10/30/2026
It has been a tough week for Nobody's Perfekt Dogs Rescue. We received notices that two or our previously adopted dogs crossed over the rainbow bridge. Coincidently, they both happened to be tri-pawed dogs, having had one of their front legs amputated. "Maybe" (a.k.a. Trinity - a pitbull mix) was adopted out 10 years ago. We pulled her from the Hayward Shelter after an SPCA Vet refused to do the amputation surgery and recommended euthanasia, because they didn't think she would be a good candidate for being a 3-legged dog. We pulled her into our rescue and found another vet to do the surgery. She was quickly adopted and lived a glorious 10 years more before her hips finally gave out, and it was time to say goodbye.
Hanna (an Australian Kelpie mix) came to us from the Oakland Shelter over 6 years ago, having been hit by a car. She needed a front-leg amputation and TPLO surgery on one of her hind legs. The TPLO surgery had A LOT of complications (MRSA infection) that required months of cage rest and a subsequent surgery to remove the hardware. Her foster family decided to keep her. She was a challenge. Having only 3 legs did NOT slow her down. She had a very strong prey drive and lived in an area with a lot wildlife. She eventually was diagnosed with cancer which didn't respond to chemotherapy.
Woodrow ("Woody" - a Pomeranian) was still under our care when he unexpectedly passed away in his foster home. He came to us from the Sacramento SPCA. His original family dumped him because "there was a baby on the way." There was no mention of any medical issues. Woody was quickly adopted out to another family. They said he had a seizure under their care so they brought him back. The shelter had him medically evaluated and monitored for seizures. Having no evidence of seizure activity at the shelter, they adopted him out again. And again, he was returned for seizure activity. That is when we were contacted by the shelter. We started him on phenobarbital and placed him in a permanent foster home. His seizures were considered "under control" with the medication (maybe a seizure every 2-3 months). In June of this year, he was diagnosed with heart disease, so he was started on Pimobendan. Then a couple of nights ago, he just collapsed and died. It may have been the phenobarbital for his seizures that exacerbated the heart disease, causing the heart to fail. Hindsight is always 20/20, but maybe we should have looked at alternative medications for the seizures, once he was diagnosed with heart disease.
