Squad Foster Hope Weekly Update: June 21-28, 2024
June 21-28, 2024
Last Tuesday, Squad Foster Hope’s lab results showed elevated white blood cell counts and extremely high eosinophil levels (literally off the charts!). She tested negative for parasites and heartworm, and her allergies are managed well with Cytopoint. Dr. Price, in consultation with internal medicine colleagues, suggested testing Hope’s resting cortisol levels due to suspected Addison’s Disease.
Last Friday, Hope underwent a cortisol test which indicated her cortisol levels were significantly below normal, strengthening the suspicion of Addison’s disease. Earlier this week, Hope was administered the ACTH-STEM test, which involves a synthetic ACTH injection to stimulate cortisol production. To our relief, Hope’s cortisol levels increased normally, ruling out Addison’s disease. While we are relieved she doesn’t have this chronic condition, we remain puzzled about her overall health.
Dr. Price has now referred Hope to Fetch for a thorough examination with an internal medicine specialist. We hope this will provide answers to Hope’s ongoing medical mysteries.
Unsurprisingly, Hope also caught an upper respiratory infection following last weekend’s public outings, likely due to her compromised immune system. Thankfully, she’s receiving Doxycycline and is expected to recover soon.
Amid these challenges, Hope continues to display her playful and joyful personality, brightening our days despite her dull skin and coat. Her spirit remains unbroken, and her resilience inspires us all.
June 28, 2024
Squad Foster Hope’s bloodwork came back NORMAL for the first time since we met this pup in March! That pittie smile shows the joy we are all feeling.
Hope has endured more than we ever anticipated on her recovery journey. She was finally stable enough to receive the ProHeart12 injection, providing her with 12 months of protection from heartworms.
She is now OFFICIALLY available for adoption. If you are interested in meeting this spunky girl, join us at our event tomorrow at The Dapper Dog! She will be there with us from 12 pm - 3 pm.
Squad Foster Hope Weekly Update: June 11-18, 2024
Weekly Updates
This morning, Squad Fosters Hope and Bernie visited Riverside Vet for what we thought would be simple check-ups: Bernie to establish care and receive a ProHeart12 injection, and Hope for staple removal and updated bloodwork. However, these two had some unexpected surprises in store for us.
Hope completed her antibiotics and has shown significant improvement over the past two weeks! Her energy levels are up, and her playful personality is shining through. Her fur is starting to grow back, and she’s looking healthier. The staples from her spay surgery were also removed this morning.
Despite her outward improvements, Hope’s lab results were surprising. Her hematocrit and RBC levels continue to rise, but her WBC is elevated again, and her EOS is off the charts. We’ve taken another fecal sample to check for parasites and sent off another blood panel for further analysis. The good news is her heartworm test was negative again! Now, we wait for the lab results to understand what’s causing these crazy spikes in her bloodwork.
June 15, 2024
Hope made her public debut on Saturday at The Dapper Dog bar! Since her initial rescue in March, she has been battling health issues, making this special outing her very first time playing with pups outside of Dog Squad.
Given her recent health challenges, we expected Hope to need a break after a brief period of play. But she surprised us all! Hope played non-stop for 2 hours straight, showing incredible resilience and joy. She even bonded with former Squad Foster Whitney, who helped model what it’s like to truly be a dog. It was heartwarming to see them connect as if they both knew they were part of the Dog Squad family.
Hope hasn’t met a stranger, whether dog or human. She truly loves every living being she meets and is amazingly perceptive, picking up on social cues from dogs who might not be in the mood to play.
Squad Foster Hope Weekly Update
May 24 - June 3, 2024
May 24, 2024
Squad Foster Hope met with Dr. Price yesterday at Riverside Vet for a recheck after her 6th round of dewormer. We have good news: Hope has finally shown some progress! Now that she’s feeling better, her true personality is starting to shine. While her RBC and hematocrit are still below normal, we are thrilled to see improvement. However, due to her low hematocrit, we cannot spay her just yet…
…but Hope is full of surprises! We discovered a little red lump on the underside of her belly, and a fine needle aspiration revealed it’s a mast cell. So, despite her lab results, Hope will be spayed next Wednesday, and the lump will be removed during the procedure and sent out for confirmation.
June 3, 2024
Squad Foster Hope hasn’t been able to catch a break. Initially, Hope’s spay was to be delayed to allow her blood counts to improve. However, after Dr. Price saw a mast cell in a growth on her belly, the spay became urgent and was performed last Wednesday, despite concerns about her blood count. We are incredibly grateful for the timing!
During her spay procedure, Hope also had a lumpectomy, and the lump has been sent for biopsy. The urgency of the spay was a blessing in disguise—unbeknownst to us or the vet, Hope had been developing closed pyometra, a serious and life-threatening infection of the uterus. The treatment? An emergency spay!
It was hard to process this information initially because Hope showed no clinical signs of pyometra.
We brought Hope home on Wednesday evening, but she couldn’t keep anything down and continued to vomit. By Thursday morning, she looked extremely ill and was taken to Riverside Vet, where she received fluids, stronger antibiotics, Cerenia for her nausea, new bloodwork, and x-rays.
Hope’s WBC was elevated at 28.37 (normal range 5.05-16.76), and her globulin was elevated at 5.1 (normal range 2.5-4.5), consistent with pyometra. After a day of fluids and good meds, Hope felt much better. She met with Dr. Alexander on Friday morning, and new labs showed some improvement. However, her eosinophils (EOS) were elevated again, indicating possible parasites. We took a fecal sample and are awaiting results this week. Fingers crossed that the parasites haven’t returned!
Overall, Hope is showing signs of returning to normalcy. She’s still lethargic, though not as severely as in recent weeks. We are praying for a clean sample and a benign biopsy.
Donate Today
In the past two weeks, Hope has accrued $2,156.74 in vet bills and would appreciate any donations to help cover these costs. All donations are tax-deductible, and no amount is too small to make a significant difference.
Squad Foster Hope Weekly Update: May 14-16, 2024
May 14, 2024
May 14, 2024
Squad Foster Hope was discharged from the hospital last Friday, 5/10. Despite our anticipation for a smooth recovery, her follow-up labs on Monday, 5/13 revealed continued challenges.
Despite undergoing deworming for the fourth time since her initial rescue, Hope's blood counts have unfortunately continued to drop- Monday’s numbers:
-RBC: 3.93 (a decrease from 4.85 last week); normal range 5.65-8.87
-Hematocrit: 22.1 (down from 27.5 last week); normal range 37.3-61.7
-Hemoglobin: 8.1 (down from 10.1 last week); normal range 13.1-20.5
To ensure accuracy, the lab tests were even manually rerun, which confirmed the initial results. Hope was given another dewormer on Monday, and we are anxiously awaiting new labs on Thursday morning. We're praying for an improvement!
If the lab results show no change or further decline, we are prepared to develop a new treatment plan to address the underlying causes of Hope's severe anemia.
The challenge we face is real—hookworms are increasingly resistant to treatments. These parasites are particularly dangerous, and Hope's case is by far the most severe we've encountered. Untreated hookworms can be deadly, draining a dog's blood through the intestinal wall, leading to potentially fatal anemia and significant digestive tract damage.
Despite their small size, hookworms can extract significant amounts of blood, leading to severe anemia, reminiscent of the devastation caused by parvo when left untreated.
Thank you for standing with us and for your continued support for Hope as she battles these daunting challenges. We will keep you updated on her progress and our ongoing efforts to heal her.
May 16, 2024
When it rains, it pours—and that’s exactly how the last week has felt at Dog Squad. From Hope’s intense battle with anemia and a severe hookworm infection to Bernie’s initial round of adulticide treatment for heartworm, and Charm’s sudden grand mal seizure onset, we've been pushed to our limits. But there's good news: after every storm, the sun appears, and today, following Hope's follow-up vet visit, we're seeing those bright rays peeking through!
In our previous update, we shared that Hope’s lab results showed a decline on Monday. After another round of deworming, we are elated to finally see the improvements we've been eagerly anticipating. Hookworms are notoriously tough to beat due to their growing resistance to treatments, and we hope those pesky parasites finally get what they deserve!
Hope's journey is far from over. Her hematocrit has improved from 22.1 on Monday to 28 today, but it's still below the normal range of 37.3-61.7. Last week, during her hospitalization, it was 27.5, so while we are seeing progress, we must wait for further improvements before we can safely spay her.
We’re jumping for joy at Hope’s progress and feel more optimistic than ever about her experiencing brighter days ahead.
Donate Today
As you can imagine, these recent unexpected expenses are a huge strain on our rescue's resources. We are reaching out to our amazing community for help. Any amount you can donate will be immensely helpful and is tax-deductible.
May 10-11, 2024
On Thursday evening, Hope exhibited extremely concerning symptoms, including black, tarry diarrhea and bloody vomit resembling raspberry jam. These alarming symptoms prompted us to rush her to the Veterinary Emergency Group (VEG) for immediate care.
Upon examination, Hope was found to be severely anemic with labs that were all over the place. Her clinical presentation was reminiscent of parvovirus due to her symptoms, but further testing revealed a heavy burden of hookworms, tapeworms, and roundworms. The severity of her condition underscores the critical danger of untreated hookworms, which can be lethal as they feed off a dog's blood, leading to potentially fatal anemia and intestinal damage.
Despite her cheerful demeanor and normal play behavior weeks prior to this incident, Hope was silently suffering from these deadly parasites. This serves as a stark reminder of the hidden dangers of parasitic infections, which often go unnoticed until severe symptoms emerge. It is crucial to understand that not all parasites are visible to the naked eye, and the absence of visible worms does not indicate a parasite-free state.
Hope's extensive problem list includes regenerative anemia, melena, leukocytosis, neutrophilia, monocytosis, eosinophilia, thrombocytosis, hyperglobulinemia, hematemesis, and ileus. Her situation is a poignant example of why it is essential not to assume that a single or even multiple deworming treatments have fully eradicated parasites.
Dog Squad is dedicated to providing Hope with the best possible care and supporting her through her recovery. We are reminded of the importance of thorough and repeated medical checks and treatments to ensure the well-being of our rescue dogs.
We appeal to our community for support and prayers for Hope as she continues her fight for recovery. Her battle is a sobering reminder of the challenges street-rescued dogs face and the relentless commitment required to safeguard their health. She will follow up with Dr. Price at on Monday morning to monitor any changes to her blood levels.
PS- Find an emergency vet where the staff loves a midnight photoshoot with your pet
May 9, 2024: SQUAD FOSTER HOPE IS CRITICALLY ILL
Update May 9, 2024
Today, we share with heavy hearts that one of our bravest little warriors, Squad Foster Hope, is fighting a tough battle. After days of refusing food and experiencing severe symptoms, Hope is now critically ill and under intensive care at the Veterinary Emergency Group.
In just a few days, Hope’s condition escalated from assumed stomach upset to alarming symptoms, including vomiting bloody clots (literally looking like raspberry jam) and having dark, tar-like stools. Despite testing negative for parvo and clear X-rays at @riversidevetsc , her lab results were absolutely manic, and she was advised to rest at home under close monitoring ahead of meeting with a specialist in the morning.
Unfortunately, Hope’s condition took a turn for the worse, requiring her immediate transfer to the Veterinary Emergency Group where she is now hospitalized and remains critically ill. She underwent a FAST ultrasound upon arrival, and a full ultrasound is scheduled for tomorrow morning. We are all praying for good news.
The costs for her care are mounting rapidly:
- Tonight’s immediate care at VEG: $1,723.89 (with a total estimate of $2,298.52)
- Initial exam at Riverside Vet: $981.63
As you can imagine, these unexpected expenses are a huge strain on our rescue’s resources. We are reaching out to our amazing community for help. Any amount you can donate will be immensely helpful and is tax-deductible.
Your support means the world to us and to Hope. Together, we can provide her with the care she urgently needs. Please keep Hope in your thoughts and consider lending a paw to help her through this critical time.
Donate Today
Squad Foster Hope Comes To Dog Squad- April 5, 2024
How It All Started: March 12, 2024
Meet Squad Foster Hope
March 12, 2024
Hope was discovered on March 12, 2024 in Georgia, barely weighing 23 lbs due to severe emaciation. Now, just 3 weeks under the tender care of her rescuer, Hope has made an astonishing recovery, tipping the scales at 32 lbs!
At about 1 year old, Hope's journey is just beginning. Despite the scant details of her past, one thing is clear: she's now in the loving arms of those who will stop at nothing to see her thrive. Hope is currently being treated for hookworms, roundworms, and mange, and we're overjoyed to report she's heartworm-negative.Hope's endearing underbite and tiny stature make her look like a perpetual puppy, a true gem in our Squad. She's on her path to healing and will soon be ready for her spaying procedure.
However, Hope's recovery journey has amassed some veterinary bills, and we're reaching out to our amazing community for support. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity, Dog Squad relies entirely on the kindness and generosity of donors like you. We receive no government funding, and every little bit helps us continue our mission to save lives like Hope's.
Donate To Hope
To contribute to Hope's care and the care of other dogs in need, donations can be made through Venmo/PayPal @dogsquad88 or by credit card by clicking the button below.