Luka

Luka initially came in to our practice on 5-19-13. She had been bitten by a bull terrier at home, including having been picked up and dropped by her head. Her symptoms included throwing her head back, having no ability to walk, blinking and seeming unresponsive, and being unable to either sit or stand. The wounds she sustained were in her neck, over her right eye, and over her muzzle.

Progress Reports

Luka’s next report came two days later on 5-21. Her improvement was visible as she was wagging her tail and responding a little. We could tell that her traumatic brain injury was improving. Her progress was charted as follows:

5-22-13 Luka began to be a bit more mentally aware

5-23-13 Luka began eating from her own bowl and was able to stand without support. She also began getting excited to see people!

5-28-13 Her daily improvement was apparent, but she was still tiring easily. Her wounds had mostly healed, but in her walking she would still occasionally stumble. 

It has now been one month since Luka’s injury and she is doing significantly better! See the videos below to learn more about this brave little dog.

Carly’s Story

This poor little brown dog was found on the side of the road by our own Dr. Megan Begay while on her way to work one morning. The Doctor could tell she had been hit by a car and was badly injured, so she stopped to pick her up. 

The dog spent several days recuperating at our North Valley location; recovering from a collapsed lung, broken ribs, numerous scrapes and bruises, and a pretty bad injury to her right leg (which left her with permanent nerve damage). 

Carly Gets a New Beginning

She was brought to First Regional Animal Hospital in the hopes of finding someone to foster or adopt this poor little dog. Jessica took one look at her sad face in the kennel and immediately wanted her. Turns out not only had she been hit by a car, but had clearly been abused by her previous owner. She cowered terribly every time Jessica would try to scold or correct her, trembling and flinching as though she were waiting for the beating to begin. She was also terrified of any water, especially out of the hose. She didn’t know how to play with toys. She had terrible separation anxiety. 

After a lot of patience, love, and acceptance (and a lot of gentle correction), she has grown into a wonderful dog. Jessica couldn’t imagine life without her. Carly makes her laugh on a daily basis. Although she still has the issue with the right front leg, which causes her to stumble or knuckle her foot under from time to time, it hasn’t slowed her down a bit. Carly is now the happy, vibrant, playful dog she deserves to be.

Shawna's Rescued Pups

Shawna Sparks, a vet tech at North Valley Regional Animal Hospital, has three rescue pups that were all three hit by cars. One of them has a broken leg, another of them has two broken legs, and the third one is healed from its broken leg and has been with her for quite a while already.