Hugo update?
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My Hugo (Sad)
Dear list, I have been struggling to write this note. Hugo's beautiful quad chair arrived thanks to all of you and after getting him used to the sight and smell of it and having him wear the supports, we put him in. He was such a good boy about cooperating with our clumsy efforts to hook him up. Once inside, he had a wonderful happy look on his face like, look mom, I'm flying. He was delighted to be in the position he had not enjoyed for two months, standing up like a dog should. All of our spirits were lifted from some recent difficult days. The next day, Thursday, he had an amazing victory at hydrotherapy where for the first time he moved all four paws in a swimming motion to cheers from faithful onlookers. That night he wagged his tail for the first time in weeks, a sign that he was able to. We all thought now with these great results from the chair and hydrotherapy that he could be walking in weeks. Everything we had done, all the money we spent and the time devoted seemed to be finally paying off. Hugo would be all right. He slept very soundly that night. The next day two friends took me out to a birthday lunch and when I returned I discovered he was having a massive nosebleed. He had two miniscule nosebleeds earlier in the week but we had thought it was due to the depletion of Vit K from the Cephalexin he had earlier for diarrhea. We rushed Hugo to his vet who immediately said this did not look good. They ran some blood tests to see if his blood was able to coagulate. But the signs all pointed to a brain tumor - the fact that it was only from one nostril was a big clue that it was not just systemic. And of course all his other symptoms of late. We waited and sure enough, the tests showed his blood was coagulating fine even though he was continuing to bleed profusely. His gums were barely pink and had been pale for a day. At this point it wasn't a choice anymore. He looked at my husband with a very pointed look he'd never seen before and we felt he was asking to be let go peacefully. You all know what it has been like this last year and especially these last two months. But because the day before had been so promising this turn was a surprise to us and I have been in shock since then. It appears that Hugo may had more than one thing wrong with him, and so we were getting mixed signals. We should have done the MRI so we could have known what we were up against. At least he was able to regain his pride in the pool his last full day. He was so proud of himself that he was able to finally swim like the other dogs he gave us the berner smile. It was a beautiful, victorious moment I wish you all could have shared. I have to thank all of you for your wonderful, kind support. This group was my main comfort through all of it. I am making arrangements to get this wonderful chair (the www.doggone.com people are the best) to the person keeping the berner lending library so the next berner in need can benefit from it. I hope it will be known as the Hugo chair because without him it wouldn't be there, that is the good that has come out of this. He was such a brave fighter. He taught us how to kiss his nose, to feed him the tip of the banana, and to listen to him as he would often explain things that had happened in amazing detail. He was not only overflowing with personality and as stubborn as a two year-old, but he also took his job of protector and guard dog very seriously and did it better and with more love than any dog I've ever known. I never knew my heart could be so broken by an animal. Donna
Hugo' address
Dear Hugo, Please have your mom send me your address, I have some donations from you special friends on the L to send to you. Thanks Vision (mascot) for BEHAF PS you can send you address to our Treasurer, Dino at [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Did Hugo move his paws in the pool?
We had to postpone Hugo's second hydro-therapy session due to diarrhea and a possible infection. Today with the vet's blessing we returned to San Diego with high hopes. My friend Dawn was sure that he'd move his front paws this time because he has been moving them slightly, on command, when lying down this past week. The therapist first used an electromagnetic impulse machine on him and we got the contraction reaction we had hoped for. But in the water he was like last time, just letting his legs hang down lifelessly. My heart sunk. I was completely in the pool this time helping and holding Hugo's head up when suddenly I hear a scream from behind me. Dawn was beside the pool with her back to the water, squatting to pick up the treats when she lost her balance. She tried to throw her weight forward but went up in the air and -- fully clothed -- flipped backwards and landed head first in the pool. I didn't see any of this, I turned to see her tennis shoes on her feet sticking out of the water like some cartoon. Surprisingly she didn't resurface immediately. It was that horrible moment, the moment that's often the subject of jokes or conjecture, where you have to choose between your dog and your friend. I confess, I hung onto Hugo, keeping his head out of water while the therapist grabbed Dawn by her legs. She came up smiling, thank goodness, and proceeded to stay in the pool with us, fully dressed, cheering Hugo on. Maybe it was the shock of all this but for whatever reason Hugo started *kicking* his back legs. It was beautiful, you can imagine, a lovely swimming motion which he repeated for several little laps while the therapist held and moved him along. On his last lap he added the right front paw to the thrill of all of us. By now there were several other dog owners there as well as the wonderful person who had originally recommended this therapist, and a host of dogs all marveling at Hugo's first baby swimming steps. Donna and Hugo, 8 yr old, 4/02 surgery for ruptured neck disc, recovered 95%, 12/02 second neck disc surgery, possible spinal stroke; Feb 1 setback, stopped moving legs; now working hard to come back
RE: Hugo
If you wish to contribute to Hugo please do not use the Pay Pal, I am the new treasurer and I think it is still hooked up to our old account which has been closed. I am checking into this but to be safe please just send a check to: BEHAF 25421 Wagner Rd Caldewell ID 83607 I will let you all know when it is okay to use PayPal again. Thank you for your Patience. Dino for BEHAF
hugo, behalf, and rehab
as many of you know we have successfully raised enough money for a chair for hugo. this chair will be passed on to any other berner who is in need of it. it has been suggest to donna that she get another mri for hugo. this would establish what hugo's neurological status truly is and would give rehabilitation guidance. obviously after the two surgeries, multiple mri's etc the cost is prohibitive. we have made hugo a special fund of behalf. what that means is that if you would like to contribute money to help with hugo's mri you can send a check to behalf with that purpose clearly stated. the money will then go to help foot the bill. BEHAF 25421 Wagner Rd Caldwell ID 83607 Or use your Visa or MC to instantly send your donation via Paypal:NOTE: if you wish your Paypal donation to be applied to a specific BEHAF fund, please send us an e-mail with your instructions. thanks for helping hugo andrea, woofit and chi shavertown, pa http://www.brin.org/Woofit_and_Chi/
Hugo says... wow to you all
I came back (all wet) from being in San Diego with Hugo and was overwhelmed to see how you guys have been working so hard for Hugo - all of you - Andrea, Pat L., Pat T., Rusty and Sylvia and everyone who's emailed me and others I don't even know about - I truly thank you. We're both extremely touched and grateful and humble that you all have such heart and faith in Hugie. He's going to try his best not to disappoint you. Hugo says the chair does not belong to him, it belongs to any berner who cannot stand. About today, Hugie must have thought I'd gone crazy taking him to a pool in the pouring rain. Trish from Cutting Edge K9 rehab was waiting for us as the other clients cancelled due to rain. But we were determined. It took 2 1/2 hours to get there but Hugo tolerated the drive just fine. We carried Hugo on his stretcher out to a hydraulic platform by the heated pool. Trish lowered the platform while I was knee-deep in water, keeping his head out of water. Once he was in the pool, with her supporting him, she put a life-jacket on him. She held him by a handle on the back and as he hung there floating, he had the funniest quizzical look on his face, like, Boy, this is new. I'm flying! (you know how expressive they are). Surprisingly he was not scared but relaxed. It was nice to see him in an upright dog position again even if it was just due to the water. She worked his legs and floated him for 1/2 an hour and although we did not get the magic response we all would have loved, she said it doesn't always happen on the first time but could happen later. She was glad to see he seemed to be processing new sensations as she was moving his paws, as if he was making the connection that these were *his* feet. We're going to try again this weekend. We noticed once he was home that for the first time in 10 days he was exceptionally relaxed and limber... and very tired. :) Donna and Hugo
Donna and Hugo
Hi Donna, You mentioned in an earlier post that your specialist had suggested an MRI but that you decided against it because you had decided no more surgery for Hugo. I respect your decision about the surgery but got to thinking that the specialist might have suggested the MRI as a tool to establish Hugo's status. It would be useful to know if he has any further spinal deterioration or potential tumour status, with the disabled dog it would help to know what other conditions/if any might be presenting themselves. Rose T.
RE: BEHAF Special friends -- Hugo Quad Chair?
Dino here for BEHAF. BEHAF will take donations for specific dogs and send those funds to the owner unless the owner specifies otherwise(as has happened before) If you wish to donate funds for a specific dog please send a note or write on the check who you wish them to apply to. The Special Friends fund is driven by you folks here on the L. If you wish to make a berner a Special Friend we act as the collection point for those funds. We then have our Webwizard put up the story and pics of the dog(so Donna if you can email me a pic of Hugo and a short run down of his story-I can forward it on to her.) So if you don't have a credit card or just wish to send a check, we would be glad to collect them and get them to Donna.(Donna, I will need your snail mail address) Donations can be sent to: BEHAF % Dino Candelaria 25421 Wagner Rd Caldwell ID 83607 Andrea Brin [EMAIL PROTECTED] 02/10/03 02:55PM they are working on a refurbished one for him. i have been in contact with them and a few other manufacturer, so there will be a big discount. i too would like to see behalf gift him this and the berner community in general. if we get a chair then when he no longer uses it we can keep it for another candidate. i would like to see a lending library for this kind of equipment and would do anything i could to facilitate it. andrea -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of Patricia Tackett Sent: Monday, February 10, 2003 4:11 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: BEHAF Special friends -- Hugo Quad Chair? I've been following Donna's posts about her boy Hugo and looking for help with a Quad chair. I believe Doggon' Wheels (MT) 1-888-736-4466 is the company that makes a Quad chair for canines. Does anybody know if he has become a BEHAF Special Friends yet, does Donna need to ask BEHAF Board personally or can we as friends get this started? A Quad Chair will run close to $800 for Hugo surely we can open our hearts and pocket books to help this grand fellow! I've heard he is lifting his head, eating and pooping THAT has to be a wonderous feeling for Donna to behold! Just wondering what's going on and wanting to help a fellow Berner owner. Pat Tackett Texas __ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com
Hugo and His Stroke, is there a chance?
A lot has gone on with this big sweet fella and I just wanted to put my 2 cents in. I have not dealt with dogs and strokes as much to my regret I listened to the vet when my Max was 17yrs old and had a stroke. He would get up and fall over etc. Even tho' he was seventeen yrs old up until the stroke he acted like a puppy, never ever sick. I know in my heart today, there was a chance, as since that time I had the pleasure to help many a stroke patient ,human , work their way back with the proper tools! and encouragement and patience. The emergency with Hugo is his size and down for this length of time. He must get mobile or the organs will fail and time is of the utmost importance. Doggone was so nice in setting up this account as they know the importance of Hugie's being mobile. They have never done this before but jumped right in as I feel they love dogs, not just in it for profit, and know the urgency of this chair for this giant! Donna is the one looking in his eyes and seeing a spark still there. I have a pic taken January 30th , prior to the Robaxin, which shows his sparkle there in his eyes. And once again Hugie is fighting to come back to Donna and we can give him the chance. We can all pull with love in our hearts and help this fella before it is too late. It takes two weeks to build a chair...a chair that can help this buddy in his fight. Then it will be there for the next furkidJust think the next one may be yours and what that two week wait can do!! Bless you all for your kindness and support of Hugie and Donna. I only wish I had given my boy a chance, now I want Hugie to have his! Rusty C praying for that small miracle
Re: Hugo and His Stroke, is there a chance?
Hi, Our Andi was active as could be, ran so fast up 4 steps and across the deck that she'd come sliding into the house out of control. She was over ten years old. Just overnight she became like a person who had spun in circles and then tried to walk. She wobble then crash. He head had a slight tilt. We went to the vet, ran tests, etc. We were told she had suffered a stroke and would not get better, probably soon would have another and worsen. After some time we decided she was losing her dignity unable to hold her urine, wetting herself. We made the awful decision to let her go. She was 10 years, eight months old. Several months later I was talking to an ole timer vet and described Andi's stoke and how we'd had to put her down. He said, Honey, I hate to tell you this but strokes are not that common in dogs. What you've described sounds like Old Dog Vestibular Syndrome and it can be successfully treated. I was heartbroken. I researched the disease and thought it was important to get out the word so that Andi's possible premature death would not be in vain. I sent the info. to Elizabeth Pearson it was published in the Alpenhorn. As then, I hope now this info. could help Hugo, and other Bernese who may be incorrectly diagnosed and given a premature death sentence. I would have spent any amount of money to save my girl, but I did not know about this ailment in time. I will look up the info. and post the address to the list. It may not be of help in this case, but if it saves one Bernese it is worth sharing to me, in rememberance of: CH. Blue Mt. Andi Dasso's Swissmiss - Our Andi girl. In our hearts forever. Bernerly, Mary Jeff Mary Chapdelaine SnoBear Berners N. California, USA http://snobear.freeyellow.com When you judge another, you do not define them, you define yourself. Wayne Dyer - Psychotherapist, Author and Speaker
Re: Hugo and His Stroke, is there a chance?
- Original Message - From: Jeff Mary Chapdelaine - SnoBear . I will look up the info. and post the address to the list. It may not be of help in this case, but if it saves one Oh, Mary, I cried for you ...and me...the if onlys they are hard to bear. I would love to know this info, Please do share. Rusty C Good Company
BEHAF Special friends -- Hugo Quad Chair?
I've been following Donna's posts about her boy Hugo and looking for help with a Quad chair. I believe Doggon' Wheels (MT) 1-888-736-4466 is the company that makes a Quad chair for canines. Does anybody know if he has become a BEHAF Special Friends yet, does Donna need to ask BEHAF Board personally or can we as friends get this started? A Quad Chair will run close to $800 for Hugo surely we can open our hearts and pocket books to help this grand fellow! I've heard he is lifting his head, eating and pooping THAT has to be a wonderous feeling for Donna to behold! Just wondering what's going on and wanting to help a fellow Berner owner. Pat Tackett Texas __ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com
Hugo is going swimming!
The surgeon gave his ok so we're off to San Diego tomorrow to try the hydro-therapy. I am very excited but not looking for immediate miracles (one friend said, I hope he just walks out of that pool! s). Just moving one paw a little would be a big deal to me but even if he just learns to relax in the water tomorrow, that would be our first step. She says most dogs get over their fear after the first lesson. I am very encouraged today because after I propped up Hugo this morning, he relaxed down, put his head on the grass and stayed like this for 15 min. He even moved his head around in different positions. It was so good to see him in a position other than lying down on his side, he looked so much more like himself and seemed much happier. I am getting such wonderful encouragement from the emails, I thank you and Hugo thanks you for all your good thoughts. He'll report back tomorrow night. Donna and Hugo, Southern Calif.
RE: BEHAF Special friends -- Hugo Quad Chair?
Andrea, I have word from another Berner-L friend that Doggon Wheels is willing to take donations (credit card) for Hugo's chair, I'm not sure if it is a refurbished as you talk about or completely new -- once they have 75% of cost of chair in donations they will begin work on his chair. Soo everyone here's the # to call 1-888-7-DOGGON (888-736-4466) (US and Canada) or 406-222-5574 outside the United States or Canada, they are Mountain time and can be reached Monday - Friday 8 am - 4 pm being sure to tell them it is a donation towards Hugo's Quad I thank you for your generosity, I know Donna thanks you and most of all HUGO thanks you! Pat Tackett Texas --- Andrea Brin [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: they are working on a refurbished one for him. i have been in contact with them and a few other manufacturer, so there will be a big discount. i too would like to see behalf gift him this and the berner community in general. if we get a chair then when he no longer uses it we can keep it for another candidate. i would like to see a lending library for this kind of equipment and would do anything i could to facilitate it. andrea -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of Patricia Tackett Sent: Monday, February 10, 2003 4:11 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: BEHAF Special friends -- Hugo Quad Chair? I've been following Donna's posts about her boy Hugo and looking for help with a Quad chair. I believe Doggon' Wheels (MT) 1-888-736-4466 is the company that makes a Quad chair for canines. Does anybody know if he has become a BEHAF Special Friends yet, does Donna need to ask BEHAF Board personally or can we as friends get this started? A Quad Chair will run close to $800 for Hugo surely we can open our hearts and pocket books to help this grand fellow! I've heard he is lifting his head, eating and pooping THAT has to be a wonderous feeling for Donna to behold! Just wondering what's going on and wanting to help a fellow Berner owner. Pat Tackett Texas __ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com __ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com
HUGO
There are several wheelchair companies on the net, just type in Dog Wheelchairs. The one I had was from Wheelchairs for Dogs. Com. Mary Heald bought mine from me for her Henry last August. If you want her address. Please e-mail me privately, she may still have it. But another thought is to look on E-Bay for the Quad chair, as I found another dog wheelchair on E-bay which gave me an idea of what to charge for mine. Chance and I continue to hope for Hugo's recovery, glad the acupuncture is working, we had good results from it as well, Daisy and Chance
Hugo - Does he believe he'll walk again?
My heart goes out to Thia and to Denise and Paul Vickers, prayers for Drachmboui. Thanks to all the wonderful berner-lovers who sent emails of support and ideas for sweet Hugo. He's depressed today maybe because, at the doctor's suggestion, we tried to get him to stand by holding him by the sling and he couldn't/wouldn't put any weight at all on his feet. I feel so bad for him. I wonder if he believes that he'll ever walk again. If there's a true hydro-therapy facility for dogs in the LA area, they're keeping it the best-kept secret around. But someone from this list who uses a San Diego facility emailed me. Hearing personally from someone made me feel like the drive could be worth it. I just have to take the large car into the shop first (minor problem I suspect but it's finding the time) and then find someone to help me load the 112 lb. big boy Hugo on my stretcher before that 2-3 hr. drive. Problems that wouldn't be obstacles if he were a poodle! I understand what you meant Ruth when you said the trimmer berner gals are a lot more manageable... Donna and Hugo (8 yr old BMD, ruptured disc, surgery 4/02, surgery 12/02 bulging disc, stroke)
Merry Christmas from a recovering Hugo
We're grateful that Hugo is recovering so well. After the first few hours of stiff legs he finally started moving them. We're not sure if it was the fear and trauma that subsided once he was home and safe again or whether it was the change in drugs (they put him on prednesone and a patch). As you all know, it's a lot of work taking care of an invalid (and a grumpy, demanding old man at that) but we're thrilled that the outlook is optimistic. We've changed vacation plans for him but he's worth it. Merry Christmas to all the berners and the berner-lovers. Donna and Hugo, SoCal
Hugo pain medication question
Hugo is having a very slow recovery, still at the hospital, not making any real progress. They were concerned about an irregular heartbeat today and did an ultrasound. The cardiologist there felt his heart was structurally sound so they decided not to be alarmed about this, that this is common in large breed dogs. I mentioned that I didn't think this had ever been heard by the vet before and he was going to get more details from the cardiologist. They changed his pain medication from hydro morphone (I think that's what he said, maybe it's morphine) and kept him on the fentinel patch. They said he's somewhat more alert now and they felt they may have had him over-medicated. He ate a slice of cheese from me the other day but other than that has not been eating (very unusual for Hugo). The surgeon admitted that he did not make a notation of fenestration during the April surgery but that because it is his habit to do the fenestration he believes he did. I appreciated his honesty. I will visit him tomorrow and it looks like he'll come home Saturday (but not able to walk or stand yet). I recall last time that he did not seem comfortable with Torbutrol and wonder what the best pain medication for him might be. He has tolerated Rimadyl quite well, but will that be enough? Last time they told us we could use Benedryl to help him sleep at night, which did help. If you have thoughts, please email me at [EMAIL PROTECTED] as I'm on digest. Donna and Hugo, SoCal
Hugo update (had second disc surgery last Saturday)
I really appreciate the kind letters of support from everyone. I spoke to the head surgeon who did the April disc surgery and he said in 16 years of practice, he's never seen a second disc go out on a large breed dog. So the other younger surgeon didn't realize it was only dachshunds who are known to have a potential for reoccurrence (15%). But here is the difficult part. I asked him if he fenestrated the disc in question at the April surgery and he thought he probably did but couldn't access the records at the moment. Today I got the records and there's no mention of it that I can see, whereas I can clearly see that this younger surgeon Saturday did fenestrate the next disc over to avoid having this occur again. To explain this a little for anyone who is interested -- when one neck disc ruptures (the first was between c6-c7), there is the danger that later the next one (between c5-c6) will be affected by the pressure so they make a small hole in it as an escape valve. On Saturday the younger surgeon worked on c5-c6 and then fenestrated c4-c5. But last April, there's nothing in the chart to show that the head surgeon (who is quite good) fenestrated c5-c6. That is disappointing because it raises the question if he had, perhaps we would not be putting Hugo through this second surgery 8 months later. Boy, I know more about this stuff than I ever wanted to know! Hugo is still in the hospital there. Not much appetite (very unusual for him). He'll sit up in a sternum position but not stand yet. Our house is very lonely and quiet without him. Donna and Hugo, SoCal
