Katy (Champagne), Stray Mom & Puppies ~ Case 430

A Good Samaritan named John works at a trucking company in far south Dallas near Dowdy Ferry, the known dog dumping grounds.  He discovered a pregnant stray dog a few months ago and he has been working to gain her trust.  She has been living in a small patch of woods next to his truck yard.  He tried and tried for months but he was unable to capture her.  They reached out to Dallas Animal Services but they never responded to his request.  She had her puppies about 8 weeks ago.  John’s daughter Liz reached out to us for assistance back on 11/13/2023 when her puppies were only 2 weeks old. 

Due to a backlog with case requests we weren’t able to take the case immediately.  Now, ahead of this storm we know the puppies won't survive the frigid temperatures, and they are at the age where they will start running off on their own and the vicious cycle will continue, so we are taking a short break from Oliver's case and we are going to capture mom and puppies.

Below is their case timeline and be sure to check back here for updates. 

Good Samaritan John was able to capture 2 of the feral puppies in a box trap.  The others would not go near his trap.  He transported them to Dallas Animal Services for a stray hold.  

Three days later Operation Kindness picked up the puppies.  As soon as we are able to deploy our team we will capture the remaining puppies (and mom) and they will be reunited with the other puppies at Operation Kindness!  

‼️As of today one of the 9 puppies disappeared according to John.  He said that only 6 puppies have been coming out of the brush to eat. 

Our team deployed to the site and setup our corral trap.  We arrived only just a few minutes before dark and the mom and puppies were there to greet us from a distance.  In good faith, we fed them a few pieces of cheeseburgers to have them wanting more.  It took us about an hour to set everything up and by then it was dark, and mom and puppies had went inside their den in the woods.

We staged for 3 hours but they absolutely would not come out after dark. Soul shatteringly, we flew our thermal imaging drone and located them inside their den all huddled up together and the temperature was already 34°. 😰

Knowing that they would not likely come out until daylight tomorrow, we decided to set up some shelter for them and plan to come back tomorrow morning.  This is gut wrenching to say the least. 

Our team arrived on site moments ago.  Mom and puppies did not come to the corral feeding station overnight.  They stayed hunkered down in their cold wooded den all night and did not find the shelters we put out for them. 😓

Four of the puppies went inside the corral before our team arrived and they ate.  Mom checked out the corral but has not went inside yet.  We are staged waiting on one or all to go inside.  This is a very fluid situation so we will capture them one by one inside the corral if that’s what they demand.  

We corral captured 1 more puppy.  We rearmed the door and are waiting on the next ones who will venture inside.

~~~ Team member Debbie is snuggling him with joy as we race against the clock before frigid temps arrive in a few short hours.    

4 captured, 2 to go, then Mama!  

The final 2 puppies have been captured and team members Cindy and Ginny are transporting all 6 puppies to Dallas Animal Services right now while Debbie and Selena stay on site and stage for mom’s capture!  

We have only 6 hours before dark and mom goes to her den after dark and does not come out till daylight.  We are trying our best to entice her inside before dark, ahead of the horrific weather.  

This precious girls kennel cough has deteriorated and this morning she was lethargic, not eating and drinking, and her cough and nasal discharge was much worse so we took her to Dr. Kelly this morning.  After xrays, lab work, and several other tests it was discovered that she now has severe pneumonia in her left lung, fluid in her right lung, she is dehydrated, and she is febrile with a temperature of 105.4

We immediately transported her to Veterinary Emergency Group in Allen TX where her treatment started right away. She will be hospitalized for 24-48 hours so that she can receive IV fluids, IV antibiotics, respiratory treatments, and be on Distemper watch. 

The Distemper test results will not be back for 5-7 days.  Distemper is an incurable, most often fatal, multisystemic (affecting multiple organs) disease that affects the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and central nervous systems.  ~~~ If she drastically improves within the next 72 hours there is a good chance it’s not Distemper.  

🎗️🐾💛Please help support her medical expenses~

~WEBSITE: https://muttsandmayhem.org/charitable-giving

~ZELLE ID: charitablegiving

@muttsandmayhem.org

~VENMO: @muttsandmayhemESAR

Cindy went to visit her early this morning at shift change and spoke to tech Michelle and Dr. Pena.  Thankfully she is not any worse this hour.  Her fever has improved and she is less lethargic this morning thanks to the IV fluids.  She is continuing to receive nebulizer treatments, IV fluids and IV antibiotics.  We will be visiting her again in a few hours.  

It is amazing what 24 hours of intensive care can do!  She is feeling SOOOO MUCH BETTER and acting more like her happy loving self.  We are taking it easy but her energy level is remarkably improved compared to just 24 hours ago. She is eating and drinking and responding excellent to treatment.  

She received around the clock IV fluids, IV medications and breathing treatments.  Dr. Tierney believes she is doing well enough tonight to go home under continuous medical supervision, home medications, and home nebulizer treatments.  Dr. Tierney is very optimistic that she will continue to improve over the next several days.  

❤️‍🩹 From the bottom of our hearts, thank you so much to those who donated to her care.  

Cindy & Josh have changed her name to Katy!  Katy’s street dad John came to see her today.  She recognized him immediately of course and it was a joyful reunion.  They had a wonderful visit and then John, Cindy, and her husband Josh all went to lunch to celebrate Katy!  John loved her new name and John continued to express his gratitude to our team for bringing Katy and her puppies to safety.  John generously donated $1000.00 to her medical care.  He cared for her so well from a distance for months while she was on the streets and he continues to love and care for her now.  We are forever grateful! ♥️

Katy was not happy about these treatments a few days ago but now she doesn’t mind them at all!  These saline breathing treatments help her cough be more productive and helps her recover from pneumonia much faster.  

We took Katy back to Veterinary Emergency Group in Allen for her follow up X-Rays and exam.  Xrays showed a few spots still on her left lung so she will be on antibiotics for another week. She does have a minor heart murmur but nothing needs to be done for that.  She is feeling sooooo much better!  

Katy was showing a lot of fear in and around the bathtub so Cindy & Josh tried the lick mat with peanut butter in the tub area to see if she would jump in. No go today. They even put treats that she likes inside the tub. 💞 They will keep trying to help her overcome her fear.  Katy is not afraid of water, just the bathtub.  

Katy’s ribs and spine are totally filled in. We are adjusting her amount of food per vet instructions and switching to adult food.  We were previously feeding puppy food per the vet until she gained 10 lbs.