Hi RAGOM,
Sally has decided to let me, foster Mom, send out a little information about her visit to the vet this week. The big words the vet used just made her a little skitterish!
Like her sister Zoey, Sally was born with a hole in her heart (ventricular septal defect) that may or may not repair itself and subaortic stenosis. “The big vessel that moves the blood from her heart to her lungs has a fibrous ring around it. That makes it difficult for her heart to pump. Pressure builds up behind the fibrous ring and that part of her heart develops a thick wall over time--making it harder to pump. As time goes on, she will develop Congestive Heart Failure which can be controlled for a time with medications. But eventually, she will succumb to heart disease. Her life expectancy is about 2-3 years.” (taken from Zoey’s description because it was so similar for Sally).
The veterinarian gave us a little hope for a longer life by telling us that there is a chance the girls (Sally and Zoey) could grow well through the stenosis and live many years. They recommend a visit back for another echocardiogram in 6 months and then (likely) another follow-up 6 months later, to get a more accurate picture of how the heart is working on a dog that is nearly full grown. That would be an action I would highly recommend for Sally’s and Zoey’s forever family.
Sally is LOVING life! She shows little sign of being overly tired or winded. She plays hard with our resident dogs and naps mostly when they do…not too much out of their normal routine. To look at her routine, I would not think she was different than any other pup we have had in our home. She is delightful!
Potty training is going fairly well. She is not consistently demonstrating that she knows what we are expecting, but she does keep her kennel clean at night…all night…yes!
We were overjoyed to hear that Bob and Carol have decided to sponsor Sally and her sis. They are the two best pups in the whole wide world, you know! Thank you Bob and Carol! Sally asked me to include a picture of her (just for you 2) at the computer this evening…she wanted you to know that she is studying hard at being the best golden in the world…she wants to remain worthy of your gift! We believe she IS a fantastic little girl. She is loving, playful, snuggly, playful, silly, playful…a great puppy!
I am hoping there is a loving family looking at the photos of this beautiful girl, imagining what life could be like with this little bundle of love. There are no guarantees with this girl – any more than there are with any of us. I can tell you that she gives great puppy hugs and kisses; she loves to fall asleep stretched out beside a human on the couch; she is passionate about tennis balls (a true golden retriever!); and is happy to see her people at any time, and in any place; she still has her baby teeth to lose; she still has that warm and soft baby tummy that is so fun to rub; she even still has puppy breath!!
There is the potential that her life will be short which can cause great heartache in us – the humans who care so deeply. Her gift to you will be that she will have loved you and cared for you to the best of her ability. She will have left you will happy memories of a playful and loving and faithful friend…is there any gift better that this? Sally would love to meet you – she thinks it will be love at first sight!
Let us know if we can introduce you to your next faithful companion, Miss Sally Dog (sister of Zoey the Wonder Dog!)
Have a wonderful day,
Sally’s foster mom
