{"id":560,"date":"2018-09-01T15:19:58","date_gmt":"2018-09-01T22:19:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/?p=560"},"modified":"2025-01-23T09:08:15","modified_gmt":"2025-01-23T17:08:15","slug":"a-corgi-puppy-gets-a-second-chance-for-a-happy-and-healthy-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/2018\/09\/01\/a-corgi-puppy-gets-a-second-chance-for-a-happy-and-healthy-life\/","title":{"rendered":"A Corgi Puppy Gets a Second Chance for a Happy and Healthy Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fall 2018 Issue<\/a><\/p>\n

by Marcia Hill Gossard ’99, ’04 Ph.D.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

When Kristy Fiorini first held the small, brown-eyed corgi puppy with a white patch on his right ear, she was smitten. A long-time dog lover, she had been wanting a corgi ever since she could remember. \u201cMy husband isn\u2019t so much of a dog person,\u201d she says. \u201cBut he gave me the puppy as a surprise because he knew how much I wanted him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like all puppies, Murray, was full of energy. He loved playing with toys and chasing Kristy daughter\u2019s dog. But when he was six months old, Kristy noticed that Murray\u2019s head was tilting to the side. \u201cAt first, we thought he had hurt himself playing chase,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

They took him to their local veterinarian who treated him with anti-inflammatories, but Murray didn\u2019t improve. Kristy took Murray back to the veterinarian, who recommend an MRI to see if there was a problem with a disc in Murray\u2019s spine and she was referred to the WSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital<\/a>. \u201cMaking the appointment gave me hope,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

After a neurological exam, WSU neurology intern, Dr. Sandy Chen, told Kristy it wasn\u2019t disc problem. Murry had some blindness in one eye and did not appear to feel touch sensations on half of his face. He was also dizzy, which would not have been related to a disc problem in the spine. Something else was going on in his brain to cause his symptoms and the MRI would help them know more.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was so emotional,\u201d says Fiorini. \u201cI went in expecting disc surgery and when she told me there was something going on in his brain, it was even worse news.\u201d<\/p>\n

At 7:00 a.m. the next morning, Kristy dropped Murray off at the veterinary hospital. \u201cThey told me that I may not hear from anyone all day,\u201d says Fiorini. She was surprised when she got a call at 1:00 p.m. \u201cDr. Chen asked if I could get to the hospital right away,\u201d she says. \u201cI thought the worst.\u201d<\/p>\n

They found two abscesses in Murray\u2019s brain and an abnormal pocket of fluid at the base of his brain. \u201cDr. Chen met me in the parking lot and told me they needed my permission to do a spinal tap,\u201d says Fiorini. \u201cThey needed my consent because there was a chance he may not make it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Murray spent the night and was scheduled for surgery the next day. Kristy came back in the morning to see him before surgery. Then she waited.<\/p>\n

\u201cI sat facing the door where I knew they would come from after the surgery,\u201d she says. \u201cMy biggest fear was that they would come out and tell me he didn\u2019t make it.\u201d<\/p>\n

WSU neurologist Dr. Hillary Greatting performed surgery on Murray\u2019s brain to remove the infection from the abscesses, which was causing the blindness and lack of feeling in his face. Neither she nor Dr. Chen had ever seen infection that extensive in a dog\u2019s brain.<\/p>\n

But the day after surgery, Murray walked out to greet Kristy.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has responded well to treatment of the abscesses,\u201d says Greatting, which also included a strong antibiotic. \u201cHis second MRI was improved, but not normal yet. It is a miracle case, but he is not going to be out of the woods for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the first weeks of recovery at home, fourth year veterinary student, Hanna Robertson, kept in touch with Kristy daily. Kristy would send updates and videos, so they could monitor how Murray was doing. \u201cIt is amazing for a dog to get that kind of care,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Today, Murray, who is just a little over a year old, is feeling better, but because of the fluid pocket at the base of his brain, which he\u2019s likely had since birth, his head still sometimes tilts and loses his balance. \u201cIt has been touch-and-go,\u201d says Fiorini. \u201cA lot of improvement, but a lot of uncertainty. But I know we are on the right track.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the expenses of the surgery and the medicine Murray needs every month, Fiorini says they were financially tapped. So, they applied for funding through the WSU Good Samaritan Program. They received $900, just a fraction of the costs, but it made all the difference. \u201cKnowing we were able to go back for the follow up and have it financially taken care of helped me sleep,\u201d says Fiorini. \u201cIt was literally life-saving.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before they can consider a second surgery to remove the fluid, the infection from the abscesses must be completely gone. And the surgery is risky. Kristy is trying to weigh the risk of the surgery, with Murray\u2019s quality of life because she knows he could come through it better, or worse. \u201cHis endurance is not there, but he is leading a good life,\u201d she says. \u201cI love this dog so much. I\u2019ll take him as he is.\u201d<\/p>\n

And so far, his progress has been even better than expected. \u201cThat he is moving in a positive direction is amazing,\u201d says Dr. Greatting. \u201cWe are very optimistic that he is doing this well this far out.\u201d<\/p>\n

For now, Kristy and Murray are waiting to see how he does before he returns for a follow up visit at the WSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital. \u201cThat place. It is much more that a veterinary visit,\u201d she says. \u201cThey are an amazing group of people from start to finish.\u201d<\/p>\n

UPDATE November 16, 2018<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAfter we brought him home last January, Jim and I decided that whatever the outcome, we couldn\u2019t put his little body through another surgery,\u201d says Kristy Fiorini. \u201cWe just hoped and prayed that he would continue to get better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Murray seemed to be doing well. The infection cleared up and a follow up MRI in February 2018 showed no change in the pocket of fluid, or cyst, at the base of his brain.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut as time went on, his head tilt came back, and it was obvious that the cyst was the culprit,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Murray had been on prednisone, a steroid, for months to slow the growth of the cyst and the medication had taken a toll on his body.\u00a0 He got weaker and sicker.\u00a0 When they returned in September for an MRI, the news confirmed their worst fear:\u00a0 Murray\u2019s cyst had grown.<\/p>\n

The cyst was compressing the cerebellum in the back of Murray\u2019s skull, which caused the head tilt. But it was also pressing on more than half of the brainstem that controls walking, breathing, and heart rate.\u00a0 \u201cMy fear was that if we didn\u2019t remove this cyst soon, Murray\u2019s quality of life would worsen and that he could lose his ability to walk or even breath,\u201d says WSU veterinary neurologist Dr. Annie Chen-Allen.<\/p>\n

On the drive back to Seattle, Jim turned to Kristy and said, \u201cWell we can\u2019t just do nothing. He needs surgery.\u201d\u00a0 And on October 18, 2018, Murray returned to have the cyst removed.<\/p>\n

Immediately after surgery, Murray couldn\u2019t walk or see very well.\u00a0 And he had a difficult time eating.\u00a0 Kristy and Jim had to leave him at the hospital and go home for the week. \u201cI kissed his nose and told him to fight hard because we are coming to bring him home so soon,\u201d she says.\u00a0 \u201cThe very next morning I got a call saying that when they went to get him he hopped out of his bed and walked down the hall and waited at the door to go outside. And the change in him from after surgery to the following Saturday when we picked him up a week later was nothing short of a miracle.\u201d<\/p>\n

And since he\u2019s been home, Murray has been improving every day. \u201cHis eyes are so bright and so curious and so happy now. They gave him a chance to finally be the puppy he\u2019s never gotten to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s walking better every day and his head tilt is gone,\u201d says Dr. Chen-Allen.\u00a0 \u201cWhat is even better is that we are able to take him off prednisone, which was causing him so many unwanted side effects.\u00a0 Murray has been through so much for such a young dog and all I wish for him now is to live a long healthy life from this point forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kristy says she finds it hard to express just how deep their gratitude and admiration is for the hospital, and for Murray\u2019s doctors and team. \u201cYou don\u2019t find many neurology surgeons who will devote their weekends to their patient\u2019s\u00a0successful recovery and you definitely don\u2019t find many who will stop on the way to work in the morning to buy that patient a rotisserie chicken every day because that\u2019s the only thing he would eat,\u201d says Fiorini.\u00a0 \u201cThat is the level of care you receive here.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Kristy Fiorini first held the small, brown-eyed corgi puppy with a white patch on his right ear, she was smitten. A long-time dog lover, she had been wanting a corgi ever since she could remember.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1015,"featured_media":563,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_wsuwp_accessibility_report":[]},"categories":[511,554,542,514],"tags":[619,543,614],"wsuwp_university_location":[332],"wsuwp_university_org":[425],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/560"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1015"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=560"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/560\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3968,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/560\/revisions\/3968"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/563"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=560"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=560"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=560"},{"taxonomy":"wsuwp_university_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wsuwp_university_location?post=560"},{"taxonomy":"wsuwp_university_org","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cvm.wsu.edu\/advance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wsuwp_university_org?post=560"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}