Nelly 18-013A
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At a Glance #18-013A
| Golden Retriever | Born: June 2017 |
| Female | 42 lbs |
Status: Adopted
Nelly's Well-wishers
Profile
Updates
Monday, June 18, 2018
After an unknown future with her heart condition, Nelly is doing excellently and has found her perfect forever home. Her new family absolutely adores her and can’t wait to show her the true meaning of a Golden life!
She has a four-legged brother who is also a RAGOM boy. They spend hours playing together in the backyard, and then love to snuggle up and take a nap together.
She also has two human brothers who are obsessed with her. They treat her like the queen that she truly is. Her new Mom and Dad love her gentle manner, her sweet heart, and her loving personality.
We are so happy that she has found a home that will love her unconditionally!
Tuesday, June 5, 2018
Nelly’s spay surgery is scheduled for next week. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers that the surgery is uneventful!
We found out that Nelly loves water! My boys have a sprinkler and a pool, and Nelly just couldn’t resist joining in on the fun. She also tries to climb into the bathtub whenever it is filled up. She is one silly girl!
She had a weekend getaway while we were out of town over Memorial Day at another RAGOM volunteer’s house. She had a great time! She was definitely wiped out when she got home.
Nelly is such a happy girl. She loves to run and play in our backyard, but she also loves to relax and snuggle too. We continue to love to learn new things about her.
Sunday, May 6, 2018
We have finally heard the results from Nelly’s Holter monitor, and the vet said everything looks great!! We can go ahead and schedule her spay.
We are in the process of figuring out where her spay will be done. She will need close monitoring due to her heart history. We want to make sure she gets the extra care that this sweet girl needs and deserves. She will be posted as available after her spay is complete, and once we know how everything goes.
Nelly continues to thrive every day. She is such a fun-loving, sweet, and precious girl!!
Wednesday, April 11, 2018
Nelly is continuing to do great after her ablation procedure. She had her follow-up with her cardiologist, and he is very happy with how Nelly is doing. She wore her Holter Monitor for 24 hours, and we are just waiting for the final results of that. Once we know the results, if all looks good, we can schedule her spay surgery. I am hoping to hear something early this week. Her fur is growing back nicely, too.
Nelly and I want to thank all of the great people that came to see her at the meet-and-greet on Saturday. It was so fun to see all of her fans that have been following her story. She really is a very special girl!
Nelly loves to play outside with our resident dog Robbie, and they have been known to play for hours at a time. She has lots of energy and loves to have fun in this recent snow. At night, she goes into her kennel all by herself when she sees us getting ready to go to bed. What a good girl!
I will update her profile again as soon as I hear anything new.
Sunday, March 25, 2018
Little Miss Nelly is doing amazingly well. She’s fully recovered from her extensive procedure, and the only hint of all she went through is her silly haircut!
Nelly has a recheck appointment with her cardiologist here in Minnesota on Tuesday. During that appointment, she will have an echocardiogram (ultrasound of her heart) and be fitted with a holter monitor. The monitor will track her heart rhythm and the results will be reviewed by both her cardiologist here and her surgeon in Ohio.
I will share those results as they become available, but I’m extremely optimistic! After she is cleared by her cardiologist, she will need to undergo her spay surgery, and then it’s time to search for the perfect family. Yayyyy, Nelly!
Now that Nelly feels like the puppy she is, she acts like one, too. She’s spunky, and into everything, just as a puppy should be! She will need a home dedicated to continued obedience training and socialization. She’ll require adequate exercise and lots of good, positive social interaction and training to become the best girl she is meant to be.
She has an incredibly sweet and loving disposition, and her previous shy tendencies are nearly gone. She greets those she meets with happy exuberance and is constantly smiling and wagging her tail. She is impossible not to love!
I send heartfelt thank-yous to her sponsors, her generous donors, and her many fans. Thank you for saving this beautiful life! We love you for it!
Wednesday, March 7, 2018
On February 18th, Nelly began the next step of her journey. This time, her journey would bring her to Ohio, and bring her the true promise of the Golden Life. Nelly was picked up by RAGOM transport extraordinaire Scott B and his wife Patty. They chauffeured Miss Nelly all the way to Ohio where she would then be checked in at MedVet Specialty Center for her ablation procedure with Dr. W, one of only 2 veterinary cardiologists in the country who performs this type of surgery.
On Tuesday, February 20th, the very advanced and specialty ablation procedure took place. After nearly 6 hours, we are incredibly pleased to announce that it was a success! Nelly’s extra electrical pathway in her heart was ablated! Her heart rhythm is now normal for the first time in her life. There truly are not words to convey how thankful I am to RAGOM’s donors and supporters, to her exceptional veterinary care team, and to her transporters!
On Thursday, February 22nd Nelly walked back through our door. So thankful and relieved to have her home, I cried happy tears! It was clear to see, Nelly was feeling like a brand new dog! Not only was she increasingly more comfortable with her new house-dog life, but she feels good for the first time in her life. Her heart is not racing and struggling to work. She can sleep soundly and breathe deeply and slowly. Her life has literally been saved!
We’ve since gone through one week of strict exercise restriction and weaned off all but one medication (down from 5!). After her initial week of rest, she has been cleared for exercise! Hooray!!!! She’s happily playing her days away with our young resident dog and learning all about what fun walks can be!
Nelly will be rechecked by her cardiologist here in MN in another couple of weeks and at that time will be fitted for a holter monitor to wear for 48 hours to monitor her heart rate and rhythm. The results of that test will be reviewed personally by her cardiologist in Ohio and, hopefully at that point, she can be cleared of her last medication, followed by her spay, and finally be able to begin her search for her forever family! She’s come a long way, and I couldn’t be more proud... both of our sweet Nelly girl and the RAGOM community I’m so honored to be a part of. Thank you all so very much!
Friday, February 16, 2018
Meet Nelly! Nelly is an 8-month-old female Golden Retriever who was rescued by RAGOM from a commercial breeder auction. She is incredibly sweet, gentle, and loving; and she was saved in the nick of time. Here is her story:
On Saturday, February 3rd, RAGOM volunteers attended an auction in which a large-scale breeding operation was holding a complete kennel sell-out. I waited anxiously to hear the news of the outcome of the auction. The news came that they were able to rescue four of the female Goldens, and one of them, known as number 129, would be our foster.
Excited to meet her, and emotional for those that didn’t end up in the hands of rescue, I drove to meet my new girl. When the transport vehicle pulled up, my eyes immediately drawn to a petite, red girl curled up in a tight ball, pressed against the back of her crate. She was clearly trying to disappear. Her body was trembling as she was handed to me to carry inside. She was much too terrified to walk. It was at this point that I realized the girl in my arms was number 129. This was MY girl. This was Nelly. I sat on the floor with her huddled, shaking in my lap, and I told her she was safe, she was loved, and that she would learn in time that everything was going to be okay.
We arrived home and I tucked her in for the night in her crate complete with a cozy blanket, food, and water. She remained completely frozen in fear, her head buried in the corner, avoiding my eyes and my touch. A few minutes later, when I was completely out of sight, I heard her lap up some water and gobble down her kibble. It was then that I believed the words I told her earlier... everything was going to be alright.
Morning brought her favorite part so far, meeting our resident dog Bruno. I saw life in her eyes and the wagging of her tail! Baby steps! She spent the day slowly exploring the house, having a bath, and gingerly taking irresistible turkey treats from my hands. I celebrated each small victory and was so proud of her bravery and resilience. Little did I know, she had so much more to tell.
Nelly has her vet visit a few days after her arrival. She had a visibly distended abdomen, and because she came from a breeder, my assumption was that she was pregnant. What we found out was news that none of us were expecting: Nelly was in heart failure. An ultrasound of her heart was performed, and a severe arrhythmia discovered was causing her heart to beat at nearly 300 beats per minute. Her abdomen distended with fluid because her heart was severely enlarged and unable to pump her blood effectively. The cause of her arrhythmia is likely an accessory (extra) electrical pathway in her heart. Nelly was immediately started on medications to both control her arrhythmia and support her heart and resolve the fluid accumulation.
Next, came the promising news. The abnormalities in Nelly’s heart can be corrected with an advanced surgical procedure to ablate the accessory pathway in her heart. However, this is no easy feat. There are only 2 veterinary cardiologists in the country who perform this specialized procedure. And it is costly at close to $5000. But Nelly is a RAGOM dog! And RAGOM immediately said, "YES! We are doing this." We are going to get Nelly the help she needs. She is worth it.
Early next week, Nelly will travel to Ohio with the help of invaluable RAGOM volunteers and will undergo the ablation procedure. If all goes well, she has an excellent prognosis and could go on to live a normal life.
As we wait for the big day, Nelly is feeling much better on her heart medications and is starting to act like the puppy she is! She’s learned that life as a loved dog is good, and snuggles on the couch are great, and toys are meant to be played with, and kids drop food ALL the time! She is silly and sweet and so very easy to love.
Without rescue, Nelly would not have survived. She, as an 8-month-old puppy, was weeks away from death. It is because of RAGOM that this precious baby girl is alive and will be allowed to live the life she so greatly deserves. I am so honored and grateful for the commitment that RAGOM gives to the dogs in their care, for the exceptional veterinary care Nelly has access to, and for the opportunity to be a small part of this girls story. Send our sweet little red dog your love! Stay tuned.
