A little while ago I think I told you about Heidi Entlebucher, she is still only a puppy but she needs life saving treatment. She was born with a condition called Ectopic Ureter and I’ve let the humans explain more about it below. Our club is now trying to raise £6,000 to cover treatment that means she can be as happy and as pain free as the rest of us. All donations large or small will be appreciated. Our Mistress has set up a Just Giving page, where your donation can be made. This page can also be shared with others who may be willing to contribute to the fund raising. https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/HeidiEntlebucher
My girlfriend, Bella’s human is caring for Heidi until she is fully well and she has explained things better than I could.
Please help if you can, even just a little bit would be appreciated.
Love Alfie
From Sarah
Those who follow Heidi’s page on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/HeidiEntle/ would be up to date with her progress. For those who aren’t, here is a quick update.
After a serious infection developing with Heidi, it became apparent that all was not as it should be.
Heidi was not responding to the antibiotics as we would expect and despite medication started to leak heavily again. At first this was put down to the infection that we knew she had but after a while we started to wonder if there was something else going on.
As well as leaking, Heidi was in pain and so was taken to the Animal Health Trust to see a specialist in Ectopic Ureter (Heidi’s condition).
The news following the specialists visit was of complete mixed blessings.
Heidi will need further bladder surgery. She has a problem with her urethra, which is pooling urine into her body between her uterus and bladder. This leaks out when she moves in certain ways, which is why she is so wet. It is unclear whether this is a problem that has developed as a result of scar tissue from her previous operation, if it is something that would have developed over time anyway or if it was missed during her original surgery, but there is a reason why Heidi is so wet that has a surgical solution.
The conclusion is that the results put Heidi back to the beginning of Ectopic Ureter statistics.
Before, Heidi was falling into the 10% of dogs that no solution can be found for.
Now, we are back at the beginning, with the stats being that there is a 50-60% chance that surgery will correct Heidi’s incontinence (and pain) and then a further 30% of dogs can be managed with medication (liquid drops into food) if the surgery is not completely successful.
I have every faith that it is the right thing to do for Heidi and that her chances of recovery and living a normal life are higher than they were when she first came into rescue.
With a lot of research into antibiotics, behaviour of certain bacteria and supplements, the last test for the first time came back completely clear of infection. With regard to her body health, apart from leaking, she is as ready as she can be to have the operation and there is no reason health wise that is of concern for her.
The operation will first involve an investigative element, where a dye is traced through her system. The second part of the investigation will use a camera and then the surgeons will act on what they see at the time, to reduce the need for Heidi going to hospital more than once.
The surgery is tricky.
At the very least her Urethra will be repaired and tone will be seen in her bladder sphincter with the dye. This will mean, that once surgically correct, there is no physical reason that she should not recover well following (home) physio and medication.
Possible, is that the urethra cannot be repaired and has to be shortened, which will also involve a procedure where Heidi’s bladder is pulled forward.
We think that the worst case scenario is that no tone is seen in Heidi’s bladder sphincter or ureters which will mean that she will have an instrument called a hydraulic excluder inserted into her bladder, which is effectively a false bladder sphincter. This would be a better solution to collagen for Heidi as it is a one off procedure, whereas collagen is likely to last only six months to a year and would need to be repeated regularly at a fairly costly price (around ?500 a time).
Heidi, although leaking, definitely responds to her medication and as it is noticeable when her next dose is due I believe the need for a hydraulic excluder is quite small.
Heidi, the character.
Heidi will make a wonderful addition to any family.
She is a very sweet soul. She loves nothing more than to sit and cuddle with you, preferably with her head buried somewhere, like up your sleeve or in the crook of your arm.
She is very smart and doesn’t push too much, she is a very easy going dog.
She’s excellent with all other dogs, although because she is 8 months old, is just in the midst of losing her puppy license and is having to learn to approach other dogs in a more gentle way. She’s the type that thinks every dog will be her best friend and goes bounding over like a loony.
Her recall is fantastic, so you can still catch her when she is excited and she will turn on a sixpence to come back to you.
Heidi’s first and favourite reward is fuss.
Her prey drive is not high, she is an inquisitive type and has been tested off lead around horses. She’s fabulous and just ignores them completely, carrying on with her business.
She is great with children of all ages, babies included, but has been known to be a cheeky puppy and steal a snack or two from the little ones. She doesn’t pester and my nearly two year old can walk around freely with Heidi whilst she is eating.
During her fear stage, Heidi would have a rooo at whatever it was that was spooking her but using her recall, fuss and reassurance works wonders with her.
Heidi does not have any behavioural issues. Full stop, she is a great dog and well worth the effort.
You can find short stories to read at www.alfiedog.com
Alfie’s Diary – the Book as well as our other books are available HERE