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March 26, 2001 – By now most of you might be tired of seeing Jabber's
face every week, so I'd like to introduce you to DJ. He's eleven months
old and he lives in Roanoke, Virginia, with his 5-year-old Dane stepsister
Elektra and his human Mom, Wendy Mellenthin. Right now DJ is spending
time at the clinic in Charleston with Jabber. He is undergoing physical
therapy to overcome lameness due to a knee injury. He is making good
progress. Last week DJ had his very first swimming lesson. Rumor has
it he excelled in Doggy Paddle class. Unfortunately, DJ and Jabber don't
get to spend any time together because DJ is living in the rehab building
and Jabber is in the hospital. Whenever I visit Jabber, I always drop
by to see DJ. He is a lovely dog with an exceptionally gentle and sweet
disposition.
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Update on Jabber
Things are not going well. Jabber has a bone infection. Bone samples
were taken during the third operation and sent off to a laboratory for
evaluation. The results came back a week later. Jabber's bones are infected
with two organisms. The first is a gamma strep and it is treatable.
The second is a drug-resistant strain of gram negative bacteria called
Acinetobacter baumanii. This is what's known as a super bug. It was
cultured and subjected to twenty four different antibiotics. It showed
sensitivity to just six of them. (Interestingly, there was no indication
from the samples that Jabber has poor bone quality, so the reason for
his failed TPLO surgery remains a mystery.)
Treatment
Jabber's doctor, Dr. Shealy, is out of town this week so I am getting
my information from the veterinarian in charge, Dr. Pernell. Apparently
most of the antibiotics that might be able to help Jabber, such as Neomycin
and Amikacin, are potentially quite dangerous and can themselves be
life-threatening. Jabber has been started on an oral antibiotic called
Geocillin. The oral form is poorly absorbed. The drug has a rapid elimination
half-life, so attainable serum (blood) levels are generally too low
to treat systemic infections. The Geocillin might hold the bacteria
at bay for awhile but it is not likely to eliminate it. So far a suitable
treatment for Jabber hasn't been found. He is doing fine right now,
but if the Acinetobacter baumanii gets the upper hand, Jabber will die.
 Jabber
remains in good spirits
Despite his problems, Jabber seems pretty content. There is some draining
from the drill holes; his leg is swollen and warm to the touch, but
he doesn't seem to be experiencing any additional pain. He gets excited
when I visit. He slaps me with his paws and makes happy sounds. (You
know the kind.) He snuffles me looking for treats, which by now he has
come to expect. It's hard to believe that he is so close to the edge.
I will be
updating this page as soon as more information comes in. I am not ready
to give up on Jabber and we are investigating all options.
Latest Update
University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine has just agreed
to take Jabber on as a patient. We will be transporting him tomorrow
morning (March 27). Stay tuned.
Go to next installment...
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