Our Newest Baby

We flunked Fostering 101 again. Johnny, the little pup we picked up three weeks ago because he needed heart surgery to repair the Grade 6 PDA heart murmur, is back with us.

We had Johnny with us for 2.5 days and that was enough to win our hearts. We put him on the plane on Friday a.m. to Houston for his surgery at Texas A&M. It was so hard to say good bye to him. I was surprised. We have fostered so many dogs, some of them real sweeties, but I've never felt like part of my heart left with them like I did Johnny.

On the next Monday Johnny went into congestive heart failure and almost left our world. Many, many prayers were sent out for this little boy. On Tuesday, they performed surgery to repair the heart murmur, and within three days he was sent to his foster home.

He was with his foster mom, Patty for almost two weeks. She is such a wonderful foster mom and took such good care of him.

Throughout Johnny's stay at Texas A&M I was in constant touch with Small Paws to see how Johnny was doing. Robin finally asked me "Sue, do you want Johnny to come home to you?" She knew. To make a long story short, Johnny came home to us last Thursday after a long day on the airplane.

The change in this little pup is astounding. Before he would try to run three steps and then have to lay down because he was exhausted and was having trouble breathing. Now he is into everything and blitzing to his HEART'S content. Before his heart was pounding to get out of his chest, now it beats with harmony with Johnny's activities. Before he had trouble breathing because his heart was enlarged and pushing against his lungs. Now he has LUNG POWER. Before he would just lay at my feet while I was on the computer, now he keeps getting under my desk to chew on the wires (he is learning, however, the wires are an absolute no). Before he was a very sick little puppy. Now he is into everything and everywhere. Many prayers have been answered.

We went to Edgar's Acres this weekend and Edgar, Louie and A.J. showed Johnny every square inch of the fenced 3/4 acre. Johnny got dirty, found a bunch of burrs to be pulled from his coat, played, slept, and discovered many new things. We have him wearing little shirts to cover the incision area. This is to keep him from scratching it while it finishes healing. I bought a package of three newborn t-shirts, and did laundry for him twice. He kept going outside to play and coming in wet and dirty.

A big thank you to Small Paws Rescue for caring so much to heal a little pup's heart. Johnny is heart murmur baby No. 52, and he is grateful.