Just like the rock band for which she’s named, the black-and-white­masked Kiss never gives up, even when people might count her out.

Like KISS, whose members have been rocking for 4 7 years, she keeps coming back, stronger each time, just when you think she’s thrown in the towel. KISS the band is traveling the world throughout 2020 on their The End is Near tour-this time, they say, they’re really going to retire. We’ll believe it when we see it.

Kiss the border collie, however, has no plans to throw in any towel or slow down, and certainly not to retire. This rock star therapy dog/athlete has a can-do attitude that won’t quit, and all the curve balls she’s been thrown so far haven’t taken her down. She’s tough as nails, and yet sweet as the pink swipe of a gentle doggie smooch. She’s one special dog who has defied unthinkable odds to not just survive but also stay at the top of her game.

And what game is that? Well, for starters, she used to give other dogs a run for their money in flyball, agility, dock diving, nosework, and Frisbee catching. But being a top athlete wasn’t where Kiss found her calling. It turns out her best talents emerged during her 11-year career (so far) as a therapy dog-part of the Animal Health Foundation, an affiliate of Pet Partners. Kiss visits hospital patients, helps elementary school children learn to love reading, and appears at many public service events benefiting various causes for pets and children, including her local Rotary Club’s fundraising efforts to raise awareness of skin cancer. Since 2013, she has served as a crisis response dog, sent on deployments where she has helped people affected by disasters or other crises cope with their losses. But her best trick yet? Beating her own cancer, a soft-cell sarcoma on her front left leg, and now living with a complex disease called immune-mediated hemolytic anemia (IMHA). This 13-year-old takes it on the chin, but she never takes it lying down. Despite a grim diagnosis and multiple complications, Kiss is making steady progress and will soon be back visiting her local hospitals and elementary schools, putting smiles on the many faces she loves.

Kiss was six months old when she was given to Jane Horsfield and Dan Balza of Fountain Valley, California, by a fellow flyball enthusiast. Horsfield and Balza previously owned several dogs involved in the sport-which, heartbreakingly, they had lost to various forms of cancer. A lover of border collies, Horsfield was all in for taking Kiss home. However, she and Balza had recently discussed how their household was definitely at its maximum dog capacity. Grudgingly, Balza agreed to take a look at a photo of the striking black and white little furball. It wasn’t long before Kiss became part of the family.

Horsfield describes young Kiss as “one wild little banshee.” She recalls, “She barked, she chased, she screamed … and she ate everything in sight. She chewed clothes, glasses, furniture, walls (not kidding!), and the oak baseboard. I’d get home from work and, with drywall hanging from her mouth, she’d look at me with those big, brown, loving eyes. Who could be mad? Eventually, the bad behavior faded, and a wonderful ‘teenaged’ doggy emerged.”

At that time, Horsfield was doing pet therapy work with another of her beloved athletic dogs, who was 11 and nearing retirement age. All of her dogs do dog sports, but therapy work-that’s a raised bar that Horsfield says only a few dogs can reach. Because Kiss was proving to be a loving and sensitive dog, she began to train her. At just 2 years old, Kiss passed her Pet Partner evaluation, and with that opened
a new chapter in her life. Although her primary job was now therapy work, Kiss still enjoyed participating in dog sports in her spare time.

In 2017, Kiss’s image was featured on a surfboard that was part of a fundraiser by the Huntington Beach Rotary Club. Local artists were paired with local surfboard shapers, and 22 surfboards were decorated and auctioned off, with the money donated to local hospitals benefiting skin cancer research, prevention, and care. At the unveiling of her surfboard, a participant visiting with Kiss felt a swelling on her front left leg and alerted Horsfield to it. It turned out to be a soft-tissue sarcoma, and Kiss was referred to a specialty hospital.

Having lost four previous dogs to cancer, Horsfield and Balza were devastated, fearing the worst. But after 18 months of treatment, including 6 months of rehabilitation, Kiss was declared free of cancer and cleared to go back to work.

Horsfield got word of a grant from the Petco Foundation and Blue Buffalo that was available to therapy dogs with cancer. The foundation donated $3,000 to help cover some of the costs ofKiss’s treatment, and Petco Foundation and Blue Buffalo shared Kiss’s story on their websites for the 2018 Pet Cancer Awareness campaign. The two companies have invested more than $15 million into pet cancer research since the campaign began in 2010. Asked to participate again in 2019, Kiss’s face was featured on ads in People magazine, on Petco’s Pet Cancer Awareness website, on posters in nearly every Petco store, and even on a reuseable tote bag, a gift for donating $10 to the campaign in any Petco store nationwide.

Sadly, between the time she was declared cancer free and the start of the 2019 Pet Cancer Awareness campaign in May 2019, Kiss was diagnosed with immune-mediated hemolytic anemia, or IMHA. “It’s a horrible, not-so-common disease where the immune system goes haywire and starts destroying its own red blood cells,” explains Horsfield. “She liter­ally was fine on Saturday, then on Sunday morning she didn’t want to eat her break­fast.” While that symptom didn’t seem particularly alarming, Horsfield discovered discoloration in Kiss’s mouth and imme­diately took her to a veterinary specialist. From there, her condition went downhill fast, but thankfully Kiss’s condition today has been mostly stabilized through medica­tion. But not before she suffered an intes­tinal blockage that required emergency sur­gery and a severe bout of pneumonia. The road has been long, and it’s been rough. But Kiss is not a quitter. She fights on.

And Horsfield, who “researches absolutely everything” but was too terrified to even look up this disease at first, is fighting along with her. Every day, she’s learning and, more importantly, educating others about IMHA. It’s a complicated disease with no “one-size-fits-all” treatment-veterinarians must try protocol after protocol to find one that strikes the right balance for Kiss. “This story is far from over, and she has not been ‘cured.’ Knowledge is everything when treating this disease,” Horsfield points out. She says if she’d waited a day to take Kiss to the vet or not gone straight to a specialist, Kiss likely would have died, according to her doctors. “Dog owners need to be aware of what IMHA is and know the warning signs” she cautions. “IMHA packs quite a punch, and Kiss’s life has taken a drastic side road.” Younger dogs who make it through this disease are generally more able to get back to normal, says Horsfield. “Kiss got this ugly disease at 12. She’s not a young dog, but she was in great shape before this hit, which is probably why she’s been able to fight it. I am just grateful to still have her with me 12 months after diagnosis.”

While Horsfield admits that Kiss probably won’t be competing in flyball or dock diving anytime soon, she still enjoys her nosework and catching the occasional ball or Frisbee. A pivotal moment in her recovery was when she was finally able to take a swim once again in the family’s backyard pool with her pack, the other family dogs. She’s also back to visiting hospital patients, and will head back to school for the elementary reading program very soon. In December, when a student from Rim of the World High School in Lake Arrowhead was tragically murdered, Kiss was there to lend support. In January, she helped deploying military service men and women and their families prepare for the year ahead.

With all she’s been through, you might expect Kiss to just bask in the sun and take life easy for the rest of her days. But that’s not who she is. That little banshee who barked her head off, ate everything in sight, and chewed her way through puppyhood (and the drywall) isn’t resting on her laurels or her haunches. She’s forging ahead, mending hearts and spreading joy and kisses along the way. Because, sometimes, a kiss changes everything.

Immune-Mediated Hemolytic Anemia
By Julie Stegeman, DVM 

Immune-mediated hemo­lytic anemia (IMHA) is an autoimmune condition wherein the patient’s immune system attacks their own red blood cells as if they were a foreign invader. IMHA is more common in dogs than in cats, and it is an almost daily occurrence in the caseload of a referral hospital because of the need for inpatient support­ive care and often the need for blood transfusion. It is most often seen in middle-aged dogs and in young cats, and some breeds are more at risk ( cocker spaniels, miniature schnauzers, miniature dachshunds, etc). IMHA represents a loss of immune system “tolerance of self.” Our immune system has checks and balances built in, but when there is a disturbance in that balance, a red blood cell can “look” like a virus to an immune system cell. It then be­comes a target for destruction, leading to severe anemia and death if left untreated.

Symptoms ofIMHA initially can be vague. Lethargy, poor appetite, even a fever may be seen. Pet owners might notice a red or orange discoloration to the pet’s urine, or they might notice pale gums. The gums and skin might even appear yellow (“jaundiced”) due to buildup of bilirubin, which is a byproduct ofred blood cell destruction. Orange stool is also commonly seen. These symptoms lead to taking the pet in to their veter­inarian. Blood tests will show anemia and may or may not show elevated bilirubin levels, elevated white blood cells, low platelets, or elevated liver or kidney values. If the platelet count is low, the pet may have autoimmune destruction of their platelets as well-this is called Evan’s syndrome.”

It is recommended to screen for a variety of immune system triggers in an IMHA patient, such as various tick-borne illnesses, viral infections, other infectious diseases, and cancer. Other triggers can include a variety of medications and even (rarely) vaccinations. If there is an underlying triggering con­dition, the immune destruction will continue until the trigger is eliminated. This is especially important because treatment for IMHA requires immune suppressive medications, and if there is an infectious disease present, the immune suppres­sant medications will allow the triggering infectious disease to overcome the patient. It is very important to provide a full medical and travel history to the attending veterinarian, so that these issues can be discovered right away. Various blood tests, chest radiographs, and abdomi­nal ultrasounds are usually per­formed to screen for underlying conditions, depending on the patient and their exact history.

If no inciting cause is identi­fied, then immune suppressive treatment is begun. The corner­stone of immune suppressive treatment is glucocorticoid (ste­roid) treatment, most commonly in the form ofprednisone or as injectable dexamethasone. High doses of steroids are required at first, because the immune reac­tions in IMHA are very intense, and progression is rapid if left unchecked. It can take several days to start to see the benefits of the immune suppressive treatments. In some patients, if the immune system is attacking red blood cells at the level of the bone marrow ( where they are being produced), it can take 4 to 6 weeks for stabilization of the red cell levels to occur. Until the red cell level ( often determined with a Packed Cell Volume [PCV]) stabilizes and starts to increase, blood trans­fusions are often necessary. Transfusions help “buy time” until the steroids can control the situation. Unfortunately, the transfused red blood cells are often destroyed as quickly as the pet’s own red blood cells, so repeated transfusion may be needed.

In addition to steroids and transfusions, sometimes other treatments are used. Intrave­nous gamma globulin treatment (IVIgG) is an expensive but often effective way to shorten a hospital stay. This treatment binds to auto-antibodies and keeps them from attacking the red blood cells. It also may reduce antibody production by the patient’s body. It helps “win the battle” but is not proven to improve long-term outcomes. Plasmapheresis is another treatment available at a few referral hospitals in the nation, with a similar end result as IVIgG. Other immune suppressive medications such as cyclosporine, mycophenolate, azathioprine, or leflunomide, often started in conjunction with prednisone, take longer for full effect and are most helpful to reduce how much prednisone is given over the long run.

Patients with IMHA have a high risk for development of abnormal blood clots, and pulmonary embolism is actually one of the leading causes of death in these pets. Therefore, it is common to prescribe blood thinners such as aspirin, clopi­dogrel (Plavix), and/or heparin. A blood thinner is often given as long as the prednisone is given.

Because anemia affects the entire body, gastrointestinal support is often needed, in the form of antacids, anti-nausea medications, and coating agents.

Survival ofIMHA is, un­fortunately, not 100 percent. Estimates vary, but the author’s experience is that approxi­mately 75-percent survival is expected. Not all pets respond completely to treatment. Others succumb to pulmonary embo­lism. Rarely, they develop sec­ondary opportunistic infections, such as fungal infections, due to chronic immune suppressive therapy.

Close monitoring is critical after the patient is discharged from the hospital. A patient may need to be rechecked a couple of times a week at first, gradual­ly reducing to once every 2 to 3 weeks. The medications are ta­pered over time, and usually by 4 to 6 months after diagnosis, the pet is either off medication entirely or is on the minimum dose of medication required to maintain a normal red blood cell level. Relapses can occur, as can other immune-mediated diseases.

In summary, IMHA is a life-threatening but treatable disease, which most but not all patients survive. A thorough evaluation of the patient is needed initially, and most re­quire hospitalization to survive the initial part of the illness. Long term, the pet owner will need to work closely with their veterinarian to adjust medica­tions and watch for relapses.

Late one Monday afternoon in December, 2016, Scott Rosenthal and his wife Christina, patted their dog Cody and left their Lancaster home for a Bible study class at their church in Woodland Hills.

When they returned later that evening, Cody “came walking up to me,” Scott said, “but she couldn’t put any weight on her right front foot.  It was just flopping around and I was like, ‘Oh oh!’”

Cody loved to chase rabbits but it didn’t look like she had gotten out of the Rosenthal’s 1.6-acre yard.  Scott thought she may have stepped in a gopher hole.  The dog is a beautiful Labrador mix and she was in a lot of pain.   “She laid down and I couldn’t get her up,” Scott said.  “She’s not that big, about 50 pounds.  I had to get a blanket and roll her onto it to move her.”

Scott called Dr. Wendy Brooks, who owns Mar Vista Animal Medical Center.  She is an old family friend and Scott has always taken his animals to her – even though it is more than an hour’s drive away.  Because of his work schedule, he was unable to take Cody to the hospital the next day.  “Once I got her there, they made her comfortable and they [examined her] and decided what they needed to do,” he said.

Dr. Brooks determined that Cody needed a titanium bone plate for her fractured radius.  Scott, who works as a mechanic on the vehicle fleet at Oaks Christian Camp and Conference Center, “was a little low on cash” at the time, he said, and he was fearful that he might have to put Cody down.

But he called Care Credit and obtained a loan.  And the staff at the hospital suggested applying to Angel Fund.  He did and was granted $500, a sum matched by the hospital, which also provided $350 from client donations.

The surgery cost $1,800 but the hospital boarded Cody for about three months.  Scott’s total cost, he said, was $440. “There was care at the hospital and some of that was donated,” he said. “And I worked on one of their vehicles and that was bartered.”

And, he said, his neighbors, Don and Paul Eaton – Don was a special friend of Cody – gave him $350 to help pay the dog’s medical bills.  “He put the money in my hand and he said, ‘We’ll put it toward that.’  And I was like, ‘You’re kidding me!’ He’s a brother in Christ and he realized there was a need,” Scott said.   “It all worked out.  It was an amazing blessing.”  He and Christina are grateful to Angel Fund, the hospital and the Eaton brothers.  “There’s God all over this thing,” Scott said.

Today, Cody is doing well at 11 years of age.  For the first six months after her surgery, Dr. Brooks was concerned “because the operation didn’t quite take,” Scott said, and because of the possibility of infection.  But those concerns now are long gone.

“Cody has settled down a little bit and is not so active as she once was,” he said.  “The leg isn’t as strong as it was but she uses it just fine.  She wants to jump around like a puppy so we have to keep an eye on her.”

Pet Connection

by Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

By Kim Campbell Thornton  –  Andrews McMeel Syndication

We’re in the market for a new sofa, and my friend Tamela Klisura, an interior designer, is urging me to get one in a light neutral shade instead of the colorful patterns that I love — in part because they hide pet hair so well.

“It’ll get dirty,” I argued. Dogs will be napping on it all the time, after all.

Tamela, who has three dogs herself, pooh-poohed that.

“They have performance fabrics now that clean up really easily,” she says.

She’s right. You don’t have to buy furnishings that are the same color as your pug or Labrador’s fur — or the Holstein cow pattern I’d need for my chestnut-and-white cavaliers. If you’re considering buying new furniture, reupholstering what you have or putting down new flooring, you have a lot of options to help keep your home looking and smelling clean, even if you have multiple dogs and cats.

Many fabrics and carpets these days are made to withstand odors and stains from spills, dog drool, pet accidents or animals who simply need a bath, thanks to a moisture barrier that keeps liquids and other messes on the fabric’s surface instead of soaking in. They can even be safely disinfected with a product that knocks out pathogens including E. coli, salmonella, MRSA, parvovirus and canine distemper virus.

“Those Crypton fabrics are made for a variety of high use and abuse,” says commercial architect Heather E. Lewis of Animal Arts, a firm that designs veterinary hospitals, shelters and other facilities. “What I have seen as an architect is an explosion in the number of cleanable fabrics that are used in health care, and those fabrics are also appropriate for use in a home.”

Flooring and carpets are also more pet-friendly, thanks to advances in materials. Vinyl, for one, has come a long way. Rosemary George replaced her wood floors with commercial-grade vinyl. “It looks just like wood but holds up better and is impervious to accidents,” she says. Melissa Frieze Karolak has vinyl planks in her basement, “luxury” vinyl in one bathroom and old-fashioned linoleum in the laundry area. “I like them all, and so far they have held up well to our two dogs and three cats,” she says.

If you’ve ever wished that you could just throw large rugs into the washing machine, well, now you can. A company called Ruggable makes lightweight rugs that go over a nonskid pad. The low-pile rugs, which come in a variety of styles, sizes, colors and patterns, are stain-resistant and waterproof. When they need to be cleaned, even the 8-by-10-foot size fits in a home washing machine.

“I have Ruggables and love the look, durability and washability,” says Marion Schuller, responding on Facebook to a friend who was considering buying one. “There is little or no padding, but the dogs like them and choose the rug instead of tile.”

Another option is carpet squares made with solid vinyl backing. When vomit, urine or poop accidents happen — and they will — the affected squares can be pulled up and cleaned or replaced altogether.

Wall-to-wall carpets are also made now to resist depredations from dogs and cats. Some are treated to prevent stains from forming after spills or pet potty accidents, prevent urine from penetrating to the pad and resist soiling. They can be good choices for people with asthma or allergies who prefer carpet to hard-surface flooring.

Whether it’s furniture or flooring, homes are being designed around pets. “I think that’s cool and it makes it easier for busy families,” says Lewis, who has kids and pets. “I love to see that.”

The Northern Light Community Newspaper, Bellingham, WA

Blaine dog Wiley with his veterinary team at Bellingham, WA Veterinary. From l., Brittany Grant, Sebastian Grant, Dr. Kevin Steele, Sharon Pozzi and Dr. Edmund Sullivan.

From kdmatthews.com

The First Thing To Do When Getting A Dog From A Shelter – Learn What “Decompression” Is

by KD | May 16, 2017

It’s pretty damn awesome of you to look to the shelter to rescue a dog when searching for that new furry family member.I mean that.

Our nation’s shelter’s, pounds, and humane societies are overflowing with perfectly healthy and awesome dogs who desperately need good homes where they can live out their lives. The fact that you have decided to go there first is great.

But all that greatness will be meaningless if you do not do your homework first, and even more importantly, introduce them to their new home properly. We want it to truly be their fur-ever home right?

I’m not even talking about having the Barkbox subscription underway or spending 200$ on chew toys. There is something even more important that you must be aware of, be cognizant of, and be prepared to implement the moment you take that dog from the shelter.

SHELTERS ARE NOT FUN PLACES

If you have ever walked through the kennels of an animal shelter you surly can attest to the stress of the experience.  Perhaps you can remember the first time you entered one.  It might have been a memorable experience!

They are very very loud.

It is non stop barking, howling, whining, and yelping.  The sound can be deafening at times and if you are not used to it or it is your first time, it can cause a heavy dose of anxiety to rise up your bones and make you want to turn around and walk out.

It’s intense.

Now realize that you CAN turn around and walk out.  Those dogs can’t. They are there all day, all night, all week, all month.  It shouldn’t take too much contemplation to realize this isn’t the ideal setting for any dog. Some dogs can be there for months on end if it is a no-kill shelter.

The longer they are in there the worse the mental trauma can be.

While some dogs will completely shut down others seem to amp up developing numerous anxiety based behaviors that border on neurotic.  While the observable behaviors might be different, the source is the same, stress from being in there.

Recognizing that this type of experience can have an impact on a dog’s state of mind, it baffles me how people think that simply putting a leash on the dog and taking it home means everything is suddenly going to be O.K. As if anything is that simple!

So many of these dogs end up back at shelters for a wide variety of reasons, including aggression, because their well intentioned new family did not take the time to research the proper way to bring a dog from this type of environment home.  When the dog starts acting in inappropriate ways or even worse, becomes aggressive, everybody is quick to blame the dog’s “troubled past”.

It’s not the dog’s past, it is the dog’s present.

The first day in a new home is not the day to meet other family members, loud and energetic toddlers, other dogs, the cats, the super nosy neighbor who wants to give your new dog hugs and kisses….

NO……NOT AT ALL……

DECOMPRESSION

The name is indicative of the what it means in terms of what the dog has been through and what the dog needs. All the stress from the living conditions the dog is coming from needs to be addressed.  The dog has been under a lot of stress and pressure.

The dog needs to “decompress” and take some time getting back to a balanced state of mind.  This will not be achieved with going from one crazy high activity place to another. The dog should not be introduced to the couch for endless hours of belly rubs on day one because you feel bad the dog had a rough past.

That makes YOU feel good.

This isn’t about you and what you like, this is about what is best for the dog.  Remember?

For at LEAST 2-3 WEEKS, your new dog’s life should be incredibly simple and boring. Keep the affection to a bare minimum, keep talking and training to non- existent levels.

A nice calm and quiet beginning is essential

You want as much silence as possible.

Have a daily routine or schedule 100% planned out prior to the dog coming home. This should be the dog’s day mapped out.  From bathroom breaks, to crate time, to short walks in quiet boring places, the entire day should be on a schedule.

Dogs find exponentially more comfort in routine than they do belly rubs and cuddles.  For that reason, keep the affection to a bare minimum.  This is not the time to shower the dog with affection as all that will do is reinforce an unbalanced state of mind and confuse the dog as to YOUR role in their lives.

The premise behind decompression is allowing the dog to get back to a neutral and relaxed state of mind, opposite of what it just came from.

Your dog needs leadership and calm predictability.

These two things are crucial to the dog becoming appropriately integrated into your home.  Allowing the dog time to decompress without having to deal with a whole new set of intense stimuli will set you all up for a successful future.

WANT TO LEARN MORE?

My free E-Book is the instruction book that should have came with your dog.  It’s short and sweet and easy to get through.  Learn the very basics of owning a dog FIRST before worrying about the other stuff.  What color you paint your walls doesn’t matter if the foundation is wrong.  My intention was to sell it, then I realized it’s too important to allow even a penny to come between this book and somebody who needs it.  Click below and download your copy!

Click HERE!

While the book has a bunch of super important chunks of information you need, it’s still just a book.  If you really want to ensure that you are going to give your new furfamily member the best chances of success and happiness I have put together a crash course designed to give you EVERYTHING you you need to make your furkid’s new home it’s last!  One on one, you and I, online will cover all the essentials and I will explain to you how to implement the information into YOUR unique home environment.