Conway Area Humane Society

Puppies Now Painless Thanks to Public Support

Puppies get hematoma operations

The moment sweet little Sugar came to CAHS, animal care staff knew something was wrong. Sugar’s tiny puppy ears looked like two painfully overinflated balloons. After seeking medical advice, they learned that her ears were full of blood and fluid, a painful condition called a hematoma. These hematomas were the result of an untreated ear infection. Sugar had been hurting for quite some time and was shaking her head to try and alleviate this pain. This shaking resulted in an even more painful condition that could now only be remedied with surgery.

 

Staff had to act quickly – there was no time to waste. CAHS reached out for help over Facebook, hoping to raise the $1000 needed for surgery to fix Sugar’s ears and relieve her from immense pain. We explained Sugar’s situation, published the fundraiser, and kept our fingers crossed for this resilient three-month-old puppy.

 

Community support warmed our hearts! Within days, we raised the money for Sugar’s operation. Even better, the amount of money donated covered a second round of surgical costs for her brother Jasper! Jasper, unbeknownst to our Facebook followers, also needed surgery. Jasper had a single ear hematoma, which we hoped to fix in time.

 

CAHS services hundreds of animals each year, many with medical needs. We cannot fundraise for every single medical need  – but we will absolutely use all of the generous donations we receive. Jasper’s story is a great example of always being able to use donations for critical needs. Thanks to the community’s support, both Sugar and Jasper were soon to be out of pain.

 

Fryeburg Veterinary Hospital operated on both puppies, using a more innovative approach for their condition. Since Sugar and Jasper were very young, anesthesia was a concern. They needed to be put under anesthesia to be fixed. Spaying and neutering all animals is a necessary step on the road to adoption at CAHS. Young puppies are much too small to be put under full anesthesia twice, so Fryeburg instead decided to install petite cannulas that will drain this duo’s ears out over the next three weeks. Partial sedation was all it took to get these drains inserted.

 

How will the pups heal? Both Sugar and Jasper need to wear surgical cones during the draining process. The tiny cannulas are held in with stitches and can be pulled out, so cones allow them protection. Both puppies are on antibiotics and steroids, and require staff to provide warm compresses several times per day to keep the drains from clogging. Their cones need to be wiped off constantly as well. It is a messy but mandatory process.

 

Although both puppies will have their cannulas in for three weeks, they are not receiving pain medication. Both Sugar and Jasper have stopped shaking their heads, indicating they are no longer in severe pain. Sugar and Jasper go back to Fryeburg on the 29th to get their cannulas removed. After that, they will be the healthy and happy puppies they deserve to be!

 

Thank you to Events Director Elizabeth Lord for fostering both puppies throughout the fundraising process and for continuing to foster Sugar after her operation. Thank you to animal care staff for watching Jasper as he heals and giving him the post-operative care he needs. Caring for puppies is no easy feat, especially puppies who are healing and require advanced care.

 

Does your heart call you to give love and attention to animals in need? Learn more about being an animal foster parent here. If you want to donate to CAHS for future animals with medical needs, consider donating to our Medical Support Fund.

 

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