While visiting my parents in Ma. yesterday the story of Daisy an abandoned pup with a congenital heart defect caught my eye on the 11 o'clock news. The 9 week old puppy had been relinquished to the MSPCA with her siblings, and her initial exam showed she would need heart surgery costing upwards of $4,000. Fifty Thousand dollars worth of donations came into the shelter, helping not only Daisy, but future patients as well. Her surgery was a success and the shelter was then inundated with people wanting to adopt the puppy. From all the letters received they chose a family whose 14 year old daughter was also born with a heart defect and has also undergone 3 heart surgeries. This story really touched me because one of my children has also had several heart surgeries. I would like to take this opportunity to let people know that Congenital Heart Defects are the number one birth defect, affecting one in every 125-150 births. Anyone else out there planning on attending the Little Hearts Picnic this year?
One of my all time favorite dogs, Rusty, a Jack Russell Terrier, has a pacemaker and takes Enalaprill every day. This is the same medicine that my child takes! My Uncle Sumner had his defibrillator replaced with a newer model and he donated his old one to the Angell (MSPCA) to be used in a dog. People surely do love their animals and more and more they are willing to do whatever it takes to help them. Do know that many heart defects in both people and dogs are very treatable!
Don't you just love a happy ending? :)))