Tiny TiAmo’s miracle; how one very little dog escaped a big tragedy.

There he was, the tiniest ball of fluff lying in a pile of fleece with towels to support him. He had warming pads underneath his towels and an IV bandage wrapped around his one front leg, attached to IV fluids and a CRI pump with pain medication.

That’s the first time I saw little TiAmo. I’ve been a Registered Veterinary Technician for about 12 years now, and puppies NEVER get boring, but sometimes it is hard to see them so broken you can’t touch them.

“You must see some awful things.”

People often ask me, “How do you do it? How do you work in an animal ICU? I couldn’t do it…you must see some awful things!”

It’s true. Along with the many good stories and happy endings, we do see some awful things, some of the worst being the results of what we call B.D.L.D.’s, or Big Dog Little Dog trauma’s- when little dogs are severely injured by a larger dog.

 I walked in to start my shift that day and saw TiAmo lying so still on his little bed. “He’s so tiny! He’s not even 1 kg? …What happened to him?” That’s when my coworker told me that he had been attacked by another dog in the family, a large Boxer mix that was more than 10 times his size. Poor little TiAmo suffered multiple fractures to his skull, some of them leaving fragments displaced around his brain. The first night in the hospital little TiAmo could not move much, and his pain medication had to be maintained at a high rate. His head was so swollen it looked round, and his eyebrows looked furrowed because his forehead was so puffy. We kept him quiet and he slept most of the night.

 The harsh reality of serious injuries and veterinary costs

 The next day I walked into my shift and found out that TiAmo’s people had run out of funds. They were a young couple that had just bought a car and were starting their careers. Although they had planned to pay healthy puppy veterinary costs they were not prepared for the bills of a serious injury. Without pet insurance, in only 24 hours the cost of veterinary care was ringing up to a couple thousand dollars and yet no clear hospital discharge in sight, a guarded prognosis, and a very broken, painful puppy. They were left with the option to continue care or to euthanize. Tearfully, regretfully, it seemed they were going to have to say goodbye.

A community stepped up to save little TiAmo

This is where my veterinary team stepped in. Occasionally we provide the option to rehome the animal as an alternative to euthanasia, but this can only happen if we know someone is willing to take over ownership and financial responsibility for the animal in need. I agreed to foster TiAmo to see how he would do as we figured he needed more time in ICU before we could tell how his small brain would handle the injury. We started a Go Fund Me Campaign and thankfully within 3 days TiAmo miraculously took a turn and improved dramatically. I took him home to live with me temporarily and he did wonderfully. He never looked back; he ate, slept, played and chewed like every other bratty little puppy! The only difference was that he had a giant hole in his skull and needed to be protected.

A second chance

I kept in touch with his previous owners. We met in a park close to the ICU one week after TiAmo was discharged from the hospital. When they saw TiAmo walking by my side they couldn’t believe his improvement. There were tears flowing from their eyes and TiAmo went bananas when he saw them. My heart squeezed tight at the sight of the reunion. We sat in the park for an hour talking about him returning to their care and of the potential risks going forward, that he could have seizures for the rest of his life, and would have to remain on medications to prevent seizures for at least 6 months to 1 year.

The young owners acknowledged all this and that they were able to find family to help them financially. They had been so distraught with the fact that he had almost died, and that they had been in such a desperate state. Now, they were extremely grateful. And TiAmo? Ha ha! He ran between the three of us completely oblivious to the troubles of the world; chewing our shoelaces, chasing dandelions and running through the grass.

A happy ending

I attribute TiAmo’s happy ending to a community of people and support; to his owners who brought him to the ICU and not quitting sooner, to the veterinary team for diagnosing and keeping him pain free, for all of the people who helped via Go Fund Me to fund his hospital expenses, to those who offered emotional support and cheered him on through his progress, to Karen Black of Indigo Pet Photography for offering to do a cheerful playground photo session, and to his beloved people for taking him home and providing him with such deep love, and to my dear little dog ‘Dot’ for helping TiAmo overcome some anxiety with other animals.

Today TiAmo lives happily with his young owners, in a different family home with no other pets. He remains on leash when interacting with other dogs to keep the unprotected portion of his brain safe. I get pictures of him picking pumpkins, celebrating thanksgiving, dressing up like Batman, running in the grass, going to puppy classes and snuggling with his people.

A word of caution

 I can’t emphasize enough, the importance of protecting your small dog when it comes to big dog little dog interactions. Keep them leashed, and keep them at a distance. It takes no time at all, for tragedy to strike. Take it from TiAmo…PLAY SAFE!