Celebrating Sendak & Children's Book Week

 Well.

See above blog post of a couple of week ago. How fun! I was heading to Jerome, AZ, for my 2nd Annual Lew Wilson Remembrance Trip. I promised to write about a few topics, including travel and Millie. It never occurred to me that those things would merge, in a very scary way.

There I was, sitting in a patient room at my vet's office, awaiting word about...but I'm getting ahead of myself. 

Friday, July 18th
    The plan was to meet a friend for lunch, make a quick shopping stop, then home. Dinner that night with my friend/pup-sitter, George, after which I planned to slip out, leaving Millie in his capable hands (with his dog, Snowy) for the weekend. 

Things did not happen the way I planned it. 

I got back from lunch around 3pm or so. Millie was not herself. To be more specific, her breathing was a bit labored, and she was looking at me like she was...scared, maybe. Or worried. Or asking me to help her. 

I called George and asked him to come over, then called my vet (San Tan Animal Hospital, the first heroes of this story). Dr. Schwarzmann told me they close at 6pm, but sure - bring her in. 

When I got there (George drove), they were waiting for me; the front desk woman promptly paged to the back, "Millie's here!" A nurse appeared, took Millie from me, and swooped back to the medical rooms. Another appeared and showed me to a room where I waited. And waited. While sitting there, I cancelled my hotel in Jerome – no way I’m leaving this pup.

Dr. Schwarzmann came to fill me in, X-rays in hand. “See the fluid around her heart and lungs? That is what is making it difficult for her to breath.”

At this point, I want to take complete responsibility for this health scare. Due to her newly-diagnosed heart murmur, Millie is on a regimen of drugs twice a day – one of which is a diuretic, which helps her wee body eliminate excess fluids. Meaning, she drinks more water and pees a lot. The problem is…she’s very finicky. Finding a vehicle to give her the drugs twice a day is a challenge. I’ve tried a multitude of food items to get the drugs in her, but when she’s over it, she’s over it. So…a few doses have been skipped, to be honest. And before you all weigh in, big “Nos” on peanut butter, ice cream and cheese. She’s finicky!

Back to Dr. Schwarzmann. Since STAH doesn’t have “overnight facilities,” and Millie needed that kind of care, he recommended ARISE Veterinary Center (AZ Regional Intensive Care Specialty & Emergency). He told me, “There’s one near Millie’s cardiology vet, or there’s one right here near us, just a couple of miles away – you could go there.”

Lord help me, I mulled it over for a moment. The closest one to STAH was 1.1 miles away. The other one was 20 miles away, in Gilbert, on a Friday evening. I wisely chose the Queen Creek ARISE. Holding Millie on my lap, George and I jumped in the car and drove the 1 mile. In that short time, Millie’s breathing became more labored. My vet had called ahead and when we walked in, the woman at the desk took one look at her and got on her shoulder radio: “Millie’s here and she’s turning blue!” She took Millie, ignoring my frantic “What? WHAT?!?” and dashed back to the ER. But not before I got a glance at her tiny tongue – indeed, turning blue. If we’d foolishly opted to go to Gilbert…she wouldn’t have survived the drive.

 The ARISE vet (the first of many ARISE vets and nurses I met that weekend) told me the news: she needs to be intubated around the clock. I signed a form to allow them to perform full CPR if needed. I told the vet, as she started a careful conversation around fees, “Don’t worry about that, I don’t care about that.” They got to work.

More waiting, then Maggie (a saint) invited me to visit Millie in the ER to say goodnight. We walked back to find Millie on a table, tubes coming out of every little leg, and three nurses hovering over her. One was squeezing the intubation balloon, breathing for her. I was shocked and stammered out my thanks. The intubator woman smiled at me and said, “We’ll be here all night, for as long as she needs us."

The next morning, I got an early morning text from Saint Maggie (does she ever go home?) with a photo of Millie awake and alert, and the message, “Someone wants to say good morning, Mom!” See uplifting photo below:

See? A saint – they all are!

Long story short – Millie spent three days there, so they could keep an eye on her breathing and give her the needed meds. I visited twice a day, bringing her favorite foods - they were thrilled that she ate and beyond thrilled with her recovery and progress. I took her home on Monday morning. That was a long, scary weekend but Millie is now back to her sassy self – walking briskly each morning, playing “Come Grab my Snack!” all day, and eating her food (i.e., meds) on the regular.

The first visit. Millie tried to climb out to be with me.

So, it wasn’t the weekend I’d planned, but I’m grateful for the able vets and nurses of STAH and ARISE. They saved Millie’s life that weekend. And she has promised me she'll be around a good long time – as long as I keep the snacks coming.

Back home, with a snack.

Thanks for everything, ARISE!