Trixiestreasures is named after my miniature schnauzer Trixie. Here is her  photo with her prized treasure, her teddy bear, which she has had for 11 years. She has had multiple health problems including being diabetic with 2 shots of insulin daily. But she is my most valuable treasure! Hence the name trixiestreasures. Her story is below, and on our "links and tips" page you will find health tips we have used over the years to help her.

I have been in sales for 14 years and have also worked at the Hawaii's State Capitol for the Governor in the information office along with working for a State Representative for an additional 4 years.

We are now located in the Big Sky country of Montana, USA.
Please check us out at: www.trixiestreasures.ecrater.com

Trixie did not start out with a proverbial silver spoon in her mouth.

Trixie had been abandoned by her first owners and left to die under a falling down boat dock. Neighbors around had told us she had been left under there for 3 days without food or water when we found her. We were disgusted that people knew about her and did absolutely nothing. We took her in and fed her her first meal, which consisted of eggs and bread! I gave her a bath and spent 3 weeks trying to get the knots out of her fur. We found out from the first vet we went to that she was about 1 year old when we found her.
We noticed she would always cower at any sudden movements, or loud noises, bark profusely at someone wearing sunglasses or a baseball hat or get extremely upset at the rattling of keys. Month's later we found out from someone who knew the former owner that he had abused her by hitting her and throwing things at her. Not a very nice person!
 
The first couple of months were not very pleasant, for starters, Trixie lost the ability to use her back legs. The vet told us she would be using a wheelchair for the rest of her life, that she had neurological problems. With a lot of research on our own, my mother came across an article with Trixie's same symptoms and discovered she could possibly have Tick Paralysis. Which is an infection caused by ticks embedding themselves in the skin. The vet denied any of this and sent us home with no hope at all. Meanwhile, my mom was grooming Trixie and discovered 2 ticks engorged in one of her paws. Once we removed them, Trixie was up and running around within 3 days! Needless to say, we changed vets. (On an ironic note, that same vet lost her own dog to Tick Paralysis!)           

A few months later, Trixie was playing on the dock and misjudged jumping on the boat and she went in the water after hitting her chest and knocking the wind out of her. We couldn't find her, and when dad jumped in he saw her floating at the front of the  boat, picked her up and put her lifeless body on the dock. (A week Prior to this my mom checked out a library book on CPR for dogs.)  My mom gave her mouth to nose and we rushed her to the vet and after 1 day of staying overnight at the vet's, we got a phone call asking us to "Please take your dog home! She is barking up a storm and won't keep quiet!" That's our girl!!
Over the years, we have encountered the typical ailments of stomach aches, allergies, muscle ailments, ear infections, etc. Honestly Trixie could check off most of the things listed in a vet book that she has come down with over the years we have had her.

Until 3 years ago we were pretty lucky, until the fateful night I took her out for her evening walk and she walked right into a sign post. She was suddenly blind overnight. We rushed her to the vet and with blood tests, it was determined that she had diabetes and would need insulin injections. We missed the signs of excessive thirst and frequent urination thinking that it was Summertime and she was just very hot and thirsty.
Trixie is a thinker and needs to visualize things. Once she was suddenly blind she was very depressed and would hardly eat or want to even go out for a walk.
We made the appointment for cataract surgery to remove the cataracts that develop instantly when diabetes strikes (which cost a total of $3500). We were able to save only the left eye with surgery, while losing the right one to Glaucoma. That was a very expensive visit, but I just wanted to give her something back for all the years of love she has given myself and my family. She is currently taking Voltaren, an anti-inflammatory eye drop to control her glaucoma. Very expensive! $75.00 per 5ml a bottle.

We now cook for her and keep her going for as long as we can. Some people would argue that she is just a dog, but to us she is our life, our family, our joy.

About 3 months ago she developed a growth on her only good eye. We now are trying to save what little sight we can and keep her diabetes in check, while hoping things are going to be okay. To help Trixie get around without bumping into too many walls, we are training her "left, right, straight and stop" voice commands. Of course when she is excited, all this goes out the window, but when she is cautious and sensing her way around, these commands help. With her it is easier to tap her left side while saying "left" and tap her right side saying "right" etc. Then praising her for obeying.
Early in the month of May, 2008, Trixie was diagnosed with Idiopathic Vestibular Disease. It started with her constantly walking in circles, and being off balance, and her eyes were very erratic, then she vomited all day, a frothy yellow acidic stuff. That was a scary day for us, but with research and a talk with the vet (luckily he knew about this syndrome, since a lot of vets out there are not familiar with it) we were able to control it. It helps her keep her balance when we put her harness and leash on her too and we had used a neck brace to help keep her from twisting her neck around when she got really off balance.
She was prescribed Baytril antibiotic to control the yeast infection in her ear and Rimadyl to help with any inflammation. Being idiopathic, meaning nobody knows the cause, it was suspected that the yeast infection in her ear contributed to the condition.
For more information on this, please visit: http://www.vetinfo.com/dencyclopedia/devestib.html

August 2008 update on Trixie: She is doing better, but she will have a permanent head tilt to the left. It is more noticeable when she gets tired. With all of these things piling on top of her, it is harder to control her glucose levels, but lately I have rotated her insulin injection site to a whole different area (mid section, verses in between shoulder blades). With this new area for her injections and controlling other ailments that might crop up, we have been lucky and are getting lower glucose readings!



If the information on this site helps you, or you feel a special connection with Trixie, and you'd like to make a donation to Trixiestreasures-from-area-52.com, please use one of the options below. The amount you donate is entirely up to you. Any amount is greatly appreciated.

Why donate? It helps with the rising costs of food, and medications to help keep this pup going. She really is a bright spot in this world.
 

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Christy Vargo
P.O. Box 123
Saint Marie, MT 59231

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Thank you for your support and encouragement!