Posted August 6, 2010

Bear is back at the shelter, sporting his Elizabethan collar and getting lots of love and attention from the staff.  He has his own recovery room and he is doing GREAT!  His ear is healing nicely and now we really need to focus on finding Bear his forever home.  

Posted August 4, 2010

Dr. Matt Corse of Northlake Veterinary Surgery reports that Bear is doing fantastic!  Bear had to have a TECA (total ear canal ablation).  He also had his inner/middle ear removed.  Because of the strain of strep that infected Bear's ear, NVS had to shut down their operating suite in order to take care of Bear.  We are so grateful to NVS for all their support and help with Bear.

Bear is blinking his eyes, which means that the facial nerves were not affected by his surgery (a good thing!)  His drain was removed today as well.  He will be back at the shelter shortly.  Although Bear will be deaf in this ear, his other ear is doing beautifully under the care of Dr. White, of Atlanta Veterinary Skin and Allergy Clinic.

We are looking for Bear's forever home!  This person will need to understand what is involved in caring for Bear and his ears, be willing to keep up with his ear flushes and be willing to keep Bear on his special food.  

Posted July 30, 2010

Bear is resting comfortably after his ear surgery.  He will be at the vet's for a few more days, but so far everything looks really good for Bear!

Posted July 30th

Good news!  Bear is going into surgery today with Dr. Matt Corse of Northlake Veterinary Services.  The clinic is shutting down just for Bear's surgery, given the highly resistant strain of strep that Bear has in his ear.  He will be in post-op recovery at the clinic for 4 days.  More updates soon!  Here he is in the lobby of the hospital, chilled as always!

Posted July 24, 2010

We have had a little set back with Bear's surgery.  Although his ears are improving, he has a very resistant strain of strep in the ear that needs surgery.  As such, the surgery needs to be performed in a facility that is equipped to handle the strep strain.  Therefore, our vet, Dr. Singh, is working with Bear's specialist vet, Dr. White, to find a vet hospital that can handle this type of strep.  Stay tuned as we are hoping for some good news in the next week or two.

Posted July 22, 2010

Bear's check up with Dr. White went well.  He will be going to Dr. Ken Greenwood, a surgeon, on July 28th for sugery on July 29th.  We are all very relieved to be moving forward with this process.  Although the sugery and recovery will cost a bit more than anticipated, we have received enough donations for his surgery to cover the costs.  We feel a sense of urgency to have Bear recovered and ready for adoption because he is feeling a little down in the shelter.  The staff and volunteers are spending extra time with him so that he keeps his spirits up.  He is such a wonderful, sweet dog.  He deserves a fabulous forever family, just like all of his four-legged friends!

Posted on July 19, 2010

Bear will be going to Dr White for a check up on Wednesday.  We will ikely be able to move forward with seeing the surgeon and scheduling a date for Bear's ear surgery at that time.  Bear is feeling a little depressed because of his length of stay at PAWS Atlanta.  He is in less pain, but if you have time to come out and spend time with him, we know he would love it.  Sometimes it is hard to see your friends adopted and you are still at the shelter.

Posted July 16, 2010

We have raised the money necessary to fund Bear's surgery!  Bear's vet, Dr. White, will be making a referral to another well-respected vet, Dr. Greenwood, to perform the surgery.  In the meantime, Bear is feeling as good as can be expected.  Thank you for helping us reach our fundraising goal for sweet Bear!

Posted July 13, 2010

We are excited to report that we have raised $1310 for Bear's surgery!  We only need $190 to reach the $1500 needed for his surgery and recovery.  On behalf of Bear, thank you for your help!

Posted July 10, 2010

Bear has a new haircut so that he can be cooler during the summer months.  It's amazing how much smaller he looks without that big coat!  Here he is on a walk today with one of our volunteers.

Posted on July 5, 2010

This picture shows Bear and our shelter manager, Phillip.  The entire staff has grown attached to Bear, as have visitors and volunteers.  We were hoping that Bear's ear infections would respond to the intensive antibiotics and treatments, but one of his ears has relapsed.  Bear is on pain medication because both of his eardrums had ruptured from the infections that went untreated by his previous owners.  He is a wonderful, sweet dog who deserves to be treated and adopted into a wonderful home.  We are hoping to raise the $1500 needed for his surgery through the Help Me Heal Fund (please put "Bear's Surgery" in the comment field).  Thank you for your support!