Romeo - A Dog in Need
Romeo was found as a stray and severely emaciated when he was brought into DARE in March 2009. He was estimated to be about 4 years old. The shelter called DAR&E saying they had a very, very sweet dobe that needed our help. He was so sweet that he gave them a hug when he saw them. They hoped all he needed was some good food and a loving home to make him better, but no such luck. He tested positive for heartworms which are so prevalent in the Tidewater, VA area. Romeo needed help ASAP if he was to survive. In his weakened condition, Romeo crashed while at the shelter. He was rushed to the vet where they were able to prop him up and stabilize him with steroids. Romeo is a fighter! Meanwhile, our volunteers were working feverishly on a plan to move him from the Tidewater area up to Buckeystown, MD for treatment. During Romeo’s long ride, everyone agreed that he was indeed a very special dobe to be so very sick but remain so good natured and loving. All he wanted them to do was to pet him.
The vets agreed that even beyond being very, very skinny, Romeo did not seem well and quickly arranged for chest x-rays and blood work. The results were as we feared; Romeo had advanced stage heartworm disease. He had one of the
most severe cases of heartworms to ever come through DAR&E. Their recommendation was that he needed to begin
treatment immediately or be humanely euthanized to end his suffering. Everyone was concerned whether he could even survive the heartworm treatment in his current condition. The vets commented on what a sweet dog he was and that he did have a chance of surviving the treatment. The first week would be very telling on how he would respond. So DAR&E decided to give him a chance. Romeo is a fighter! He did well with the first treatment and it was estimated his recovery would take 6-8 months. After a couple of weeks he was moved into a foster home where he continued to recover and had his second heartworm treatment. Everything seemed to be going well. Then poor Romeo had a setback. His breathing became severely distressed and he began coughing up blood and blood clots. His foster parents being in West Virginia rushed Romeo the long distance back to Buckeystown, MD in record time. The vets immediately attended to him giving him fluids and running tests. They believe he threw a blood clot and his lungs are in bad shape. He was put on antibiotics and monitored. But Romeo is a fighter! After several days at the vet, it looked like he was going to be OK and hopefully, he would continue to improve. Unbelievably, our dear sweet Romeo developed another problem, sarcoptic mange. The poor dog just couldn't seem to catch a break. He stayed at the vet another two weeks while he received treatment, then he was off to his new foster home!
For months, Romeo was pampered and nursed back to health. After being in DAR&E for 6 months, Romeo found a wonderful furever home with one of DAR&E's volunteers. It was a match made it heaven! His treatment exceeded $1,300.
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