Saving Sadie Read online

  CHAPTER SIX

  Sadie and Noah—When Kindred Souls Connect

  “Come on, Sadie. Give it a try. Please? Do it for me.

  Come on, girl.” I was kneeling on the floor in Dr. Jodie’s exam room, along with vet tech Kati, eye to eye and nose to snout with a very stubborn and recalcitrant Sadie, who utterly, absolutely, unequivocally refused to follow my commands. “Please, Sadie? For me?” I begged.

  The normally relaxed, calming mood of the room, with its low lighting, gentle music, and warm, subtle aroma of essential oils wafting above our heads, was today rife with tension as an uneasy stalemate, a tense détente, continued between mom and dog. It was Sadie’s first time trying the Walkin’ Wheels, and she was making it abundantly clear she wanted nothing to do with this contraption, even though it was a lightweight, streamline piece of equipment. The two wheels were situated at the back, alongside Sadie’s legs, and the aluminum frame that bracketed the outside of her torso was attached via canvas-and-Velcro straps that circled her back and her chest.

  “Come on, Sadie, just give it a try,” I pleaded, gently grasping her shoulders and tugging her forward. “I promise it’ll feel just like you’re walking again.” She whined in response and then collapsed her front legs beneath her body, staunchly locking them into place as her back end shot straight up into the air. There would be no moving her now.

  “Why are you doing this to me?” I moaned. I felt as if my beautiful, compliant, good-natured dog had suddenly transformed into a defiant toddler, mired deep in the depths of the “terrible twos.”

  “Well, I don’t think it’s hurting her,” Kati offered, crossing her legs and tucking her long brown hair behind her ear.

  “I don’t think so, either,” I agreed, sitting back on my heels and shaking my head. “I don’t think Sadie’s in pain. It’s more like she finds the wheels . . . humiliating or something.”

  “Maybe it’s just uncomfortable because she hasn’t stood up and walked for so long,” Kati suggested. “Maybe she’s not familiar with those sensations anymore.”

  “That could be it,” I replied, scratching my chin. “I figured the wheels would take some getting used to and she might not take to them right away,” I added, trying not to sound as disappointed as I felt. My plan was to put Sadie in the wheels twice a week for thirty minutes at a time and build up her usage from there as she got stronger and more comfortable with the device. But Sadie was letting us know after only a few minutes that she clearly had had enough for today.

  I motioned for Kati to help me get Sadie out of the wheels, and together we loosened the straps and released the frame. “All right, Sadie, at least you gave it a try.” I stroked her head, offered her a treat, and gave her plenty of conciliatory kisses. I didn’t want her to think that I was angry with her, or that she had let me down. I understood that encouragement was the best method for effecting change.

  “We’ve still got your wagon,” I reminded her. “And right now you need love and comfort more than you need your own wheels to get around. We’ll try it again in a few days and see how you do then.” As had happened so many times before, I had to remind myself that Sadie had her own internal schedule that only she was privy to; I couldn’t make her stick to “my” schedule, no matter how hard I tried. She would walk again when she was good and ready to, and not a moment before.

  Nearly two weeks had passed since Sadie’s surgery. She had had the stitches taken out of her forehead a few days earlier and I could tell that her head was feeling much better. Her tail was healing, too, although that had clearly hurt much worse than her head. I wrapped, treated, cleaned, and rewrapped the incision on her tail twice a day, and I could see the wound slowly but surely beginning to close over, knitting together with new tissue.

  I was also still soaking Sadie in my bathtub twice a day for twenty to thirty minutes at a time, but I had started adding lavender oil to the bath, and Sadie absolutely loved the calming, soothing power of its gentle aroma. She actually fell asleep now while I bathed her, each and every time!

  The one major concern I had during this period, and it worried me a lot, was that Sadie’s mobility, such as it was, had dramatically decreased since the surgery. Although I had never seen her “walk” prior to her surgery, she had been doing her “bunny hop” more and more, with more strength, longer duration, and greater distance covered. But now it seemed like her good right leg had weakened, and neither Dr. Jodie nor I could figure out why. Perhaps the strength would come back in time, but I sure wasn’t willing to wait and risk it getting even worse. Something dramatic needed to happen immediately, so I made an appointment to have Sadie evaluated at TOPS Veterinary Rehabilitation center, about sixty miles away in Grayslake, Illinois.

  One of the few, not to mention one of the best, rehab centers in the country devoted solely to treating animals, TOPS offered state-of-the-art therapies including hydrotherapy, ultrasound, cryotherapy, acupuncture, chiropractic, massage, and several other treatment protocols. I was familiar with TOPS because I had taken some of my other animals for treatment there in the past. If anyone could help Sadie get her rehab back on track so she could focus on walking again, it was the vets, techs, and therapists at TOPS.

  So on June 18, 2012, I bundled Sadie into the back of my SUV and together we made the hour-long drive down to Grayslake, a leafy, affluent village about forty miles north of Chicago. Sadie’s team that day was led by Dr. Lisa Starr and treatment supervisor Cassandra Sorenson. They began their assessment of Sadie by tying a towel around her midsection to support her and then holding her up while she was placed on a long carpet and encouraged to walk. She did in fact take a few steps, but only backward!

  No matter what we tried, Sadie made no attempt to propel herself forward. None of us could figure out why. Was this simply her way of dealing with back legs that couldn’t hold her up? Whatever the reason, the stubborn Sadie I had encountered when I tried to get her to use the Walkin’ Wheels surfaced yet again as she absolutely refused to move forward. This was frustrating, of course, but I rejoiced in a small corner of my soul to think that the passive, vacant, empty-eyed Sadie that I’d adopted less than two months earlier was now, more and more frequently, showing signs of defiance, determination, and good old-fashioned spunk. That’s my Sadie, I thought proudly, my stubborn baby girl, as they undid the towel around her middle and released her, and she fumbled, tumbled, and stumbled straight into my waiting arms.

  Following Sadie’s assessment, Dr. Lisa and her team recommended Sadie attend TOPS twice a week to receive treatment including chiropractic, cranial-sacral therapy, passive range of motion, e-stim (neuromuscular stimulation via electrical current), and TOPS’s unique hydro-treadmill, the first and only underwater treadmill in the world exclusively for use with dogs. The warmth of the water combined with the lack of weight would make it easier for Sadie to move and to strengthen her legs. The machine also included underwater cameras that projected the images onto a screen, so the vets could observe and evaluate Sadie’s gait in real time. The TOPS staff recommended that Sadie continue this intensive treatment regimen until the end of October, or, in other words, for about four and a half months, to yield the best results.

  This all sounded amazing, and amazingly expensive. We were still receiving donations online at a steady pace, but the amounts given were small (although always deeply appreciated). The money I had stocked away in savings and retirement funds was dwindling quickly and meanwhile Sadie seemed to be further away from walking than ever before. Still, what could I do? I had come too far with her, and had too much faith that she would walk again someday, to quit now. If I gave up on Sadie, then all this had truly been for nothing. And I couldn’t very well ask her just to remain in her diminished state, consigned to only moving via short, painful bunny hops or dragging her lifeless back legs on the ground behind her because that was all I could afford.

  Sadie did not deserve the cruel hand she’d been dealt in life. I assumed her only “crime” was to co
ntinually give birth to litters of puppies for her owner, until she was no longer needed, and then they shot her in the head and abandoned her in the woods to die. Sadie desperately deserved a second chance in life, and I was determined to be the one who gave it to her.

  The reality was that as much as I had tried not to, I had fallen deeply, desperately, head over heels in love with Sadie. She was my “dog-ter” now, and I was her forever mom. We were in this together, through thick and thin. So I would just have to find a way to tighten my belt, cut costs, and do without. If that’s what it was going to take to save Sadie, that’s exactly what I was going to do.

  * * *

  I’ve written quite a bit about all the therapies and treatments that Sadie was receiving during the summer of 2012, but it might be helpful here to describe them in more detail, to give a clearer picture of how intensive Sadie’s rehab was during that period and how hard we were all working to get her back on her feet, literally and metaphorically. A typical week at that time looked something like this:

  At TOPS Veterinary Rehab in Grayslake, Illinois (twice a week, Mondays and Fridays; a round-trip two-hour drive):

  Hydro-Treadmill—twenty minutes on the treadmill in the pool, trying to get her legs to support her body, take forward steps, and work in unison

  Hako-Med Pool—therapeutic soaking for pain management

  Chiropractic—to improve the alignment of Sadie’s spine, pelvis, and legs

  Cranial-sacral Massage—hands-on manipulation of her skull and spine

  Passive Range of Motion Therapy—exercises to improve joint mobility

  e-stim—Neuromuscular stimulation via electrical current

  At the Animal Doctor Holistic Veterinary Complex in Muskego, Wisconsin

  (three days a week, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.)

  Acupuncture (once a week)—inserting dry needles into specific points on the body to improve blood flow and increase nerve regeneration

  Aqua puncture—injecting small amounts of liquids such as vitamin B12 or homeopathic remedies into acupuncture points

  Laser treatment—using a small, handheld device to emit an intense beam of deeply penetrating laser light to provide pain relief

  Essential oil baths—for relaxation

  Full-body massage—deep tissue massage to increase blood flow and stimulate muscles

  Physical therapy—targeted exercises to improve strength, agility, mobility, and balance

  At-home Therapy, Treatment, Exercise

  (seven days a week, mornings and evenings, two to three hours per session, four to six hours per day)

  Swimming—to build strength and endurance; twenty-minute sessions, two to three times a week at Think Pawsitive (once tail incision had healed)

  Raw meat diet—to ease elimination and build muscle

  Supplements—to build strength

  Massage therapy—stimulation and relaxation with a handheld massager

  Trampoline—to improve balance and coordination and strengthen Sadie’s legs

  Power Plate—to increase strength and nerve function

  Peanut ball—to stretch and exercise hamstring muscles

  e-stim—to encourage cell growth and regeneration

  I had no training, background, or personal experience in physical education, physical therapy, or animal rehabilitation, but I was determined to do everything I could to get Sadie walking again, so I became creative in terms of what types of exercises and activities I could do with her at home to complement and supplement what she was already getting at TOPS and at Dr. Jodie’s.

  Take, for example, the trampoline. This was just a little round one-person trampoline that I had used as part of my own exercise routine to stay in shape, but now I started taking Sadie on it with me. I would hold her up so she was standing between my legs with all four paws on the trampoline. Once we were balanced and steady, I would slowly and gently shift my weight from left to right, then right to left, feeling the slight movement in the trampoline, and Sadie reacted by also shifting her weight in response, thus activating and engaging the atrophied muscles in her hindquarters and back legs.

  The Power Plate, meanwhile, was a whole-body vibration apparatus that was designed to activate the body’s natural reflex response to vibration. I had been using it as part of my workout routine for many years. Originally devised by the Russians for use by athletes and cosmonauts, the stand-up machine has at its base a metal platform that can be set to vibrate at various high-speed frequencies at thirty- and sixty-second intervals, with a period of rest in between. As you stand on the plate, the intense vibration engages all the body’s muscles in a controlled and consistent manner. The machine can also be used to specifically target the arms, legs, or other parts of the body.

  I knew there was no way Sadie would have the strength, balance, or stability to stand with all four paws on the rectangular, rapidly vibrating plate, so I got creative. I devised a way that I could hold Sadie’s hips and legs on the plate while her front paws stood on the lid of a large plastic tote box positioned on the floor in front of the plate. This way her back legs and her front legs remained at an equal height. At first Sadie could only tolerate a few turns on the machine at a time, but I believed that using the machine would help stimulate the nerves and muscles in her back and legs.

  The “peanut ball” was a peanut-shaped exercise ball that I used to loosen and lengthen the ligaments in Sadie’s back legs by having her gently stretch and roll the ball beneath her hindquarters. As Dr. Jodie had noticed the first time I brought Sadie in for evaluation, when Sadie tried to walk, her back left leg curled under and in, beneath her body, crossing in front of the other legs and hindering her movement. The hope was that by stretching, loosening, and lengthening those ligaments, her back legs would straighten out and thus be better able to support her body.

  In terms of the e-stim, the electronic stimulation treatments that Sadie was receiving at TOPS, it was quite expensive to have those treatments done by a therapist, so in my ongoing commitment to cutting costs and saving money, I went online and purchased my own e-stim machine so I could do Sadie’s treatments myself at home. This was surprisingly easy once Sadie had been shaved in strategic locations so the pads that were attached to wire leads would conduct the electricity more easily through her skin than by having to pass through Sadie’s thick fur.

  The e-stim machine, a small, handheld device, uses an electrical current to stimulate the muscles to expand and contract, much like exercise, but passively rather than actively. The machine could be set at various Hertz frequencies. We used it at 25 Hertz for some locations on Sadie’s body and 50 Hertz on others, usually for twenty minutes at each location. I learned I had to be very careful about how much of this treatment Sadie could tolerate. I did these treatments on her three times a week, and I had to allow an hour for each session, which further added to my already exhausting and time-consuming Sadie rehab schedule.

  By now it was the last week of June and Marnette was scheduled to visit in a few days, meeting Sadie in person for the very first time. I wondered what she would think of this crazy schedule that I’d created for Sadie and me. Although Marnette had been nothing but supportive since Sadie came into our lives, devoting serious time, money, energy, and sheer hard work toward the Saving Sadie effort, it would be different for her actually witnessing the entire operation up close. Would she worry about the toll all this was taking on me, physically, emotionally, financially? Would she think the whole thing was too overwhelming, too intense, too indulgent, too expensive? Would she come to believe that it—that Sadie—wasn’t worth it?

  Although I had serious concerns, I also couldn’t wait for Marnette to get here. Rehabbing a disabled dog can be a lonely and isolating undertaking, and as much as I loved my fur babies, it would be wonderful to have human companionship once again.

  Marnette arrived on Saturday, June 30. I drove to the airport to pick up Marnette with Sadie and Sparky riding along in the back of
the SUV.When I opened the back hatch to put Marnette’s suitcase inside, her eyes met Sadie’s and it was truly a case of love at first sight.

  “Oh Joal, she’s beautiful!” she exclaimed. “The photos don’t do her justice.” She reached in toward Sadie, and Sadie, with her best “I’m trying as hard as I can” little wag of her tail, stretched toward Marnette. What followed was a mini-love-fest of petting, stroking, ear rubs, and cuddles. “She’s just wonderful.” Marnette sighed, her blue eyes shining with tears. “I’m so glad you didn’t give up on her.”

  I had taken the week off work for Marnette’s visit, and she became my shadow as we did all of Sadie’s activities together, from feeding and bathing her to driving her to TOPS in Illinois to acupuncture at Dr. Jodie’s to exercises on the trampoline, peanut ball, and Power Plate. After a few days, I could see Marnette was feeling the fatigue, but I still wasn’t sure what she thought of Project Saving Sadie overall. She had been very observant of everything, but withheld any judgment.

  “So is it all more than you thought it would be?” We were sitting together in the gazebo after dinner, sharing a bottle of Viognier as we enjoyed the soft summer evening breeze. I swallowed hard and poured myself another glass of wine. “Do you think it’s too much, all this work to get Sadie walking again?”