What a bittersweet few weeks it's been here in Texas. But for this entry, it's all about the sweet! And talk about sweet, our newest foster is Daphne. This little love is a senior and was a stray in the Arlington, TX area. Poor sweet Daphne has all sorts of challenges but she is a curious, loving little girl.
Daphne's biggest challenge is that she is HW+. In the Southern United States heartworms are a terribly common problem that is so easy to prevent. Unfortunately little Daphne wasn't on preventative and developed HWs. Not sure how long she has had them but because of her age our Vet has advised that we need to take a less aggressive approach to treatment. For those of you that might follow my other blog, http://www.theprettypekingese.com/ , you've read about Sandy. Sandy underwent HW treatment and we took a very aggressive approach. Hers was a mild case and because she was young at the time she could withstand the treatment. She's doing wonderful now and is the healthiest (and most vocal) of all my Pekes. Since our little Daphne is at least 10 years old we are more cautious.
Treatment involves giving her Heartgard once a month. Normally, this is used as a preventative but when a dog has heartworms this will kill any new larvae and worms. Given each month the severity of the heartworms will not likely increase since we'll be killing any new ones. The existing ones will live 1-3 years so until we get a clean bill of health, she'll be tested every 6 months to determine the severity of her heartworms and ensure that this direction is still best for her.
Her heartworms are mild, so I'm confident this process will work for her. We do have to keep her relatively calm but at her age, she's not exactly running marathons around the house with the other pups. LOL
In addition to heartworms, Daphne is almost completely blind and she has problems with her hips. But she has such spirit!!! She has explored the house dozens of times and has memorized where her favorite "landmarks" are like the water bowl, the drapes closest to the AC vent (she likes to lay on the drapes that used to look very chic pooled on the floor)... She is also great with the other dogs in the house. She loves them and always wants to be near them.
Her hips aren't causing her too much trouble, she takes an anti-inflammatory twice a day which has made her a different little angel than the one I originally met.
Daphne is available for adoption but will need to go to a home that is open to caring for a special needs angel. But believe me, the extra effort that is needed are worth it. The love you receive back is priceless!
Here's Daphne during an early evening play session...
More information about Daphne and all of the available Pekes from Pekes and You Pekingese Rescue can be found on their website. If you are interested in a Pekes, please always consider a rescue first.
Best wishes and high hopes,
Jennie and all the Pretty Pekes
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