Dear DoveLewis staff:

Thank you so much for saving our little border collie mix, Tucker. We adopted Tucker a year ago, today, and he has been the highlight of our life. A very active dog, he fits in with our very active outdoor lifestyle. We almost didn’t make it to this year anniversary date, but thanks to DoveLewis, Tucker is having a huge party tonight (pinata filled with dog treats and all).

Last week I had Tucker out Sauvie’s Island where we were playing in the water. Tucker’s version of play is to run at full speed along the shoreline and bite at the water ‘herding’ it back into the river. It is a weird behavior, but funny and he has done it is whole life. I thought it was harmless, never thought that it could be fatal.

After being out there for about an hour Tucker came over to me whining. I told my friend we needed to go, Tucker didn’t look so good, so we started heading back to the car. Tucker started wobbling like he was drunk, then just collapsed. I picked up his limp body and ran to the car. We thought he had heat stroke and rushed to Dove. As I passed over his rag–doll body to the vet tech, the last thing I shouted was ‘He has heat stroke’.

Lucky for me a smart veterinarian came out almost instantly and asked what else we had been doing that hot day. I told her about Tucker’s drinking problem and she quickly did some internet research on something she had heard about. After a quick blood test it was determined Tucker had water intoxication, not heat stroke at all. Water intoxication causes the electrolytes to crash, causing the brain to swell and can be fatal. It is treated very differently than heat stroke. I am afraid to think about if I went to a less knowledgeable vet what could have happened to him. After a night in ICU with very caring staff and lots of fluid transfusions we were able to bring our little boy home again.

We are re–training his neurotic water behavior and are forever thankful to DoveLewis. Before this all happened Tucker was already a big fan of Dove, raising money for them through Pets in The Pearl (Donation Dog Tucker). Now we are forever indebted to your great organization.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart,
Kelly Perry & Tucker the Dog

 

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