Surgeons Save Rescue Dog With Pacemaker

Mo. Vets Install Device In Search-And-Rescue Labrador Diagnosed With Heart Blockage

(AP)  After years of helping authorities look for murder victims and survivors of natural disasters, a search-and-rescue dog named Molly has been rescued herself.

Surgeons at the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine on Thursday installed a pacemaker in the 5-year-old chocolate Labrador retriever's heart. She needed the surgery after being diagnosed with a complete electrical heart blockage.

Owners Allen and Alicia Brown of Saginaw were overwhelmed with offers to help pay the more than $2,500 in surgery, vet and travel costs after The Joplin Globe reported on Molly's need for the pacemaker.

Medical technology company Medtronic Inc. donated the device, and a Kansas businessman offered to anonymously pay up to $2,000 of the cost.

"It surprises me greatly," Allen Brown said. "There's just been such an outpouring of public support for her."

Molly was scheduled to return home Friday and be confined to her crate for two weeks. She will have limited activity for the next two months, but should be able to return to full-time rescue work after that, Allen Brown said.

The Browns are volunteers with the Newton County K-9 search-and-rescue unit, which doesn't have a budget. Allen, a paramedic, and Alicia, a nurse, put in hundreds of hours searching for bodies during emergencies. The unit has five certified dogs and three others in training.

The Browns noticed that the usually energetic Molly, whose full name is The Unsinkable Molly Brown, became lethargic and out of breath last month. Veterinarians believe she had a heart attack.

Allen Brown drove Molly to Columbia on Tuesday night after her heart rate fell to 38 from a normal 80.

The couple have five dogs, but only two are trained as rescue dogs. It can take about two years to train a search-and-rescue dog for both live body and cadaver retrieval, and buying a fully trained one can cost up to $20,000.

Patrice Graham, another member of the K-9 search-and-rescue team, spearheaded efforts to help the Browns pay for the surgery.

"I know that everyone is tight, but these people do a lot of volunteer work," Graham said. "If she could save one more life or recover one more body for a family, it would be worth it."

[msay3]

Yes, they do, been there, bought the tee shirt many times and soon with two 11-1/2 yr old dogs, one of whom has been slowing down rapidly since last summer- harder to get up, get up the steps, less continent but she enjoys her food, treats and is not in pain.

Posted by newster1 at 12:34 PM : May 24, 2008
--------------------------------
I have one of those too....Just love her...If I have to carry her around I will do it until she indicates she is done.....

[nothappyatall]

newster1: They do have their way of telling you when its time to quit, dont they?

Posted by msay3

Yes, they do, been there, bought the tee shirt many times and soon with two 11-1/2 yr old dogs, one of whom has been slowing down rapidly since last summer- harder to get up, get up the steps, less continent but she enjoys her food, treats and is not in pain.

[msay3]

newster1: They do have their way of telling you when it''s time to quit, don''t they?

[nothappyatall]

The only troubling thing about this story is they''''re going to send the dog back to work asap. I think the dog has earned her keep for the rest of her life and

Posted by cdfoxtrot

You are putting yourself in the dog''s shoes, the dog likely ENJOYS the business of the work- most dogs enjoy doing what they were trained to do or naturally do.
The DOG will indicate when its time to stop

[cdfoxtrot]

The only troubling thing about this story is they''re going to send the dog back to work asap. I think the dog has earned her keep for the rest of her life and should be allowed to retire. It is wrong to send this poor dog back to work, ever.

And to those who begrudge this dog her pacemaker, think of the fact that she has worked to rescue or recover humans for her whole life. Plus, if we can give this to the likes of D-ick Cheney, why not this poor dog?

[nothappyatall]

Posted by JesusFace

STUPID

[nothappyatall]

The pacemakers used for dogs are the ones made for people. Manufacturers often donate unused pacemakers when several months have expired from the shelf-life of the power source, making it undesirable for use in human beings. Receiving a pacemaker powered for 5 instead of 7 years in not a problem for dogs, since they have much shorter life spans than people do. Sometimes dogs receive a secondhand pacemaker from a deceased person.

As director of the pacemaker registry, Dr. Sisson contacts manufacturers to request donations of pacemakers, matches donated pacemakers with needs nationwide, and collects data from board-certified veterinary cardiologists about the conditions and
outcomes of all pacemaker surgeries. He''s currently working on article that will report on 5 years of data from the registry.

The prognosis for dogs with pacemakers depends largely on how healthy the dog is other than having an abnormal heart rhythm. A pacemaker often extends the life of the dog 3 to 5
years. Young dogs that receive pacemakers because of congenital heart blockage typically do very well.
The cost of the pr ocedure is about the same as the cost of bone plating--surgical
repair of a fractured leg in a dog."

http://www.cvm.uiuc.edu/petcolumns/showarticle_pf.cfm?id=177

[msay3]

So.....to you, Molly, The Unsinkable Molly Brown, have a wonderful recovery and a long, happy life...I have had a chocolate lab, a black lab, and am currently the proud owner of a yellow lab...I have found that no matter the color, a lab is a lab, is a lab. They are all wonderful dogs, and pure of heart :-).

[msay3]

We need to honor our four-legged friends, for they will give up their lives in an instant for us....And for what ? Plain and simple...."LOVE"!

[msay3]

And then there was the yellow lab(can''t remember his name) that was featured on one of the news channels...He
led the way for a blind man from the 85th floor of one of the twin towers to safety right before it collapsed. This took enormous concentration, given the fire, smoke, and horrendous things going on all around him...If it were not for that dog, that person would not have made it out alive.....