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UPDATE: July 10,, 2003 We're delighted to report that Andie has been taken off all medication and seems to be over her case of mange. Her foster family, who has been through so much with her, can't bear to let her go! They will be adopting her officially in the next few days. Andie is happy, playful, and healthy thanks to the support, donations, and prayers of a very large group of supporters. Thank you all very much!

Meet Amos and Andie. These two sweeties were found running in the Southlake area between Dallas and Ft. Worth. We do not know how long they were out and about, but it appears to have been at least a couple of months. A very kind soul finally took them to a sympathetic animal control officer who contacted us. Both doggies were absolutely covered in demodectic mange. About 80% of both of their fur coats is gone-not a nice prospect in December with no place to keep warm. Both dogs were terribly flea and hookworm infested as well. Thankfully, tests for tick-borne diseases were all negative. Amazingly enough, both of them are heartworm free. Even the mosquitoes couldn't stand the smell. Both dogs had terrible ear infections. They had to be hand fed in small amounts at first, because they'd gobble the food down so fast, not chewing, and regurgitate it immediately. They're just now realizing that they will now get as much as they want to eat.

Andie is a little girl, probably around 18 months old. She is smaller than Amos, and was found in slightly worse condition. She is severely underweight, but happily working to reverse that. You can't tell, but she is a tri-colored black and white Springer. You can barely tell she is a Springer at all! Her eyes were all but crusted over with gunk. Her paws were terribly swollen and bloody. She was severely anemic, but recovered much better than expected in about three days after the parasites were eliminated. We have treated her with antibiotics for secondary skin infections, and will now work on the mange. There is a lot of life left in this girl, and her attitude proves it. She is now full of puppy kisses and wags for everyone.

Amos is a little guy, most likely about 1 year old. He is also underweight, but not to the extent of Andie's condition. He is also a tri-colored black and white Springer. We believe the two of them are related, but not sure how. They have obviously been buddies for a long time. His condition was very similar to Andie's and he also has an ulcer below his right eye. He has also been under treatment for secondary skin infection. He is a very sweet boy, and has begun to feel better with regular feedings, antibiotics and elimination of parasites. He is playful, sings "woo woo" and has a typical Springer wiggle-butt.

Amos and Andie have both had some training. They both sit, shake paws and roll over. They both run to you, wagging and smiling as only Springers can when you call them. They are such happy dogs! While both pups have made amazing progress, the road to recovery stretches ahead. They must be bathed several times a week, take their medicine, and get lots of love and hugs in the coming months. In the first week alone, their vet bills have been substantial. When we post pictures again in a month, it will be obvious it was an excellent investment in saving two doggies' lives. Won't you please consider helping these babies?

UPDATE: January 30, 2003

Hi Friends!

Since you've all expressed an interest in Amos and Andie, I'm sending a little update to let you know how they are doing. They continue to be friendly, active, normal little Springer pups! Still a bit stinky, and missing lots of hair, but their sweet personalities just shine through their miserable appearance. They saw the Vet today for a second skin scraping. Because they were SO very sick when we first got them, dipping them was not really an option. The vet then said that they had so many open, bleeding sores that dipping would have been akin to setting them on fire - it would have hurt so much. So we've been treating them with daily oral doses of ivermectin, to kill the mites from the inside out. The vet who saw them today said they were much improved in the past two weeks. Each has gained 3 pounds! He found only 2-3 mites on each of the dogs (via microscopic examination of skin scrapings). He said they were healthy enough to give them their vaccinations and to begin dipping. Since we don't want to do too much at once and stress their already impaired immune systems, we opted to give vaccinations today. We will give them their first dip in about a week or so. Then we'll be attacking those nasty demodex mites from both the inside and the outside. I've been giving them almost daily lessons with clicker training - and they've both caught on to "sit" really quickly. They love everybody. Little Andie has such an indomitable spirit - she walks past other dogs with her little head held high and proud. They really don't have any idea that they aren't perfect in every way. I'll try to get some good photos this weekend. Meanwhile, here are two that we took last weekend during their baths. They are both of Andie. You can see her face is improving, but she has a way to go to grow her fur back on her little bottom. If you've never seen a "nekkid" Springer, brace yourself.

Thank you ALL so much for your support. It's only because of people like you that we are able to do this work.

UPDATE: February 14, 2003
Sometime during the night, Saturday Feb 9th, Amos began vomiting. By the time we got him to the emergency clinic Sunday morning, he was critically ill. Despite the best efforts of the emergency vets and technicians, Amos went into seizures, and his heart stopped in the early hours of Sunday morning. We had laboratory tests done, and the cause of death was determined to be Canine Parvovirus. We were all devastated at his loss. Of course, we began monitoring Andie very closely. Monday evening, she refused her dinner. We took her immediately to the vet, where her temperature was 104. Treatment for Parvo was begun and she received around-the-clock care for three days and nights. She is now "out of the woods" and is eating and drinking on her own. Her weight is down
from 33 pounds to 27.9. She's gobbling up the special food, but we're only allowed to give her very small meals. I know she misses Amos. Soon we hope to have her out of isolation and into a foster home for some good lovin' and friends to play with.

UPDATE: March 17, 2003

Kate Kyer writes: I just visited with Andie on Friday, March 7th on a trip to Houston. Marie and her volunteers have done such a good job! Andie seemed very happy to see me, although we suspect she is happy to see any kind face. She looks like a little baby bird now with all her new fur growing in. She is just as happy and wiggly as I remember her. She has now received another set of vaccinations and has shown no ill effects. We suspect her immune system is in much better shape than it was, and she just needs to conquer that demodectic mange once and for all. Now all little Andie needs is a nice, comfortable foster home in which to recuperate. Please contact either Marie or Kate if you feel you are the right home to welcome Andie for a visit!

UPDATE: June 8, 2003

Andie has been doing really well in her foster home, I hope you can tell from the new photo. Her hair is all growing in, she only has one tiny little bald spot on the tip of her cute little tail! Her foster parents, Marsha and Mike, have done the MOST fantastic job ever. Marsha was scrubbing her daily in the early days, and
she still is giving Andie medication for the demodex. We had a minor set back....Andie went into heat. This stresses the body, and usually means a flare-up for mange doggies. So our vet advised, and we agreed, to have her spayed immediately. She is recovering well, and the only sign of increased mite activity was a
little bit of hair loss around her eyes. That has cleared up quickly. We have had two consecutive clear skin scrapings!! So Andie is almost well. I'm hoping that she will be ready for adoption in a month or so.

Marsha and Mike have three other dogs - Andie LOVES to play with dogs! And they have grandkids visiting this week, and Andie seems to enjoy them, too!

I really appreciate everyone's concern and notes of support!

Marie

Contact: Marie Devaney, mariedev@main.com or Kate Kyer, kateflies8@aol.com

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