Mitzi

I first heard about Mitzi when a kindly lady phoned me to tell me that she had “removed” her from her owner and taken her into HER care.

The trouble was she didn’t really want a dog, it was just that she couldn’t stand by and let this poor flea infested, bedraggled, arthritic bitch suffer any more where she was.

Fortunately Mark Edge didn’t live too far from her and he was happy to go and visit and assess the situation for us and see what help we could give Mitzi.

Mark confirmed she was in a bit of a state and the lady hadn’t exaggerated. There was also a large growth on the top of her nose. In submariners terms Mitzi had a “Oberon” class nose!

Because of her condition Mitzi was also very difficult to age - anything between 6 and 14 years could be correct.

Mark kindly offered to chauffeur her up to Cumbria and I was able to see for myself the state this poor girl had been allowed to deteriorate into.

Happily it was Liz at our vets when I arrived there to get Mitzi a thorough going over. Poor Liz seems to get all our more interesting cases.

I walked out of the Practice later with enough drugs to open my own chemists . The plan was to use antibiotics to try and reduce the growth down to a size that could be operated on. In the meantime a special diet would build her weight back up and put some strength into her little legs.

It was going to be a long job, but Mitzi despite all her woes was a happy little girl and seemed to be lapping up all the fuss and attention she was receiving.

One of our little miracles then happened. A local family expressed an interest in adopting Mitzi. They lived just round the corner from the vet. What luck! On our E-group many people were already following her progress and I was able to keep them informed to thank them for their support.

Unfortunately however the growth didn’t reduce, it started to get bigger and it was decided we had to go for it and remove it. It was going to be a very delicate and skilled surgery. I remember pulling Liz’s leg that if she succeeded she ought not be surprised if she got a phone call from Michael Jackson!
To complicate matters most of Mitzi’s teeth were rotten. EIGHT were going to be extracted at the same time.

Mitzi was so brave, she must have been in so much pain and her new family kept every appointment made for them and there were many. It must have been a real pain for them, but they loved her and were determined to win this fight for her.

The operation was a complete success of course.

It’s a huge boost for us to know that all this extra help and support is available from our Friends when we need it.

 

Sadly Mitzie passed away shortly after the April Walk 2003
The picture below shows her taking part, she didn't do the full walk but still received her Rosette for attendance.