View more
Yes
House Trained: In progress
Crate Trained: In progress
Energy level: Moderate
History: Breeder Release
Adoption Fee: $500.00
From the Foster:
***Please read entire bio before considering applying for Wiggles***
Wiggles is an incredible dog with an incredible story. The fact that you are reading this story of her as an ADOPTABLE dog could almost be considered a miracle. She has lived with me for six months now, but her journey started long before then. She is my 90th foster dog, and her case has both challenged and touched me in ways that I never expected, and no other dog has - and I go out of my way to take medical cases.
Wiggles was surrendered by a breeder back in January. She and her sister weren't even 5 years old yet, but they were being surrendered because they both had chronic bowel issues. She was a mess beyond what we thought we were getting. She had to wear diapers 24/7, and have them changed constantly from frequent diarrhea.
After extensive testing, it was discovered that they both had a bacterial infection that is typically foodborne. Answers were a relief. They were both started on an aggressive treatment plan, and after a few months, her sister improved and was adopted by an awesome family.
Unfortunately for Wiggles, she just didn't seem to have the same luck. Her diarrhea was still just as violent and frequent as it had been when she came. We brought her in for an exploratory surgery and took biopsies from all over her stomach and intestines, hoping to shed some light on what was happening in her body. While there was some thickening of her intestines, all of the bacteria was gone, and there really just wasn't any findings beyond what looked like minor IBD (Irritable Bowel Disease).
So we tried four different prescription foods. B vitamin supplements. Probiotics. Prebiotics. Steroids. Even an immune suppressant drug presuming that her body was attacking itself. The crazy thing was, every change we made would show improvements for a day or two, and then we were right back to it. Some days, she would go through an entire pack of diapers. She started losing her hair, and it was hard to keep weight on her. I have to say, our staff vet Dr Schulte was amazing through all of this. She was so supportive, respectful of what we were actually living through every day at home, and always willing to keep trying to dig deeper. We each consulted outside vets - from the UofM to internal medicine specialists, to the local bulldog specialist. We gradually checked every treatment suggestion off the list. The very last thing we discussed was a possible extreme protein sensitivity. Unfortunately, there really isn't any kind of 'allergy testing' that accurately helps us narrow something like this down. It literally comes down to trial and error, and so I decided since I had nothing at all to lose, I was going to try a limited ingredient raw diet.
One Wednesday morning, I changed 11 diarrhea diapers, and then I headed to Woody's Pet Deli in Minneapolis. The manager there is wonderful, and she listened to my whole teary-eyed story as I basically told her she was my last hope. She explained that (while keeping in mind every animal's system is different) even if an animal has a sensitivity to a protein in a kibble, it is processed differently than an actual meat. So she set me up with a bunch of samples, and suggested that I start with just one meat - cooked turkey - and feed her several small meals a day, and let that be all she has for a few weeks and let her system adjust. I got home at lunchtime, and switched her cold turkey (no pun intended) starting right then. By 6pm, her diaper was dry. The next morning, there was one small, solid BM in it (unheard of) and over the next two weeks, she only had two relatively brief episodes of diarrhea (which I'm pretty sure are just plain her system not knowing what to do with itself when it has passed only liquids through for so long).
She will need to remain on a cooked full grind (bone included - this is important and different from human grade meat) diet, and once she settles in, her adopters can likely slowly try to incorporate new things - she does well with turkey, rabbit and pumpkin so far. This meat can be purchased at Woody's Pet food deli (they are in S Minneapolis, St Paul and Woodbury) or I can connect you with a bulk supplier.
We still have a ways to go with potty training now - it is awfully hard to be potty trained when all you know is going potty constantly - but she is showing interest and understanding for the first time ever. She does still however have an odd bowel movement schedule and will cluster several small ones together over an hour or so, then go several hours in between. This is changing as her body adjusts to normal BM's. Right now she will get up and pee and poop outside, and is *usually* good for several hours, but sometimes she has an off day and just goes more frequently. If there is a washable pee pad available, she will use this to go on. When I leave and at night she is gated in my laundry room with one of these pads, and she uses it consistently. She will also occasionally 'clean up' after herself, which is sadly a typical behavior for dogs that lived in a cage. This has improved a lot, but it does still happen, especially if she has an accident and she doesn't want you to see it. She can be weirdly secretive about her bowel movements and doesn't like to be watched while she goes.
Potential adopters need to understand that while this is working now, we really don't have a real diagnosis, and the diarrhea could potentially come back. She may always be partially reliant on diapers - right now, she is not.
I DO think that if she were allowed to human bed sleep, she would overnight train faster, as unless she had an upset stomach, I think she would hold it and just snuggle happily, but that isn't an option in our house.
She is excellent for her 'butt baths' which I literally just throw her into the laundry tub with warm water in the sprayer and hose her back end off when needed. Wipes irritate her skin if she is having an episode and needs regular cleaning. She was awful about nail trims when she first came, but she is pretty good now (mainly just trying to pull away, and then dramatically screaming in protest, no aggression at all).
Shockingly, she is seemingly otherwise healthy - she has a tiny scar on one eye from what I am assuming is a previous wound. Her eyes are healthy, her skin is healthy, her hips and knees seem good, and her breathing is decent. No difficult bulldog folds to keep clean.
She is SUCH a gentle little spirit. She loves babies, loves puppies, loves cats, loves sunshine, loves the fireplace, loves running back and forth against my couch giving herself back scratches. She has THE BEST little tiny teeth and has a great smile. She knows 'sit' and will do it if there's something in it for her (yep, she IS a bulldog...). I work from home and she loves to lay on my rug by my feet while I work. She also adores the gas fireplace, and frequently occupies the bed in front of it. She isn't much for toys, but she really loves raw knuckle bones and will spend hours on one most days. She is not destructive, and is not otherwise a chewer.
She has the occasional zoomies, and will run around the backyard, then stop in front of you and A-Roo-Roo-Roo-Roooo! in her silly French voice. She even has a special little dance she does with her front feet when she is excited. We haven't worked on leash walking, but she would probably be good for short walks. She is a bit awkward sitting in a lap still, but she sure wants to be there. She will happily just stand in front of you with her eyes closed, soaking up any affection you give her. She is everything a gentle and laid back best friend should be.
She is really looking forward to her very own home and family.