Carmella is Bitten by Nest of Copperheads

Monday night I let Carmella out in the back yard as I usually do before turning in for the night so that she could go to the bathroom. She was out there for about 15 minutes and had not come back to the door yet, so I called her to see if she was finished. She came to the back door a little more slowly than usual. Anybody who knows Carmella knows she never does anything slowly, and usually runs back inside at top speed.

As she entered the livingroom I noticed she was limping and upon closer inspection I saw that her back leg was very swollen, so much that the dewclaw on that leg stuck out. Her leg looked blown up like a balloon animal. At first I thought she had broken it, but then I saw two little puncture marks starting to bleed a few inches above the paw on the side of her leg and that's when I realized it must have been a snake bite.

Within about 10 minutes her paw was also bleeding. It was about 11:00 PM and Carmella's regular vet's office was closed. The only option was to take her to the one emergency vet in Dekalb County, and since I don't have a car and couldn't think of anybody to call at that late hour, I called the emergency clinic to confirm that I should bring her in, then called a taxi. I never know how long it will take to get a taxi late at night but  think the fact that it was a week day worked to my advantage. Had it been on the weekend it might have taken alot longer for one to arrive.

Even so, it probably took about a half-hour  and by that time Carmella was bleeding all over the kitchen floor and was starting to pant and whimper. What was coming out was more plasma than blood and it was fairly sticky. I was worried that she might collapse before a cab showed up so I called the emergency clinic back to see if they knew of any vet that made house-calls just in case things got critical and we didn't have time to get there.

The woman on the phone did locate the name of one vet but she wasn't sure if she worked late at night or not. I was hoping I wouldn't need to use that option and that we'd get to the clinic in time.

Carmella's leg was so painful I couldn't even wrap it in a T-shirt to keep dirt out of the wound.

We arrived at the emergency clinic and it seemed surprisingly quiet. There was just one dog in there other than Carmella, but it was a pretty lengthy process and after I'd filled out the paperwork Carmella and I waited for some time in a room before we finally saw the vet. Carmella was still in alot of pain and I finally had to go find someone to ask that they give her something for that. All I could think of was how the venom was still surging through her body out of control.

I think it took about 2 hours before she got any treatment after they'd prepared 3 different written quotes. Then they took her in the back area to clean the wounds, check to see how quickly her blood was clotting, give her pain medication, and some fluids under her skin.

She started whimpering when they shaved that hair on the leg where she had been bitten. The vet explained that it looked as though she had multiple bites between her toes as well as on her leg; some on both sides of the leg, and that most likely she had stepped in a nest of baby Copperheads because this is the time of year for them, and the babies tend to release all their venom unlike adults that only release a controlled amount. She said for that reason being bitten by baby snakes was worse.

Apparently there had been quite a few cases coming into the emergency clinic recently. Carmella fared better than smaller dogs because of the ratio of body weight to venom even though she probably had alot of venom in her. Even so, that was not a huge consolation because the full extent of the venom's effects would not be known until after a few days had passed. Among the risks are possible necrosis (tissue death), clotting problems, need for plasma transfusions, loss of function in the area bitten, and a whole host of other effects.

Neither human nor animal emergency departments use anti-venom for Copperheads much anymore because the side effects are almost worse than the venom. Pretty much all they can do is supportive care and hope for the best. There is no real way to prevent the effects of the venom and each dog reacts differently. Some recover completely without any necrosis, whereas others have some scarring, and still others may be severely impacted with big chunks of flesh falling off and need skin grafts to repair the damage.

The emergency clinic closes at 8:00 AM and since I knew we would need to go to Carmella's regular vet in the morning I figured it wasn't worth taking a cab back home and coming back at 8:00 to pivk her up and home again in another cab, as the faire was about $22.00 each way! I had this vet at the emergency clinic do what she could to get Carmella through the night safely and then planned to get a few hours of sleep before heading off to Dr. Norwood's office in the morning. Carmella was still in pain after she'd been given some medication and we got back home around 4 AM. She didn't want to lie down and was whimpering for the rest of the night, but finally I think we both got about 2 hours of sleep before Dr. Norwood's office opened.

When I woke up and it was quiet I tiptoed to the kitchen to check on her and make sure she was still breathing. She was but she seemed to be breathing more shallowly than usual. Knowing that somehow I was going to have to get her back into a taxi to go the the vet I slowly woke her although I hated to do that since while asleep was the only time she was not in pain. I got her to reluctantly drink a little yogurt juice (one of her favorite treats), and got the leash to try to give her time to go to the bathroom. Luckily she did get up and hobbled on three legs outside with me, peed, and came back inside. I took her out the front because I was pretty sure there wouldn't be any snakes out there near the driveway.

When I put her back inside I called the taxi and since it would be 15 minutes or so before we would be picked up I took a stick and went out the back way by myself to see if I could find where the snakes were living or whether I could find any dead snakes. I looked at nearly every corner of the yard except a pile of sticks and the outer edge near the fence on the opposite side, but saw no trace of them. Knowing Carmella I wouldn't be surprised if she ate them after they bit her. She has a strong predatory instinct and I have seen her kill small animals in about two bites and then quickly wolf them down before anyone could get them away from her; even squirrels, birds, and possoms.

I may need to find an expert to locate the den and remove them if she did not kill/eat them because I'm concerned it might happen again. It's worrisome that they may not be gone. There are a few holes in the yard; one big one under the house, and smaller ones in a few other areas of the yard where they could be hiding.

When we arrived at Dr. Norwood's office I couldn't get her to get out of the car, so the male vet tech who works there had to come out and carry her into the office. We went into a room right away and it wasn't long before several staff were in there and then Dr. Norwood came in to take a look at her.

He was very concerned; more so even than the emergency vet, and he said he thought it would be a good idea to hospitalize her and treat her aggressively with intrvenous fluids, antibotics, and prednisone. I'm not a big fan of prednisone but probably short-term it won't do Carmella any harm and it might get the swelling down more quickly. The swelling in her leg really looks extreme. If it got any worse I'd worry it would burst, and that wouldn't be good at all.

Dr. Norwood reiterated what the other vet had said about what could happen over the next few days and said that if she ends up needing a plasma transfusion they will have to take her to the emergency clinic at night to have that done because his clinic doesn't generally keep plasma on hand. It's a small office and doesn't have as many medical supplies as the larger vet's offices in town. I also recommended calling Dr. Muller at Briarcliff Animal Clinic if that ended up being necessary. That way maybe they could give or sell Dr. Norwood  the plasma to take back to his office and Carmella wouldn't have to get in and out of a car again.

I'm hoping that there won't be any complications or permanent tissue damage and that she will start healing now that she is under 24 hour care.

If everything goes well she should be ready to come home on Friday, and they'll send her home with some oral medications to continue here.

The house feels empty without Carmella, my little buddy. I'm not getting much sleep tonight. Hopefully I'll have some news tomorrow about how she's doing. To keep myself occupied I created a treasury list on snakes. Craftcult doesn't seem to be working to post it here directly, so here's a link; http://www.etsy.com/treasury/Mzg1NXw3MTYyNTM2MzY/if-it-was-a-snake-it-would-have-bit-you

Carmella Needs a Miracle

Today Carmella saw Dr. Muller about her right front leg. I was thinking mostly about the stem cell transplant when I went in there, and getting the EKG so she can get on the medication, Procainamide, for the myoclonus but now there is an even more immediate situation with her worsening wrist. This is the second vet in the past week to tell me that she is going to end up lame if she continues to jerk. The continuous impact is making it worse and worse and the wrist if left untreated will end up lying flat on the ground.  Also, then her left leg could go bad in the process of trying to compensate for the right, and then she'd be in really bad shape.

If it hasn't already, the ligament will eventually tear. She needs surgery and the particular surgery he said they do for this is basically fusing the bone by putting a metal plate inside. She would not be able to bend her foot flat when she lies down and it would be forever in a locked position so she could walk on it.

I can't stand the thought of it, and I can't stand the thought of her going lame either. I hope that's not the only option, and on top of all that it will cost thousands of dollars.

If we can't find a way to control the jerking the surgery might not work.

While my friend and I were there, Dr. Muller called a pharmacy in Canada and one here and came back and said that neither carried Procainamide. It looks as if it used to be used in humans for heart problems but was pretty much made obsolete in recent years by newer drugs.

I don't know what we'll do if we can't get it. I'm going to see if I can check online pharmacies in India and a few other developing countries.

Now I'm really going to have to raise major money to get her through this. I don't know why this had to happen to her after all the stuff she's already been through.  After she was cured of distemper I thought she was home free, but now we are faced with another huge mountain to climb.

I just had a thought; I hope it wasn't the Zithromax she was on for her opportunistic infections that caused the problem with her ligament. I know it has been linked to that in humans. All the macrolide antibiotics have.

Dr. Muller suggested not doing the EKG since we don't know if we can get the Pracainamide anyway, and he said the only heart problem that is at all possible in a dog this age is heart block and that's very unlikely.

He told me he knows an orthopedist for animals who works over in the Northlake area who is good and also compassionate that he can talk to about Carmella's case and he thinks he'd charge less than they would at GVS.

He's also going to call the Neurologist Carmella saw over there the other day and talk to her.

Biarcliff Animal Clinic where Dr. Muller works has a charity that usually helps in cases like this but donations have been way down and they don't have the money.

Just a few more inches, and my hair will be long enough to sell.

I want to thank Janice at Heartworks for buying an ad on my blog! Please check out her wonderful plaques, mandalas and other handmade items by clicking on the new banner at the top of my TopSpots.

If any of you readers would like to help Carmella you can purchase an ad by clicking on the link at they bottom of that list and for $5.00 you can have a presence there too.

If jewelry, scarfettes, hats, or other accessories are your thing your purchase will help there too. Everything needs to go in my Etsy shop; http://giftbearer.etsy.com/ , jewelry and wearables. My goal is to turn it over completely and start phasing in all new pieces. Be sure not to miss the new hair flowers that wer recently listed; great to match Spring outfits! The buyer who brings my sales number in this shop to 90 will receive a free gift with their purchase.

or if you're more in need of supplies you can get some really unique ones here; http://giftbearersupply.etsy.com/ 

Carmella needs the help of the community now more than ever. You can be a part of her miracle so that she can have the comfortable and healthy life she deserves. There's much work to be done, but I promised her I would never give up on her and I intend to stick by her. She's had too many turn their back on her like so many other dogs have that came from shelters. There's something about Carmella that just reaches into your heart and that's why I chose her out of all the others.

Update on Carmella

On February 12th we had about 4 inches of snow here and I took some beautiful pictures of Carmella in it! She really had a great time running around in it. I'd been meaning to post these for awhile but have been so swamped making new products for my Etsy shop and working on getting Carmella's MRI arranged that I haven't had a chance until today.

I'm waiting for Dr. Norwood to get the necessary paperwork done because the clinic that has the MRI machine requires a referral to get an appointment with them. This MRI is way overdue, as I had wanted to have one done before she was treated for Distemper 16 months ago, then later to see if there was any documented healing of damage that was done to the CNS by the virus.

 Her stem cells have repaired some of the damage on their own (her back left leg) but since this is still new territory it is anybody's guess just how much damage will repair without help and when the endpoint is. Even Dr. Sears doesn't know what to expect. Like man's first walk on the moon, it seems Carmella's journey is a voyage of mystery.

I remain concerned about the awkward way she has had to hold her right, front leg for the past year to balance while it's constantly jerking, and the changes to the wrist that have taken place.

Seeing her run like a jackrabbit across the yard in the snow the other day made me realize just how precious that is and I don't want her to get to the point that she can't do that anymore. It would be a tragedy after all this if atrophy left her even more disabled than when she had Distemper.

In every other way she is healthy and robust.  It is hard to know until we look at the brain and spinal cord whether the problem is all demyelination, whether scar tissue has complicated the neural pathways (or both). I just wish that I had the appointment set up so that we'll have an answer soon. I'm going to call Dr. Norwood again today to see whether the wheels are in motion, and hopefully get that referral done today.

I'm finding it hard to think of anything else even while I'm working on other things. Sales have been at a standstill this month so far and I don't know why. Had I been making better sales her bill could have been paid off by now. I'm looking into the possibility of doing two indoor shows, but they're at least a month or so away, if I can arrange it. I'm also keeping my eyes peeled for new stores to carry my work.

I'm still collecting Carmella's fur for the miniature I'm making of her. I have the wire armature frame made and next I will add the core wool. Here is a picture;

My plan is to make a number of different miniatures of dogs who have been cured of distemper the way Carmella has.

Squirrels have taken up residence in my attic and they wake Carmella up as soon as it gets light outside, squeeking and chasing around above my bedroom like mischievous children with too much time on their hands.

There must be an overpopulation of squirrels in this area, as it almost seems like an infestation!

The first time I heard the noises they made in the attic I thought a nest of birds had hatched up there.

Carmella jumps off my bed about 6 times every morning until I drag myself out of bed to let her out so that I can rest.

More often than not she's more interested in looking out the window in the computer room at the front of the house than going outside, so I have to practically shove her out the door after she plays dead and limp on the livingroom rug. She looks up at me as if she thinks it's funny. I am not amused, trying to lift her up and out while a blast of cold air bursts into the house, her body like a sack of potatoes. It's way too early for these kinds of shennanigans.

All of this usually takes several minutes of coaxing and chasing her from room to room as she tears around the house like a greyhound on the racetrack before I can finally convince her to go outside.

Once out she seems to enjoy the crisp air and she runs over to the side where the neighbors are just getting into their cars to head off for work, barks a few times, then runs back across the expanse of the yard to nose around in the leaves and pinestraw that have dropped from the trees and chewing on fallen branches.

The snow is gone but it was fun while it lasted.

http://Giftbearer.etsy.com

Pass The Turkey and the Stuffing, Celebrate The Ones Still With Us, and Remember the Ones We've Lost

Thanksgiving is both a joyous time and a time of reflection.

This year the effort to save dogs from distemper has been a big success wherever those striving to help these dogs in a number of different venues, connecting with owners wherever they are found; on various messageboards, dog-related forums, websites, and blogs, both on the internet, and in the community.

One by one more and more dogs that once would have been considered hopeless will now spend the holidays, happy and healthy with their families.

More vets have begun to venture out and try the body and/or the CSF treatment, and are happy and intrigued with the results.

The broader the base of support for this cure becomes, the bigger its impact. There are many people who have made this possible, some who are highly visible and others working behind the scenes to bring about change, hope, and health, and working to educate the public, each in his or her own way, advancing science in a very tangible way.

Because of all of you who've contributed in one way or another more dogs this year will curl up by the fire, sit next to the table tomorrow night when the big feast is served, and will live to see the lights on the Christmas tree, play in the snow, and sleep securely in the knowledge that they're home with people who love them and will be for a long time.

At the same time though, there is much work ahead of us, and there are dogs and owners that will not spend the holidays together because they didn't know about the treatment until too late.

For the owners of these dogs the holidays this year will be a time of mourning, a reminder that although a cure now exists the vast majority of vets still do not make use of it and many have not even heard of it.

To many dogs and their owners in many parts of the world Dr. Sears' treatment is still out of their reach. They must travel great distances to get to a location in which a vet can perform that more invasive CSF procedure many of these animals need to fully rid them of the virus after it's reached the brain and spinal cord.

Many still have no way to travel these distances, or they do not have the money to pay what it costs to save their dog's life, and/or cannot do it soon enough.

This beautiful black brindle puppy is one of those who didn't make it. He was only 11 weeks old. By the time his owner found out that there was a cure his pneumonia had severely compromised his breathing. No serum was available where he lived, and antibiotics could not knock back the pneumonia enough for him to wait to reach a vet in another state.

Unfortunately, he did not make it through the weekend.

This next puppy in India died despite her owner and vet's best efforts to save her life, but her immune system was too weak and she got the treatment too late. The CSF procedure was performed 5 days after she was diagnosed, but what happens too often is that dogs aren't diagnosed before the disease has taken too much of a toll.

Her littermate survived and seems to be returning to health.

To those of you who have been reading and wondering how you can help, go to the links of the distemper projects on your right and donate, talk to your vet about this cure, send them the link to this blog and the other informational websites, talk to shelters, rescues, the Humane Society, and other dog-related groups and encourage them to get involved too, volunteer to make serum if you're a vet or an owner whose vet is open to this, print fliers, business cards or other written material and hand it out, set up a fundraiser benefit, or if you have the connections see if you can arrange speaking opportunities with Dr. Sears and Dr. Muller someplace where it will really have some impact, pull strings with news media, medical journals, etc. Be creative. There are all kinds of ways to move this forward.

I look forward to the day when a dog is diagnosed and the same day it can be treated with the serum or NDV; a day when no dog has to wait and decline because he or she can't access the care needed, a day when no dog is left with seizures, with myoclonus, with paralysis, or with blindness, a day when this cure is first line for the treatment of canine distemper in every shelter, clinic, and country.

Lets make that day soon! With all of you pitching in we can get there.

This ground-breaking treatment for distemper is really something to be thankful for.

Distemper Cure Successes-Latest News!

On Monday, March 9, 2009 a 4 month-old puppy in Texas by the name of Maya with severe abdominal spasms was treated in both body and CNS and came through it successfully!

As of March 28, 2009 these 2 dogs were treated by another vet in Texas with Newcastle Disease Vaccine (NDV) in both body and Central Nervous System;

A little dachshund was in what is considered "end stage" Distemper. He was showing the characteristic "chewing gum" seizures for months, yet was still able to be saved! This is another great example showing that it's never too late.

Next, on Monday, May 11, 2009 a 5-month-old Border Collie mix named Hunter from California traveled with her owner to Texas and received the life-saving treatment in both body and CNS. Her nose started softening within about 24 hrs, and amazingly her pneumonia disappeared fairly soon after both injections. This sudden resolution of the pneumonia rarely happens without Baytril and Pennecillin G administered over a 7-day period, and the result implies that the NDV might cause an overall immune system improvement in some dogs! The owner was elated and had this to say:

"There is a huge group of people in LA who are mostly pet rescuers and they can't wait to see the results. They have been emailing me all day in the last 5 days."

Then on Monday, May 18, 2009 Dr. Muller here in Atlanta treated another dog, Sammy, a mixed-breed terrier of about 1 year in age who traveled by air from Florida. The body treatment and the CSF procedure were done back to back, as this dog had had a turn for the worse in the days preceding their arrival. I met with the couple while they were here in Atlanta and am happy to hear he is doing well. Sammy had reached the "chewing gum" stage and was starting to progress to Grand Mal seizures before he got treatment. His owners were greatly relieved when Dr. Muller stepped up to the plate. Their dog now has a chance at a normal life!

Sammy

The success of the above 5 dogs combined with those previously treated is beginning to gain the trust of more vets. In all there are 9 or 10 dogs to date who have been treated in both body and CNS with Dr. Sears' treatment and are doing well.

In Texas the very first donor dog created 60ccs of serum! His cytokines will help sick dogs beat this deadly disease.

Next, a beautiful yellow Labrador whose former owner gave him up was taken in by the small rescue operation owned by the family who had the Dachshund and the Boston Terrier, treated by their vet. The family who took him in named him Alson after Alson Sears, the vet who developed this cure. He is healthy and of the optimal age to donate the dog-based serum used in place of the manufactured NDV that will save even more dogs from Distemper. The procedure for him poses no risk, utilizing his natural cytokines stimulated by the bird-based NDV and then harvested, seperating the serum at the exact time-frame necessary.

Texas is one of the biggest hot spots for Distemper in the US where epidemics are running rampant, and there are many dogs in need in that area. This is a wonderful thing that these people are doing to help their local community!

Carmella continues to do well. Her mange has gotten better and better since she started on Ivermectin and she has not had any more opportunistic bacterial infections!

She still looks a little as if she was shot in the butt with some buckshot, but the fur is gradually growing back and the itching is much less frequent.

Over the past week while I'd been house-sitting she has been very rambunctious, nosing around, investigating the new surroundings, and trying to chew my shoes as I put them on in the morning. The people I was house-sitting for had two cats and one dog. All had to be kept seperate or it would have been pandamonium. Carmella has never been around cats so she was captivated looking out the sliding glass window at them on the second-floor balcony enclosed in lattice-work. She whined with anticipation and stuck her head between the bamboo blinds to stare at them (I'm not sure if she wanted to pounce on them and eat them for dinner or just play with them) but I wasn't taking any chances.

Once home, she settled back down and curled up on her black fuzzy pillow in the kitchen after chomping on her rawhide stick and playing with her stuffed rabbit. It was a long week over at the other house, as the quarters were cramped and I had to watch her like a hawk to make sure she didn't chew up anything. I'm happy to be home myself, to sleep in my own bed, and have access to my computer files, and jewelry supplies.

Before I left to house-sit last weekend I created a poster about the importance of early detection and NDV treatment of dogs with Distemper that can be printed and hung in vets' offices. I included the photos of 4 dogs who have died because they didn't find this treatment in time or the owners were unable to get their vets to do it before the disease overtook them. The file was so big in png format that I couldn't send it by e-mail so I have saved a copy in jpg and uploaded it to Flickr;

http://www.flickr.com/photos/giftbearer/3563218569/

If you have a vet for your animals please share the link to this poster and my blog with him or her and encourage them to follow what we're doing on behalf of these dogs. As more and more people adopt dogs from shelters it becomes evident just how vital and needed such a cure is. Preventative vaccination alone clearly is not eradicating this virus, and in a shelter environment where many dogs are housed close together all it takes is one infected dog to infect the others, as Canine Distemper is an airborne disease. The numbers of dogs saved by NDV continues to increase, and with them, the evidence that it is indeed is a real cure!
http://Giftbearer.etsy.com/

Carmella's New Plan of Action Against Mange Mites, and Mine

Carmella went back to the vet on Saturday and started a new regimine to combat the Mange mites that proliferate at the slightest opportunity. Dr. Norwood did a skin scraping and found that she in fact does have Demodectic Mange as she had before. The bacteria seem to be under control for the most part, although she was developing an infection in her ears. Just my luck that one problem ends, just to make room for another.

Dr. Norwood seemed perplexed as to what to do to improve Carmella's immune system, and mentioned that maybe there is a product that could be ordered that he doesn't have in stock, although he doesn't know alot about that kind of stuff, as it falls more under homeopathic medicine than mainstream veterinary medicine. In the meantime, something would have to be done to kill the mites that are multiplying currently. I asked whether she could be given a higher dose of the Pro-meris every two weeks, and he said that that might possibly work, but that there really was no precedent for it and it would be off-label, so he was reluctant to try that option.

Then I asked him what he thought about using Ivermectin. That he seemed to think was a good idea. He went into the back room where he deliberated for a good 15-20 minutes about the dosage. When he had finished his figuring he sent the male vet tech in to give me the instructions for dosing.

Invariably this guy always seems to forget something or relay some instruction insufficiently. It would be much more reliable if Dr. Norwood delivered these instructions himself. The prescription for Carmella's ears was predicatably forgotten and the vet tech ventured a guess as to whether the Mange treatment would address the secondary ear infection, so I asked him to go ask Dr. Norwood, not wanting to take any chances. In a matter of just a day or two Carmella could be worse and need to come back in, so I figured I'd save myself that hassle.

The vet tech returned with a tube of antibiotic ointment and some stuff to clean her ears with, then went over the instructions for the Ivermectin (1% solution). I am supposed to titrate up as follows:

Day 1: .2 ml

Day 2: .4 ml

Day 3: .6 ml

Day 4: .7 ml

Day 5: .8 ml

Day 6: .9 ml

Day 7: 1.0 ml

Day 8: 1.1 ml

Day 9: 1.2 ml

Day 10 on for 2-4 months (continue to give 1.2 ml per day)

So far as of day 3 there have been no adverse reactions.

She is on Gentizol ointment (manufactured by VetOne) for her ear infection (Gentamycin sulfate, USP, Betamethasone Valerate, USP, and Clotrimazole, USP), taken for 14 days, and the ear cleaning solution is Vet Solutions Vetoquinol (an 8 oz. bottle).



Carmella is still biting and licking herself somewhat but not constantly. I let her spend a good part of the day out in the sun this afternoon which she thoroughly enjoyed, lying on an old green cushion just outside the back porch. Maybe being out in the air and the sun will help dry out some of the pests that are plagueing her.

Yay! The Carmella-cam is working again! I thought I might have to buy the hosting service's paid service to have it work again, but apparently it fixed itself. When I got on the computer today I saw it come up on my computer for the first time in several weeks. Then I checked the link in my seidebar and saw it was working here too. Be sure to check her out in the kitchen!

I am preparing for some jewelry competitions and finishing up a local custom order, as well as going to some doctor's appointments.

After seeing my GP last week it looks as if the bone loss in my jaw and pain in those bones is finally going to be addressed, as will my appeal to Medicare for my Benicar.

By Friday or Saturday I began to have intermittant shortness of breath. Now that I have run through the medication I had stockpiled some of the earlier symptoms are returning, (but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to have predicted that outcome). You'd think that Medicare would know that. What is really disturbing about that whole situation is that they obviously know but don't care. I am not the only one on that off-label protocol whose health is in jeopardy because Medicare is too cheap to continue paying for the lifesaving medication that people with a number of autoimmune diseases need for which this regimine is indicated. Their denial is hurting many, possibly hundreds of people with Sarcoidosis, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and Lyme Disease, just to mention a few conditions.

I may have to ultimately take my case before an Administrative Law Judge because although it is cheaper out of pocket by buying it from India than from the manufacturer (Sankyo) here in the US, I do not know how long I could fork out that amount of money either (or whether I could do it every single month).

I have made only two small sales this month and that's not enough to keep me and Carmella going. I hope these two sales are just the beginning, and that larger ones and more of them will follow.

If I can find out whether or not I have an active bone infection, and get that taken care of on my insurance, then getting the bone regeneration procedure should not be any expense at all since it is research.

My GP is going to speak with the guy doing the bone regeneration project and ask if he knows anyone he reccomends for me to see to assess the infection status before we get started.

Please check out my Etsy shop often and tell your friends and relatives about it. The 20% off Repeat Customer Appreciation Sale continues through midnight Mother's Day (May 10th). I want to be around for years to come to make lots more jewelry, and to continue to take care of Carmella. If I can pay off her vet bill it will sure be one big load off my mind. I've currently got a long way to go to raise $2,000, but if enough people take action it is an achievable goal. I created this ad for a necklace that I think would make another wonderful gift for a mother. The Labradorite, pink pearls, and faceted Rose Quartz create a understated and classy look combined with the sterling melon beads and Hill Tribes Silver Rose focal.

http://Giftbearer.etsy.com/

Ding, Ding, Ding! We May Have A Yes!

I don't want to jump the gun, but I believe I've found a vet to complete Carmella's treatment!

While looking over that recent list I decided to start with clinics I had been to before even if it was many years ago and I called Briarcliff Animal Hospital. This was a place I used to take my dog to when I was a teenager, a dog named Hector who was half German Shepherd and half Collie. I had her from the time I was about 8 years old until I was 17 or 18. You may be wondering why a female dog was named Hector. Well, my mother brought her home one day after having been told by the owner of the mother with a litter of puppies that she was a male. She was so covered with hair you really couldn't tell by turning her over, and it wasn't until she was 6 months old when she went into heat that we really knew she was a female. When all the male dogs in the neighborhood started lining up in the front yard and we found drops of blood on the kitchen floor that answered that!

I remember first when my family moved to Atlanta from Baltimore we took her to Dr. Tyree who then worked at Briarcliff Animal Hospital. At the time it was a tiny building not much bigger than the one Dr. Norwood works in now. Dr. Tyree was great and the place was within walking distance from my house. When me and my friend Charlotte who lived down the street found injured animals in the woods; stray dogs, baby birds, etc. we'd walk over there and take them to her. Usually there was no charge for these wild animal consultations, and when an animal died she never charged anything for the emergency care to try to save it.

At 15 I started volunteering for a local dog breeder on weekends and after school a few nights a week to help with her obedience classes and show training classes. This breeder took all 25 Irish Setters to Dr. Tyree also.

At some point Dr. Tyree moved on and then in her place came Dr. Hedge. I had forgotten about Dr. Hedge until the male receptionist mentioned her. I think I may not have taken my dog to her for near as long, and as I remember she was not quite as open to treating these wild animals for free, and since the dog breeder already had a paid assistant and couldn't afford to pay two I had very little moneyt for vet bills so I didn't go in there as much when she came on the scene.

Monday morning when I called the receptionist listened to Carmella's story and he said that Dr. Hedge was still there and that there was one other vet, Dr. Muller. I told him all about Dr. Sears' treatment for Distemper and how well Carmella had responded to the injection of NDV in the body, and how I was having trouble finding any vet who would do this second part. He told me he'd ask the two vets there and get back to me.

I actually thought it would be Dr. Hedge if anyone from there, but in an hour or so I got a phone call and it was the same male receptionist on the line. He said he'd spoken with Dr. Muller and that he wanted to know whether I'd tried Loving Touch since they did holistic veterinary medicine, and I told him that the guy there was almost going to do it but then got cold feet and backed out.

What the receptionist didn't tell me right away is that Dr. Muller had said he'd do the procedure if there looked like there were no others who would! He said it almost in passing and I had to do a double-take.

"Really? He said that?!!!" I could hardly keep myself from jumping up and screaming. Not wanting to jinx anything I tried my best to remain calm. "Well I've been going through this long list, and I've checked 5 board certified neuro vets, 2 of them at UGA and one at GVS. I've asked at least 20 vets in the past month since she's been sick and was making my way through this current list..."

"UGA and GVS already turned her down? Well that's good enough for me" said the receptionist. "I'll go back and let him know all this."

"Do I need to set up an appointment for him to see her?"

"Well let me see what he says and I'll have him call you himself."

I was floored. "Thank you! Thank you! This is such a relief! I didn't know what we were going to do."

"You're welcome" he said, after a brief hesitation, a bit self-conscious by my show of emotion. It seemed as though he was smiling on the other end of the line.

I didn't hear anything later that day, and nothing by around 1:00 pm yesterday, so I called back to see if Dr. Muller was in and if he had indeed gotten the receptionists' message. I had to leave a message on his voicemail. Then around 5:00 pm the call came in.

"Hello, Ms. Charlington?"

"Ms. Carlington; yes this is she."

"This is Dr. Muller from Briarcliff Animal Hospital."

"Oh yes! Great!"

"I understand you want to have a spinal injection done on your dog who has Distemper?"

"Yes. Did the receptionist tell you all about it?"

"Yes, I think it was David"

"The other receptionist told me she thought it was Dwight"

"Well it could have been him. He said you moved here from California?"

"Oh, no not me. It was Dr. Sears who moved from California. I live here. Dr. Sears who developed the treatment is retired and he moved from California to Utah."

"So it's Newcastle Disease Virus Vaccine that's injected into the spinal canal?"

"Yes, into the Foramen Magnum; the same way they do a spinal tap."

"That's interesting. Some vets are now starting to give epidurals for surgery these days, so that isn't so far off from the way that is done."

"And Dr. Sears can give you exact instructions for this. He told me he'd work with any vet I work with on this."

"And he has never had any problems with the dogs he's treated?"

"Well there was one he had problems with, but it was too far gone by the time he tried to save it, in the full paralysis stage. The others were successful. I'm hoping that this will be done on Carmella soon before it's too late for her. She could still be saved, but she's been getting worse neurologically."

"Oh, she's already got neurological symptoms?"

"Yes, myoclonic jerking in the right front leg".

"Oh, seizures", he said as though making a mental note to himself.

"She's a beautiful dog and otherwise healthy. The first injection cured every other symptom in the body. Her paw pads started healing within two days afterwards, and two weeks later they were completely healed."

"Oh really! Cool!"

"Yes, since Newcastle Disease is related to Distemper but in birds Dr. Sears just theorized that it would work, stumbled upon it and decided to try it, and it worked. The manufactured stuff is made by Merial, but Dr. Sears also came up with a formula for a dog-based serum."

"Is that antibodies?"

"I'm not sure, but it could be."

"Yes, I bet it's antibodies, spinned down. This is quite interesting. Did you check with Loving Touch?"

"Yes, there was one guy there who was going to but then got freaked out because it was "experimental" and talked himself out of it."

"How come your regular vet wasn't able to do it?"

"He's never done a spinal tap in his life and there'd be too much risk that he'd hit the spinal cord."

"Oh."

"Don't you pretty much have to do it by feel to knw what you're doing."

"Yes, true. They don't always teach that at least in any depth in all vet schools."

"I know. He has never done one and I can imagine if you don't know how far to push the needle it's not something you can just do from a book. You had to have had some actual practice to really know how."

"Yes, I see. Well I've done it, not tons of times, but I'm capable of doing them. I just wish a neuro vet could do it. They do that kind of thing all the time. I'm not afraid to do it myself, but I just want to make sure I don't make her worse neurologically than she already is."

"Well, that's the thing that really kills me. The most qualified board certified neuro vets won't seem to touch this and they're willing to let her die rather than do something new to save her. If somebody doesn't she's going to eventually die. They know that and still they won't do it. She has had no side-effects from the first injection, only positive results. Her coat is shiny, she got rid of the pneumonia, her pads are healed, she doesn't have crud in her eyes, and she's eating, drinking, and very active, just like a normal puppy. If you didn't see her jerking you might not even know there was anything wrong with her. She looks good, but the ironic thing is the virus is still in the Central Nervous System and the neuro symptoms are getting worse. Do you want me to bring her in for a preliminary appointment?"

"Yes, that would be a good idea, but let me call Dr. Sears and find out all about this, and I'll call you afterwards. I'll call him around 10:00 or 11:00 am tomorrow morning and then get back to you."

We got off the phone and I felt stunned. It had all happened rather quickly, but I was glad because that probably meant this guy will take action. I think he gets it that we don't have all the time in the world and that each day she goes on without the treatment the virus damages more of her brain. There's only one solution and that's to kill the virus. Then she can look forward to a normal life, this will all be behind her, and the black cloud will be gone. Things can only get better from there.

http://Giftbearer.etsy.com

Going Nationwide

To recap for any new readers who are just joining me, my puppy, Carmella, who I adopted from a local animal shelter has Distemper and has been cured of the virus in the body with Newcastle Disease Virus Vaccine, the LaSota strain (manufactured by Merial), a discovery made by Alson, Sears, DVM, but still needs an injection into the spinal canal in order to kill the virus in the brain and Central Nervous System. The second injection must be done directly into the spinal canal because NDV does not cross the blood-brain barrier from the body. While searching for a vet with the experience and willingness to work in the area called the Foramen Magnum (the area where spinal taps are done at the base of the skull), Carmella has developed myoclonic jerking, some incoordination in balance, and stiffness in her right front leg. This has gotten worse over the past month.

Each vet that refuses her the procedure who is capable of performing it allows the virus to continue to do further damage to the brain, and each day she waits brings her a little closer to paralysis, grand mal seizures, and ultimately, death.

One of the excuses used by a number of the vets I've asked has been that this is still "experimental", yet so far none are jumping on the bandwagon to advocate clinical trials and further study, even though there is quite alot of empirical evidence that it works. I would love it if some vet would read this blog and decide to go ahead and help her out of the kindness of his/her heart in spite of all this, but so far that hasn't happened.

In one of my previous posts, I outlined some of the National Veterinary Ethics Board regulations, and it is pretty clear that vets who may be afraid to try this for fear of liability have really nothing to fear, as the regulations would actually support them in doing it, thus saving a dog's life, removing suffering, and advancing the current understanding of a possible cure for Distemper.

The continued failure on the part of Veterinary Medicine to move forward on this discovery becomes a vicious cycle in which the treatment just sits there tabled until somebody takes up the mantle and does what is necessary to officially legitimize it. This leaves dogs like Carmella at a stalemate much as humans with deadly and thought to be incurable diseases are left out of luck when stem cell research is held up because of ominous, albeit unfounded fears and religeous beliefs regarding the "tampering" with nature or "God's plan".

Then there is the agenda of Big Pharma in which a potential cure for any disease threatens to make obsolete current "supportive care" drugs and procedures. Nevertheless, when a cure is on the horizon man is foolhardy to turn a blind eye to it. Even from a religeous standpoint, I don't believe that a loving God would provide us the brains and creativity to come up with this new science and not intend for us to make use of it. That just wouldn't make sense.

After sending out press releases to all local TV stations and to the Atlanta Journal and Constitution I decided this weekend not to wait any longer to hear back from them, but to go to the National media, so I sent out more of these to Frontline, Dateline, and asked for the story submission process for 20/20. The latter's webform was a little unclear as to how stories are submitted or decided upon, and it only allowed 500 characters. My press release was a little more than that, so I'll have to get more information as to where to send it in full so that they aren't left saying, "Huh? Where's the rest of the story."

If the local news picks this up that's fine too, but there's no guarantee that the one vet who finally steps up and volunteers to do this will even be located in Atlanta or in its surrounding suburbs, so I have to be prepared to look further than my own backyard.

Considering that I've probably asked 20 or 30 now in all and still none has agreed to it, the job may take someone so rare that that vet could be located anywhere in the US.

Although stories might not be harvested on the weekend, at least these first National news requests will be waiting for their producers and investigative reporters come Monday morning and they can hit the ground running. I just hope it will spark the interest of the right people and that I'll start getting phone calls next week sometime, as the number of news contacts made reaches critical mass. Maybe the more news agencies who receive it, the bigger it's chance of getting on the AP wire or sent around to various affilliates. I still need to look into how to submit my press release directly to the AP wire, as that will make this notification process alot easier.

If any of you out there reading work for a news media agency; print, TV, online, or radio, please see what you can do to have some influence and ask that they cover Carmella's story. If you would like to have me interviewed by your agency please leave a comment on my blog about how I can get in touch with you and I'll get you or the person doing the story my contact information. If you have an Etsy account and would like to contact me more privately about news coverage, their convo system is another way you can reach me and I can make contact with you or your "people".

This morning Carmella woke up as usual wanting to go out and go to the bathroom, and after she'd done that I let her lie on my bed for awhile. Amazingly she sayed there pretty well-behaved for about a half an hour before she got restless again and wanted to chew things, jump down onto the floor and get into mischief. I'm crossing my fingers that she will get over her restlessness and urge to chew up everything in her path. It was really nice to just have her curl up and keep me company while I looked through my supply catalogues and rested and watched TV. I woke up very fatigued this morning. I think my own autoimmune disease may be flaring up somewhat, so I had to kind of take it easy today. Just making myself lunch seemed like alot of work. I've had to take something for pain two nights in a row.

I plan on watching some comedy on TV tonight and to try to get a good night's sleep.

Carmella's paw seemed to be curling under this evening when I checked on her in addition to the usual jerking.

Earlier today I worked on training her for awhile. She is particularly good at fetching things I throw for her and is becoming more and more consistent in bringing them back each time. She still tries to chew on my pants leg but seems to be gradually doing that less. When I tell her to sit or to lie down she often stops at that moment.

I'm looking forward to ordering these rubber stamps I'm having custom-made, but I have so many designs that I've adapted to black and white that it might take a few days next week for the woman I'm communicating with to finish the proofs. Some of them will be round and some square or rectangular. I was looking through some supply catalogues for some very fine gemstone beads and high-end cabs to go with this new line. There's a bead show next Friday that I'm planning to go to to look for some of that stuff in-person and I also want to pick out some really nice oxidized chain for the necklaces and maybe bracelets.

Many thanks to all who have donated to Carmella, bought an ad here, and to the recent buyer who purchased my "Click Beetle" bracelet, and those who have posted supportive comments on my blog.

If you would like to help Carmella and haven't had the chance yet please use the donation button on the upper right of my blog, or purchase an ad in my "Top Spots" further down my sidebar, or you can start your holiday shopping early and purchase something from my Etsy store. Your help will allow me to pay down Carmella's vet bill more quickly and will help greatly if I end up having to take her out of town to get her treated.

http://Giftbearer.etsy.com/