner how she was doing. He informed them that he surrendered her to Sunnybrook Animal Hospital because he was unable to pay for her surgery. The people found their way to the Animal Welfare League, where Rosie was now staying. These good Samaritans offered to pay for Rosie’s surgery. $800 was donated by the kind people, and the remaining $200 was paid by Dr. Tulcan.
Rosie would now be able to have the surgery. But the surgery itself would only be a small part of the entire process. Recovery would be the longest part of the journey.
Rosie’s leg needed to be pinned. A week after she arrived at the AWL, Rosie went for surgery and received the necessary pin. Following the surgery, her 8-week recovery period began. Rosie would need to be confined in a cage for the entire 8-week period. This was imperative in order to allow the bone to heal properly. Any rotation whatsoever would undo the healing process.
Not every dog would be able to deal with such circumstances. But Rosie was the perfect dog for the situation. She is young, intelligent, and has a lot of patience. Most importantly, she has a positive attitude.
Right now, Rosie is in week 6 of her recovery period and she is doing well. After the 8th week, she will receive x-rays. If all is well, the pin will be removed.
The Animal Welfare League would like to thank the donors who helped make Rosie’s surgery possible. She would not be alive today if it were not for you.
Stay tuned for more updates.
