I can't believe it has been a year since we brought this little girl home. On May 7, 2006, we celebrated McKenna's first full year of freedom. On June 21, 2006, we celebrated McKenna's eighth birthday. My how she's changed. To think of how close we came to losing her (first to illness, then to adoption) still makes me cry.
 
McKenna not only enjoys life to the fullest, but she rules our household and everyone in it. Grandparents, friends and vets all drop to their knees on McKenna's command. McKenna is tenacious, even by Yorkie standards. She knows what she wants to do and she WILL do it. Of course, there's no making her do anything she doesn't want to. I guess every coin has two sides.
 
Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I'll save the words and let the pictures speak for themselves. Here are some of the things McKenna did this past year.

 

  

 
Blessings,
 
Dana
 

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McKenna-Angelea is adopted her foster mom

 

"May God have mercy on us all for living in a world where people can do this while others look away.  What I can do, is teach her what it feels like to be loved. If there is a smile inside of her, I will find it.  Thank you for trusting us with her."

McKenna Angelea came to live with us this weekend. McKenna had the misfortune to be born into a puppy mill. We’ll never know exactly what horrors she has survived, but we see evidence of them.

August 16, 2005

For those of you wondering what McKenna has been up to, wait no longer.

McKenna moved into a house with a yard and a dog door.  She no longer has to ride in the stroller just to go outside.  She can go outside pretty much any time she wants and doesn't have to wait for someone to take her out.  And she doesn't wait either.  Before we really wanted her to, she was using the dog door to rule over her new backyard and the neighborhood.  For several days, when we got home from work, McKenna was in the back yard by herself.  But, as soon as she heard us, she was through the dog door and coming through the kitchen looking for some serious attention.  She loves the new freedom.

She was spayed and had a small tumor removed two weeks ago.  Because she uses her stomach muscles so much to help compensate for her legs, Dr. Carroll wants to see her again in two weeks and then two weeks after that to keep an eye on her tummy.  She seems fine, but she is using those muscles more quickly and more often than we would really like.  He doesn't want to confine her so long as she continues to do as well as she is, but does want to keep an eye on her.

Her tumor was not cancer and is gone, so we're happy about that.  Dr. Carroll was pleased with her overall health and the condition of her internal organs.  But for her legs and the arthritis, she is a healthy little girl.

Her hair is growing and she gets more beautiful every day.  Nana told McKenna the other day that soon she will be wearing a hair bow like her sisters.  I don't know that McKenna was especially impressed with that revelation.

I came home last Wednesday to find the kitchen and dining area covered in dry grass clippings.  McKenna covered head to tail in grass clippings and she and rolled in things that are not fit for apparel.  She was trying to hop around and do a little dance.  She was so happy and excited.  She truly enjoyed the weather and her new yard that day.  I rewarded her with a bath and a hair bow.   She got as dirty as any boy ever did - and was darn proud of herself.

She continues to get stronger and quicker.  She is asserting herself as the Yorkie leader.  The other girls don't exactly challenge her, but neither do they admit that they are being led.  They all think they rule, when in fact, mommy does.

When McKenna first came to us, she insisted on standing to eat her food amongst the other girls.  She has decided she prefers to be fed with a spoon and does not like it when Daddy tries to hold the spoon over the bowl to catch drips.  If you put her bowl close to her, she tries to bury it under her blanket or the napkin.  I sure hope her forever mom is prepared to spoil her like the princess she has become.

  
We leave on September 2 to fly McKenna to Massachusetts to go to Eddie's Wheels for a personal measuring session for a new wheelchair.  UYR's Maggie is enjoying McKenna's first wheelchair.  Maggie is about three pounds smaller than McKenna and her foster mom tells me she can't gain any weight or it will be too snug, so McKenna felt better about that.  She was considering a diet.  McKenna weights 7 pounds 2 ounces now and we think she is the perfect weight.

She hasn't shown much interest in toys yet, other than to sniff a few here and there.  She tries to join in the romping games from time to time and the other kids have found a balance between treating McKenna like she is just like them and being gentle with her so as not to hurt her.

McKenna snuggles close all night and still loves to be held like a baby.  But in between all that cuddling, she has things to do and places to go.

We are thrilled with the progress she is making and expect GREAT BIG things from this little girl.  She has much to experience, but also much to teach others.

To all those who have played a part in McKenna's freedom and healing and growth... thank you.  She is worth every prayer.  It will take a special family in deed to get this very proud foster mom to let her go.

Dana Bates,
PMR foster mom to McKenna
 

Subject: A wheelchair for McKenna UPDATE

McKenna will be flying across country from TX to MA with her foster mommy in a few weeks to have a custom fitting for her new wheelchair, the one she received is a little small, and will be donated to a Yorkie with another rescue group who needs one. Your donations to this raffle are paying for this flight and hotel and new chair for her, and another Yorkie who needs wheels will get them thanks to you. Thank you all so much. I wish you could all have won..........Jean Jones

6/20 update

McKenna has been a very busy little girl. She is taking swimming lessons in the big bathtub. She does not like swimming, but is getting better at it and less nervous about it. We can’t see any muscles yet, but she is walking better.

We’re still waiting on a status report about her wheelchair. I will send a status request to Eddie’s Wheels today. I know they are very busy, and McKenna is a complicated case, so we need to be patient. I think we’re going to be in real trouble when McKenna has wheels.

McKenna has gotten very vocal when she is out and about. She is the loudest of the kids and our neighbors find that humorous. She wants to make sure everyone within her sight knows she is there, so she barks at pretty much everyone. If they are close, she growls and wags her tail to let them know they are supposed to be scratching her ears.

Her Uncle Shawn built her a ramp and put carpet on the top, and she is teaching herself to use that to get off the couch. She kind of slides down it, but doesn’t seem the least bit afraid of it. I had asked him for steps, which we actually planned for the other pups to use, but after building the steps, Shawn thought a ramp would be more useful for McKenna and built those too. She used them the first time when no one was watching her. She was taking a nap – until Daddy turned his back on her for 30 seconds.

We had McKenna over at the new house for a few minutes on Saturday and I put her down in the living room on a punkin bed. We walked out to the back yard for a couple of minutes and left the back door open. When I turned around, McKenna was coming off the patio (ground level) and onto the grass to get me. She had walked or crawled across the living room, across the kitchen and out the door and across the little patio. This girl has got places to go.

She seems to think she needs a staff, so that she can have full body massages and no shortage of lovin’ 24/7. I think I need to update her profile to include that. She still doesn’t play with toys, but she is getting a little bit curious about them. She loves the stroller and is just as likely to climb on top of her sisters as Morgan is to climb on her.

You get a completely different impression of McKenna once you see her in action. Make no mistake about it: she is a big girl, not a baby -- unless she wants to be held.

Dana Bates, PMR Foster mom to McKenna

Leslie from Eddie's Wheels has contacted me about McKenna. 

Wonderful Incredible News! this email just in McKenna will get her WHEELS!! in 2 weeks...

-----Original Message-----From: EDWARD GRINNELL

Sent: Tuesday, June 21, 2005 6:18 PM To: Bates, Dana

Subject: Re: A wheelchair for McKenna

HI Dana,
We have decided to build McKenna a counterbalanced cart with custom front training wheels. The training wheels will be bowed out to accommodate her elbows and will be detachable, so that she doesn't have to use them all the time if she doesn't need to.
the counterbalance will take 30% of the weight off the front legs. She'll be able to use her one good rear leg to push off as much as she's able.
The training wheels will hold her up level and allow her to stand and rest in a standing position.
I hope this works well for her. If you have any suggestions or input, please don't hesitate to talk to us about the cart. It should be done in less than 2 weeks. Leslie
 

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May18th........

McKenna woke up happy and energetic. She was less than thrilled about going back to the doctor so soon, but there were lots of volunteers to hold and love on her, so she went along with it. It helped that she had Aunt Jean’s cookie bed with her.

Dr. Carroll and Dr. Turner, the specialist, reviewed McKenna’s x-rays, took some more, and gave McKenna a thorough going over. As far as McKenna was concerned, she had the rapt attention of two men who were playing with her and loving on her. She didn’t understand it was an exam, so she wagged her tail and forgot to stress out. Until later…

The specialist said that it looks as if McKenna has been thrown off a bridge. All four legs, from the top down, have injuries so traumatic that only something like that could explain it. McKenna was not born this way and did not get these injuries from being kept in a wire cage. Almost every joint in every leg is out of socket. Both her hip joints are missing the ball portion of the bone. This would be consistent with a surgery to her back left leg, but does not explain her right leg, or any of the other joints.

Left front leg

McKenna’s left front leg is out of socket at the shoulder, elbow, wrist and toes. There is not enough there to work with to even attempt to put anything back in place. Her left elbow is stuck at a 90-degree angle. Her foot basically dangles at the wrist. Her toes are there, but the bones are not connected, so she cannot flex them. The muscle and nerve in her forearm have shrunk and pulled back from her foot. Before they could perform any kind of surgery on the leg, they would have to run complicated tests to determine if the nerve is even connected to the foot so that she could one day move her foot voluntarily. Dr. Carroll doubts it is.

Right front leg

McKenna’s right shoulder actually looks pretty good. But, her front leg is out of socket at the elbow, wrist and toes. Again, there is not enough there to work with to put anything back in place. Her right elbow is stuck at a 90-degree angle. Her foot dangles at the wrist. Her toes are there, but the bones are not connected, so she cannot flex them.

Left rear leg

McKenna’s left rear leg is out of socket at the hip, and a few other places. The ball portion of the ball and socket joint at the hip is gone. This is consistent with a surgery, but does not explain her other injuries. The leg is curled up and stuck. She can move her foot a little, but not the rest of the leg and we risk breaking it to try to force the leg out straight. Her foot is sort of curved. The specialist said that, in his opinion, this leg is the best candidate for surgery – to amputate it. This would relieve some pressure on her other back leg as the left leg pushes against the right. Dr. Carroll thinks that it is premature to do that at this time. Rather, he feels it best to give McKenna some time and some good tools (her splints and wheelchair) to build up some strength and motor skills and see what she can do without losing a leg.

Right rear leg

McKenna’s right rear leg is her strongest leg, but is out of socket at the hip, with the ball portion of the bone missing completely. The knee is not great, but not terrible. Dr. Carroll is hopeful that given time McKenna will build up her leg and it will improve.

They measured her for a wheelchair and he filled out the order form and called Eddie’s Wheels. But, he had to leave a message. He will call again tomorrow if they do not call him first. He wants to get the chair started and they expressed a desire to talk to Dr. Carroll so that they can have all the information necessary to design the best chair possible for McKenna.

The rest of the day’s story

McKenna and I left Dr. Carroll’s around 3:00 or 3:30. She threw up her last meal – all of it. Not good, but not enough to make her mom panic. This is the first time McKenna has done this. Dr. Carroll said it could be due to stress, although she did not seem stressed out today. About 30 to 45 minutes later, she suddenly got very cold (her ears, nose, mouth and feet) and went limp and her tongue was pale. I wrapped her in a second blanket and called Dr. Carroll to tell him we were headed back because I believed McKenna was going into shock.

“Describe her to me…” I did… “Get her here…” “I’m on the way…” You get the picture.

As I pulled into the parking lot, 2 girls threw open the door and rushed us inside to a room waiting for McKenna with a heated heating pad, IV set up, oxygen, monitors, etc. We got her hooked up and Dr. Carroll did that doctor thing and I did the mommy thing and McKenna started to improve and stabilize. A good thing, because her numbers had bottomed out. About an hour later, she started throwing up blood. This is not a good thing for a mommy to see. Sometime during all this, John showed up.

To make a long story short, we got her stable, but Dr. Carroll thought it best to keep an eye on her and he took McKenna home with him. He rattled off a list of things to be packed up to go with him so he is fully prepared to handle any late night emergencies.

He called an hour or so ago and said that McKenna has had a couple of blow outs (bloody diarrhea), but he expected this. When he was cleaning her up, she ran away, so he got to see first hand just how quick McKenna can be when she puts her mind to it. She has been walking around in his back yard some and seems to be past the worst. He is hopeful that she will be back on track tomorrow and I can pick her up early tomorrow afternoon.

Like each of you, I will continue to flood the sky with prayers for each of our special kids and each of us as we care for them and worry over them and struggle when they struggle. We’re all in this together.

I’m going home now to hug the rest of my pups, and John.

Blessings,  Dana  PMR Foster Mom to McKenna

May 17th Update

Friday 13th May update.

McKenna is back from the doctor. She lost 4 teeth. Not bad actually. Dr. Carroll said the others cleaned up pretty good, which surprised us all. I’ve got only sketchy details on the x-rays. John said that McKenna kept waking up and wiggling around while Dr. Carroll was trying to take the x-rays, so he kept having to stop and sedate her a little more. I take that as a sign that he was being very careful not to over-sedate her. Dr. Carroll is going to have a specialist examine the x-rays with him and they will discuss what options will help McKenna the most.


Here’s the preliminary information I got from John. Both her wrists (just above her front paws) are dislocated and out of joint. That explains why they dangle. They have been out of the sockets for so long that there isn’t enough left to work with to make putting them back in place an option. One option is to fuse the joint. This would make it easier on her to stand up and restore some limited use of her paws. The same is true for her back hips and knees. I am less comfortable with the little information I got about her back legs and what options exist for them. I think it best to wait for Dr. Carroll’s written report and a chance to discuss it with him.


Her toes are disjointed and flayed due to living on wire. I don’t think there is anything he can do about them at this point.

McKenna has severe arthritis throughout her body, caused in large part to her joints and poor nutrition. I don’t know yet what we can do about that -- I am thinking mostly in terms of pain management.

John said that all of the joints McKenna has problems with can be fused, but they can’t fuse all of them. So, they need to study her x-rays and her progress and determine which ones would be the most beneficial to McKenna.

She has lost a couple of ounces, but has more energy and Dr. Carroll was pleased with her weight, understanding that she will gain some in time.

For now, she is sleeping quietly in a travel bed under my desk. She had one of my bosses sitting on the floor (in her $300 slacks) talking softly to her. McKenna generates strong reactions in people. The vet tech, Nikki, cried during McKenna’s whole visit; she is so heartbroken about what they have done to this sweet little girl.

Dr. Carroll is candid about the fact that McKenna has a long, hard road before her, but he is also very hopeful that we can offer her some pain relief and increased mobility. John forgot the camera – we had planned to show the little video of McKenna walking to give him a good idea of how she moves about and walks. Instead, John mentioned that it could be viewed on the PMR web site. I’ll update everyone as soon as we get more detailed information and a better idea about what we need to do about her feet and legs.

McKenna seems content to be back with me, but tired from her busy morning. McKenna’s inner strength runs deep. That much is obvious to me, otherwise she would not have survived all of this – and still be trying to walk.

Dana Bates
PMR Foster Mom to McKenna

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McKenna Angelea came to live with us this weekend. McKenna had the misfortune to be born into a puppy mill. We’ll never know exactly what horrors she has survived, but we see evidence of them.

I see it in her front feet. They look as if they’ve been stepped on by a 400-pound man and flattened out, leaving her toes turned at odd angels, and her toe nails turned at odd angels to her toes. But, McKenna stands on those abused little feet and uses them to walk. I see evidence of things about which I don’t want to know when I look at McKenna’s back legs. One appears to be trying to wrap itself around the base of her tail. The other lacks any muscle tone and seams almost useless, but she pushes herself up on it and propels herself forward – and walks. It isn’t graceful. It is heartbreaking to watch. But, McKenna walks. She has places to go and things she wants to sniff.

 I see evidence of things about which I don’t want to know when I look at McKenna’s back legs. One appears to be trying to wrap itself around the base of her tail. The other lacks any muscle tone and seams almost useless, but she pushes herself up on it and propels herself forward – and walks. It isn’t graceful. It is heartbreaking to watch. But, McKenna walks. She has places to go and things she wants to sniff.


I see the evidence when I look at her slender belly, with swollen, blackened nipples almost as big around as my little finger. This tiny undernourished girl has nursed many. I see the evidence in her swollen, private parts, ready again to produce and deliver another litter. Thankfully, she won’t have to do that. She has had her last litter. McKenna will no longer have to produce to earn food.



I see something else when I look at McKenna. I see a little girl who is full of life and love and intelligence and hope. I see a dog that is curious about her surroundings and eager to explore. I see a puppy that never had a chance to play, playfully rolling in the grass and tugging at the edge of a blanket. I see a little girl who belongs in a loving lap, crawling after a friendly face in hope of finding some affection. I see an inner strength and a willingness to forgive that every human should long for.
Welcome to freedom little one. 
 

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I am sickened and angry and sad and heartbroken when I look at this tiny little girl. My mind cannot fathom what allows a human, someone not so different from myself, to subject such torture on such a gentle being. But I also see McKenna’s struggle to get up and go on with her life. And my heart reaches out and cheers her on. McKenna is going to surprise us all. I know this.

I watched this little girl lie awake and stare at me until 3:00 a.m. that first night. I swear, she was afraid to go to sleep. I don’t know if she thought she was dreaming, or just didn’t want to miss one minute of her new life. But even as I drifted off, I could feel those huge brown eyes staring at me in the dark. Finally, I gently lifted that tiny, broken body out of the cookie bed and lay her beside me on the bed. She snuggled a little closer against me, between two of her new sisters, and at last she closed her eyes and got some much needed sleep. McKenna seems to understand that her life has changed and she is determined to make the most of this new opportunity.



We took her to the vet the first morning. Dr. Carroll shook his head and gently but thoroughly examined his newest patient. He put her on an antibiotic to help fight the infection raging in her mouth and he wants us to encourage her to walk, crawl, and swim, to use her legs and, hopefully, build up some muscle. We need to see what she can do and get some nourishment in her, then we’ll take lots of x-rays and attend to her teeth and swollen gums and look for ways to help McKenna make the most of what she has to work with. McKenna has a lot of hard work ahead of her. She seems to know that, but doesn’t seem the type to shy away from it.

Did I mention that she’s housebroken? She is. I don’t know how, especially considering she was probably never allowed in a house. But she is housebroken. She hasn’t had one accident.

McKenna Angelea is an outwardly fragile, broken little dog of less than seven pounds. But, inside lies a heart and a spirit that would make the angels sing.

McKenna is… well… you just have to see her for yourself. Words alone cannot describe her.

For now, McKenna is mine to protect. …to love …to encourage …to nurture …to help

Dana Bates
PMR foster mom to McKenna Angelea
 

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I have been trying to get this little 6 year old Yorkie female free from her breeder, since last fall. I tried to get her the same time as PMR Kelsey, that Dana adopted. The woman's son "loved" her and was keeping her at his house where he bred pit bulls. Last week she called and asked if I could find a home for her. PMR saved another one today.
Jackie met the lady at 6:45 am and picked her up. I was there by 9 am and we took her to the vet.
We knew she had one back leg that was bad. She has some kind of surgery on it, a couple of years ago, since it was hurt at the hip, but the surgery didn't work, and she holds it up, kind of wrapped around her other back leg while she hobbles around. Her front feet are somewhat deformed from living on the wire before the current breeder bought her at age 2. She will be 7 years old in June and weighs 7 pounds 5 ounces. She is heartworm negative, doesn't seem to have mammary tumors, at the first check out, needs a dental badly. Her ears have ear mites, something awful!!
I was talking to her while we waited for all the tests to finish processing, telling her how this was her best day, That she had a family waiting to love her and take care of her. She raised that sad little head up, and licked me on the nose. I about bawled!!!
When we got her to Jackie's house, she limped around a bit and pp'd. She can't squat, so it just runs down her legs all over her feet. She balances herself a bit with her bad leg to poop. Jackie and I sat down on the edge of the grass and watched her for a few minutes. She scooted herself along that cool grass on her belly with her front legs and one back one, giving herself a belly scratch!! She got right in between Jackie and me and rolled over for a belly rub. She closed her eyes and looked so happy. Then she rolled over and started playing with the blades of grass, chewing on it, rubbing her face in it, just like a puppy!!
John and Dana Bates are going to foster this little one. She should be a "stroller baby" if ever there was one. They will choose a name for this little one hopefully this weekend. For now she has the initials B J.

Welcome to freedom little one.  Jan Smith

 

First words from her new Foster Daddy, when he saw her pictures today:
"All I can do is focus on this little girl and know that these people will, one day, pay for what they have done."