On 3 August 2005, comes the great news, when Dr. Laura Lopez-Mendez writes:

Now, regarding Pirata, I saw him today, he is a SWEETHEART!!!! Amazing how great and confident temperament he has after all he's been through!

About his leg, there are two conditions to consider. For one, he has an infected toe which seems to be resistant to the medications he has been taking. I prescribed an oral antibiotic (Clindamicyn) and a topic mixture of gentamicin and DMSO which I've found very effective in this type of condition.

I saw the x-rays and saw no signs of bone infection, but in case the tissue doesn't respond to this treatment, worst-case scenario would be to amputate the toe, and only that . . . not the leg! As it's the "outer" toe, he wouldn't have any problem in the future.

Now, the second condition is that he has neurological deficit and the leg is crooked to the inside, but it can be "reshaped" after a short warming session and it almost goes to a normal position. There is very little sensitivity in the toes which increases as you go upwards, so I hope he can regain sensitivity with time and rehabilitation. I suggested them to make an easy removable splint he can wear when they can monitor him (don't want to end up with a piece of it in his tummy!).

Anyway, back to Pirata. Adriana & her father (wonderful people) started treatment today, besides the splint they'll do physical therapy three to four times/day and hopefully the antibiotics will take care of the infection.

Adriana writes:

Once more thanks for all the support given.

Pirata has received all the vet attention he could be given here in México. The most important for us is the welfare of Pirata and that he could have a home and be part of a family.

I asked Adriana to tell me how she became involved in Pirata's rescue, and she writes:

An afternoon after visiting the vet's, I really felt upset about Pirata's diagnosis; I thought that if he's going to lose a leg, nobody would want to take care of a dog in this situation. It seemed that Pirata didn't have too many opportunities.

I love Airedales, so I had once before found [on the Internet] the site of Airedale Terrier Club of America, and I had seen the Rescue foundation, which is how that afternoon I came to write to ATCA.

It was incredible for me because before I thought my mails were being answered by the president of the club, Christine, a wonderful woman who moved all her contacts in order that Pirata could recive medical treatment and be rehomed. I admire the great organization she manages, all Airedale lovers, volunteers who are helping us.

Thanks to all of you volunteers for the support you give, and also to my family, especially to my father Alberto Gonzàlez, a man of big heart, who approved that Pirata stay at home. He left his work to attend veterinary sessions and I'm sure this would be more difficult to me if I didn't have his support.

Weeks before, thanks to Rusty LaFrance & Ricardo Lugo, we were able to contact Dr. Laura Lopez, an excellent vet who examined Pirata's problem and said that he has a high probability of being healed. I would also like to thank her for her help and charity.

(And we in the Airedale Community thank Adriana for grabbing the opportunity to rescue Pirata, thereby giving him a chance for a great life, with all four legs!)

CONTINUE WITH THE STORY OF PIRATA HERE