STARFISH PANDA FEELS BETTER (NO, REALLY) 11 AUGUST 2012
Marti writes: Here's a picture of Panda's new "private parts", one week after his surgery at the UW-Madison Vet School. The vets found that the opening which the breeder's vet had made was not salvageable, so they had to close that one and make a new opening (just ahead of the original one), through which Panda could urinate. As you can see, they also amputated his penis. Now he pees/squats like a little girl, but - thankfully - he doesn't seem to be incontinent, and he can "hold it" until he chooses to pee.
All in all, a successful surgery, although healing is slow. Poor little guy. I'm sure Panda is REALLY tired of people cutting and making holes in his private area! Overall, though, he is doing well. His appetite is good, his tail is wagging all the time, and he gives us lots of sweet, butterfly kisses. I think he knows we are trying to help him, and that he is safe - and loved - with us. Panda gets a cat scan . . . Panda has met Clarence, our kitty who "cat tests" each of our new rescue dogs. Based on this interaction, I would say that Clarence has declared Panda to be cat-friendly. Clarence is just a normal-sized cat, so this photo shows how tiny Panda is. He seems to be fearless, though, as he meets our "jungle" feline face-to-face. We'll take more pictures soon, once Panda is allowed to be a little more active and can run around (as all self-respecting Pomeranians love to do). Thanks to EVERYONE who has been so supportive of our efforts to help Panda. He sends little butterfly kisses to ALL of you! BOBBI PROCYK: Isn't medicine/medical care amazing? I am so glad that he is going to be OK

PANDA GOES HOME HERE