The Story of Our Stray

April 15th, 2024

On Thursday, April 11th, a kind-hearted good Samaritan brought a dog into our office. The dog needed medical attention as it was found walking on the road in Seneca in very bad condition. The dog’s face was severely swollen with several wounds, and drainage coming from its ears. The dog was very weak and quiet and had not made any noises since being picked up from the road and brought into our office. Seneca Animal Hospital and its staff decided to take over ownership of him under our Jaymes and Daphe Fund. This fund is designed to provide life-saving treatment for animals with catastrophic injuries or illnesses in the hopes of saving the pet from euthanasia, if humanely possible.

Content warning: The following images and medical notes may be considered graphic to some readers. Dr. Majsztrik examined the stray and found him to be weak and lethargic with crusting around both eyes. His coat showed severe wounds with purulent debris. Multiple punctures were found on his face with pockets of swelling on the left side of his mouth and right ear. There was necrotic tissue over the wound on the left side of his face and purulent debris in both ears and caked in his hair on his chest. His teeth showed only moderate tartar and gingivitis, telling us he is younger. The current estimate is around 6 years old, although we will never know for sure. He is unneutered with no microchip.

Bloodwork results showed that he had an elevated white blood cell count and very elevated kidney values. The BUN level was over 130 mg/dL. The normal range for BUN is usually between 7-29 mg/dL. Additionally, he had tested positive for heartworms. To start treatment, IV fluids were administered along with injectable antibiotics, pain medication, and antinausea medication. Since his vaccine status was unknown and the cause of the wounds was unclear, he was hospitalized in the isolation unit. At that point, it was uncertain if he would survive the night.

On the morning of the 12th, he was still with us and ready to have his wounds cleaned and flushed. The treatment plan for the day included administering another antibiotic injection, oral painkillers, a probiotic, doxycycline for heartworm treatment, and eye medications for an ulcer on his right eye. His kidney values were rechecked and showed significant improvement. His BUN levels were reduced to 50 mg/dL (from >130)!

Over the weekend, he showed significant improvement! He was no longer extremely weak or lethargic, but instead showed great anticipation for his meals!

On April 15th, his kidney values were rechecked and it was found that all his kidney values and protein levels were normal! This is great news and tells us he is responding well to his treatment! However, he still has a long road ahead of him with his Rabies quarantine and heartworm treatment. We have not yet given him a name, but we hope to decide on one by the end of the week.

Since we first posted about him on Facebook, we have received $270 in donations to our Jaymes and Daphne Fund. These donations will help cover the cost of his blood tests, medications, and other expenses related to his care. If you are interested in learning more about our fund, please visit our website.

We are still accepting donations for his continued care and will keep updating our social media pages with his progress. If you are unable to donate, please help us by sharing our posts on social media. At this time, we do not have an online donation option, instead, we are asking people to call or visit our office to donate.

We want to express our gratitude for the dedication and care provided by our staff and the support from our community. He is so worth it!

Thank you!
The Doctors & Staff at Seneca Animal Hospital