"Chad’s Pool" aka Canine Aquatics
Open June 2003
On an ill-fated day in May of 2002, Chad, my 4 month old Rottweiler puppy and Mallory, my 6-year-old female Rottweiler (Certified Therapy Dog), were both vaccinated for Rabies (same Pfizer batch, same lot #) and within 10 days neither dog could walk. Both had severe immune-mediated joint disease. Their own bodies’ immune systems had begun to systemically attack their hosts. After 14 months of debilitation, including very invasive surgery and beating back an often-fatal immune-mediated blood disease…Mallory is once again back to her jovial self. It’s a miracle that she is alive…let alone WELL. However, to add insult to injury, Mallory will never be able to resume volunteering with the thousands of sick kids she had come to know and love and they to love her. Current vaccination is a part of the protocol of any Therapy Dog Volunteer Program. She can never be vaccinated again, knowing what we know now, as the results could prove fatal.
Chad’s experience was a little different as he was only a tender pup of
4 months old when he too was struck down by his own immune system gone haywire. Just 10 days after his rabies vaccination all of Chad’s joints were severely inflamed and he could barely walk. His vets informed me that the ligaments in Chad’s knees had been forever destroyed. My adorable puppy was crippled and that was just the beginning! Chad was put on heavy doses of steroids to try and stop the progression of his autoimmune disease. Treatment was effective but long-term heavy steroid use is always a double-edge sword further weakening my puppy’s soft-tissues and muscles, compromising what was left of his immune system, and obstructing his normal growth into adolescence and beyond. To look at him today all grown up, one would easily mistake him for a 6 month old puppy. Surely he can’t be a full grown male Rottweiler? Chad…my forever puppy.
The vet said that Chad may be able to have knee surgery to shore up his joints with metal plates, but that would have to wait until he was at least a year old. In the meantime my vet said that I must find a place to swim Chad so that at least his thigh muscles would not completely atrophy and he’d still be able to walk. He HAD to walk…not being able to get up in the months ahead could be a death sentence for this large-breed puppy.
I had sold my business of 12 years to take care of Chad, not having a clue what I would do to support us! I started calling kennels all over the city looking for a swimming pool. I live in Culver City and would drive anywhere to swim Chad twice a week. I found a pool at a dog kennel in Torrance. The staff at the kennel was wonderful and allowed us to use their above-ground pool even though Chad was not a boarder. Getting in was tricky, as the ramp leading up to the top of the pool was not intended for use by handicapped dogs. The ramp was very steep but the pool attendant gathered little Chad into his arms and hiked him up the ramp. (Thank you, Victor. We love you!) We swam twice a week the entire summer of 2002. By the end of August Chad was still on his feet and had become an excellent swimmer besides!
All too soon Fall arrived and the pool closed for the winter, as it was not heated. I began again a desperate search for yet another pool to continue Chad’s therapy. I found one at a Pasadena kennel. This pool was in-ground (but no heat) and had a slope entry that Chad could easily get in and out of. The problem was that it took 3 hours to drive back and forth on the freeway to swim twice a week for 20 minutes! Still, we went back and forth until Chad was old enough for bi-lateral knee surgery, in April of 2003. And just in time…as it was becoming more and more difficult for Chad to stand. He had begun taking his meals laying down…it was easier that way. There would be many surgeries and a long recovery before Chad’s bones would mend and he would be allowed to swim again. Chad was now in the care of Woodland Hills surgeon Jack Henry, D.V.M. Chad was not a typical candidate for TPLO (Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy.) He was very weak, not just in one rear leg but in both. His elbows hurt him too from carrying most of his weight up front. Swimming had helped him build up his chest muscles to compensate for this shift in weight. His multiple knee surgeries necessitated a very restricted life-style for several months post-op. Though off of steroids for several months, he still appeared like a fragile, thin, sickly little puppy. His muscles had never had a chance to ever develop due to non-use and wasting from the steroids. But even through all this I could see that Chad was standing taller and straighter with his new knees, and wanting to be more active than the doctor would permit at the time. Chad was getting a little stronger every day!
It was around February of that year that I had begun to wonder why there was no Therapy Pool for Dogs on the Westside. Certainly there was a great NEED for one! That was the moment Canine Aquatics aka “Chad’s Pool” was envisioned. Six months later in June of 2003 “Chad’s Pool” was realized and open to all dogs in need of Swim Therapy.
Since then Chad has been swimming on a regular basis in his very own pool! The change is remarkable! Chad is dramatically changed in his strength and appearance. Gone is my frail pup with hardly any chest and no hindquarters. Instead here is a puppy that is quickly making up for lost time by swimming his way to a physically fit and muscular new self! Who knows…in another year he could be ready for the Doggie Olympics!
A special thank you to the vets who arrived late on the scene but just soon enough to save Chad’s life. Words are not enough to express my gratitude to Dr. Madeline Graham who in January 2003 refused to put Chad to sleep after his attending vets had given up on him. And to Dr. Debra Rackear who concurred with Dr. Graham and slowly weaned Chad off the prednisone and onto another drug that was compatible with Chad being able to have surgery. And of course surgeon, Jack Henry, who faced the difficult task of rebuilding Chad’s knees…several times…he wanted little Chad to have the best knees possible to carry him through the rest of his life. And last but not least, Richard Palmquist, DVM, who taught me about a simple blood test (a titer test) that can determine levels of immunity to various diseases in lieu of blindly re-vaccinating your pet every year!
And, yes, I have a dig or two that I feel deserves dishonorable mention. Shame on the vets at VCA who refused to report this case to the proper health agencies so that they could at least draw their own conclusions regarding both my Rottweilers coming down with the same disease 10 days after being vaccinated with the same Pfizer Rabies Vaccine from the same lot and the same batch number. These vets have put ALL of our dogs in danger by not reporting. Perhaps Pfizer was giving away junkets to Maui to the vets pushing their drugs…wouldn’t want to miss that vacation! I’m sure I’ll never know the whole truth.
And to the folks at Pfizer who had no problem turning down my well-documented request for reimbursement of Mallory and Chad’s $40,000 veterinary bills…their lack of caring speaks volumes.
And lastly, my most peevish dishonorable mention of all…VPI Pet Insurance. I had been a member in good standing for over 10 years with virtually no claims. When Chad got sick (very very sick) they pulled the plug on his insurance. In their words he was “considered property in the State of California” and as such they had no obligation to continue coverage. Remember, this is the company that advertises how they care for your dog just like he/she was a member of “their family.” Makes you wonder how they treat their own dogs? My advice: Save your money and start your own Emergency Pet Care Fund…a much better way to prepare for the unexpected and often very expensive care that our dogs may well require at sometime in their lives. Better to take charge of your own savings than trust it to VPI Pet Insurance…an icy-cold faceless bureaucracy of pure evil…who identified themselves only as “The Underwriting Committee.”
Of course I refuse to end the story of Canine Aquatics aka “Chad’s Pool” on a sour note. How could I? Not only did Chad’s illness create the spark for Canine Aquatics…but he survived and now thrives on both land and “sea.” I feel pure joy swimming along side him in the warm water. I think this is what’s known as a “meant to be.” But whatever you make of it…Chad and I are delighted to share our pool with you and your dog.
May all who enter find Comfort, Vitality and Healing.
Welcome to Chad’s Pool!
P.S. In January of 2004 Chad was wrongly diagnosed with degenerative spine disease. As the months passed his lower back became unbearably painful and he was no longer able to enjoy his pool. As we considered euthanasia we also felt strongly about a “last” opinion to help ease our own minds and to do what was right for our boy. We sought the opinion of Alan Schulman, DVM a board certified orthopedist and surgeon who had never before reviewed Chad’s case. What to anyone else would have been horrible news…was music to our ears! Dr. Schulman told us that Chad’s pain was the result of a raging staph infection in one of his lower vertebrae, known as diskospondylitis, and further more he did NOT have degenerative spine disease. Chad’s condition was treatable! Because Chad’s immune system was so damaged by vaccination, it’s not surprising that an opportunist bacteria would take hold somewhere in his body. He has now completed
an eight month course of antibiotics to stem the infection and allow the damaged vertebrae to re-grow and with it so go the pain. Chad is now the strongest and most pain-free that he's ever been and is back to swimming and playing in his pool! No more surgeries or medications. Chad's 3rd birthday is Jan, 31st 2005. I never thought he'd make it to his first birthday! Many thanks to all of Chad's vets, friends and family who never gave up hope.
