Stoney Streak, a greyhound with a pacemaker. . . and a big heart
Oct 08 '02 (Updated Oct 10 '02)
The Bottom Line Do dogs get 9 lives? If so I've used 2. . .
Stoney had been adopted by my boyfriend, Fraz. Fraz had had another light fawn greyhound named Sarg for years. We both knew that Stoney would have a hard time finding a place in the house where Sarg lived-- Sarg was the kind of dog that looked like he would be living wild if it weren't for you. And you never really knew why you were so lucky to have been his chosen owner. Sarg was going to be hard to compete with. Luckily, Stoney was always true to herself.
Stoney is a goofy, hyper brindle greyhound-- with a white ermine collar. She was never much of a "lady" strictly in the behavior sense of the word. Her "smile" and curious nose once chased a good friend out of the house. When she came to us, she was a 3 year old puppy. She would run through the house so fast that she often rebounded off of furniture, the doorways, walls etc. One of the first Character defining moments spent with Stoney was when Fraz came home & found her standing on top of the Fireplace Mantel. Stoney has never been graceful. She has always been determined. (Picture waking up to a little head on an ostrich-like neck. Add the smile. This is how Stoney wakes me up in the early hours of the morning).
Stoney was about 4 years old when we first heard her scream. She had been laying on the couch, chilling out, when all of a sudden it sounded like she had been stabbed. She let out a loud, high pitched scream. When I checked on her, I couldn't see anything that was wrong. It was as if she had been having a nightmare that she woke up suddenly from. I hugged her & noticed that her heart was beating hard-- another symptom that seemed to me to indicate that she had been frightened. A few days later this happened again, but this time she lost her urine.
I took Stoney & Sarg to the vet (by this time it was hard to separate them) and told the Dr. what was happening. When I mentioned Stoney's Heart Rate after these experiences, the vet put her hands on Stoney's cheat & then she put her hands on Sarg's chest. She did some other tests & told me that Stoney's Heart was beating at 40 bpm. It should have been 80. She told us that when Stoney was screaming it was because her heart had gotten so slow that it was like she was suffering a mini death. She hurt.
The next few weeks kind of blur together. There were tests. I remember faxing copies of Stoney's EKG to the cardiologist. I remember a midnight trip to the vet to monitor her heart. I remember standing in the waiting room thinking that she may not come home with me.
I felt weak. I felt ripped off-- she had lived with us for a short time. I didn't know how to lose her. I felt like other people did death with so much more grace than I had.
Stoney had Atrial Standstill. The cardiologist said that this was probably inherited, and that there was a possibility that she would live a normal life with a pacemaker. The problem was that first of all, the cardiologist had to make sure that Stoney was a healthy dog in other ways. He had to make sure that her slow heart was not linked to a condition that would shorten her life anyway.
I asked him about life with a pacemaker. He said basically that the pacemakers that dogs use are donated from humans. The vets have little control over what model's they get-- but they were hoping that since Stoney was so young- they would be able to use a better model. Stoney's pace is now set at 100 bpm. All the time. The batteries need to be replaced every ~7 years. And, to quote the doc, "I look forward to replacing Stoney's batteries". So do I.
The pacemaker was to be implanted in Stoney's neck. The doctor said that you usually cannot see the pacemakers because they are hidden by fur & body fat. In Stoney's case, she is so thin that you can easily see the pacemaker if you know what to look for.
Some things that we have to be aware of now that Stoney has a pacemaker. We do not push on the pacemaker or the leads-- and we sometimes tell others about it if need be. We also keep our wits about us when we are around new dogs. I have never had a problem, but I do think that it could be possible for a dog to inadvertently go for her neck. We have to watch out for the usual things that pacemakers interact with. Stoney can not talk on the cell phone, ride roller coasters, or use the microwave. She stays away from areas with large magnets. She was released with a minimal amount of caution placed on her running ability.
When Stoney came home one of the most noticeable changes was Sarg, who had been moping around since she left. Stoney & Sarg both started wearing harness's instead of collars (collars interfere with the pacemaker, Sarg wore his in support of his pal). Stoney took some time to recover. But when she was ready, she really surprised me by running around the house, playing and being herself. She is my ATD-- All Terrain Dog, she can hike through creek beds, run in the moonlight, and crash into our furniture.
So, it has been 5 years & I still can't believe this is real. How did I get so lucky?
To see pictures of Stoney, visit www.iillustrate.net/tucker/dogs.htm
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jktucker
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Location: MD
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Only 15 words to come up with a short biography?.
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