NewsLady Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 SAMUEL NEEDS YOUR HELP! On December 26, Samuel was rescued. He was walking on three legs with the fourth one infected. He was immediately taken to the vet for x-rays and a blood test. Both the two bones in his upper front leg were completely broken, the bones were infected and on top of that, he had early stage tick disease as well. Because the muscles in his upper arm and shoulder already shrunk to practically zero, the vet concluded that Samuel's bones were already broken quite a while ago (2-3 months). He must have been in a lot of pain during those months.After about a month and a half of antibiotics, pain killers and disinfecting his infection has improved enough to have his operation, which will happen this Wednesday. His surgery is a costly one, because it is a complicated fracture which needs quite a lot of surgical steel pins and plates. Therefore, we are asking you to make a special donation towards Samuel's operation and recovery. Any amount you can donate, no matter how small, is greatly appreciated.THANK YOU! After his recovery he can be adopted and finally move to his new forever home with a loving family. He is a very sweet affectionate boy, between 1 and 1.5 years old, so he has a whole life ahead of him! The ARF teamwww.arf-boquete.com A donation box for Samuel will be placed at the ARF stand on the BCP Tuesday Market in Boquete and you can make donations thru our website. -- Lisa Mosley www.arf-boquete.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dottie Atwater Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 (edited) If Dr. Tello did the surgery, it would be done well and it would not be so costly. You could bring Samuel to our clinic in Volcan next Sunday for Dr. Tello to take the dog to Costa Rica with him. Then after the surgery you could meet him at the border to bring Samuel home. Or, Dr. Tello MAY be operating at a clinic in David next Saturday. Call Patrick McKittrick to ask. 6674-4842. If so, you could take Samuel to the David clinic for Dr.Tello to take Samuel to Costa Rica for whatever surgery is necessary. I absolutely will not have any kind of surgery done on my dogs by anyone but Dr. Tello. I've seen too many bad results of surgeries done by other vets, including the "darlings" that some expats think walk on water. They do NOT know how to properly deal with a fracture. Samuel looks like a very sweet dog and I'd hate to see him subjected to inferior care. Edited February 15, 2016 by Dottie Atwater adding info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Woolford Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 There are many dogs out there that do really well on three legs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Woolford Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 36 minutes ago, Keith Woolford said: There are many dogs out there that do really well on three legs. Tri-Paw'ds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dottie Atwater Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 There certainly are many 3-legged dogs that don't even know they have a limb missing. I've had several myself. Miss Waggles could dig a hole to China with that one front leg. (Miss Waggles has crossed the Rainbow Bridge. She was old, and told us she was ready to go.) I just do HOPE that Dr. Tello will be the one to diagnose the problem and perform whatever surgery is necessary.There are horror stories galore about the "darlings" I assume you are planning to have do the surgery. I'd hate to say "I told you so," but I will. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken and Becky Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 I have a tripod too. Dr. Tello had to amputate her leg after another Vet had her for 2 months and did 2 surgeries, and cost me hundreds. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dottie Atwater Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 8 minutes ago, Ken and Becky said: I have a tripod too. Dr. Tello had to amputate her leg after another Vet had her for 2 months and did 2 surgeries, and cost me hundreds. " another Vet had her for 2 months and did 2 surgeries, and cost me hundreds ," I'm sure you mean the "other vet" charged you hundreds. Dr. Tello's primary concern is for the animals, and his fees are ridiculously inexpensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoSailors Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Just so we understand this, Dr Tello is the only Vet for surgeries that you recommend? And he is in Costa Rica? There are no other vets in Chiriqui that you would recommend? That is a sad state of affairs. Surely there are other highly regarded vets in Chiriqui. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Woolford Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Although I applaud and support the work of a Rescue and Adoption group, I'm not sure I want to support what amounts to be expensive elective surgery. It's my choice of course, not to contribute if I feel there are higher priorities in the community. Also, I don't understand the "darlings" connotation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dottie Atwater Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 4 minutes ago, TwoSailors said: Just so we understand this, Dr Tello is the only Vet for surgeries that you recommend? And he is in Costa Rica? There are no other vets in Chiriqui that you would recommend? Dr. Tello is the ONLY vet I recommend for surgeries and everything else. Since I started the spay/neuter clinics in Volcan in March 2006, I've gained a lot of knowledge about what constitutes good vs bad veterinary care...and boy, have I seen the results of BAD (expensive) care by other so-called vets. Plus I've had plenty of experience with my own rescued dogs. I've become a "vet tech" via experience and many people in the Volcan area call me for problems/illnesses/injuries with their dogs. Most of the time I can solve the problem. I can even suture wounds. Dr. Tello is Panamanian but lives and works in Costa Rica. He works at our clinics in Volcan once per month and once per month in David. He used to go to Boquete every month, but he became so exhausted that he now limits the Boquete clinics to a few times a year. Here in Volcan we have only one vet at our clinics, Dr. Tello. The clinics in Boquete do a wonderful job, but they have numerous vets. Several people from the Boquete area bring their animals to our Volcan clinics so that they are sure Dr. Tello will take care of their animals. Between clinics, when there's a need, Dr. Tello will graciously meet people with their animals at the Paseo Canoas border. Yes, Two Sailors, it's a sad state of affairs that we have such a lack of competent veterinary care in Chiriqui. Before I knew Dr. Tello, I've been to them all in David and paid big bucks for misdiagnoses that caused death of my dogs. And in Volcan? We have one who is appropriately nicknamed "Dr. Death." I'd like to put a sign in front of her clinic "Dra. Muerta." 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dottie Atwater Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 21 minutes ago, Keith Woolford said: I'm not sure I want to support what amounts to be expensive elective surgery. Keith, I would not contribute to this either because I'm sure the "darlings" are the ones who would perform the (incompetent, expensive) surgery. Poor dog! I won't give the names of the "vets" in David, but ask around. Some people think these vets walk on water. I've seen horrendous results of their surgeries. Thanks to Dr. Tello, he was able to reverse their errors before the dog died or lost a leg because of their incompetence. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnie Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 (edited) I agree with everything you've written, Dottie. I've had bad experiences with these vets, too. And it's my understanding that, even though ARF gives them a lot of business, they have refused to discount their services for this animal welfare organization. I would add that, for those of us who live in Boquete, Dra. Chely is very competent in dealing with run-of-the-mill pet issues. Anything requiring either surgery or a sophisticated diagnosis, though, should go to Dr. Tello. Also--and we can't say it often enough--thank you, Dottie, for all you do. Edited February 16, 2016 by Bonnie 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dottie Atwater Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Thanks for your kind words, Bonnie. If true, it really sucks that those vets won't even give a discount to ARF "clients." I've given the information about how to get Samuel to Dr. Tello for competent treatment. If they choose to go the other route, the poor dog will most certainly suffer incompetent expensive surgery. I've seen those vets' experience with "pins." One man took a puppy to them with a broken rear leg--allegedly. The "vets" put in a pin and then a cast. About a week later, the smell from under the cast was awful. The man took the dog back, but was told the smell was "normal." Fortunately we had a clinic a couple of days later and the man brought the puppy to us. The smell was terrible infection. Dr. Tello removed the cast; the pin was protruding through the wound and rubbing on the cast. The puppy very nearly lost his leg over the maltreatment and also could have died from sepsis. When the man complained to the original vets, there was no apology or admission of doing anything wrong. The only response: "Can I have my pin back." Dr.Tello has a heart of gold. Last clinic he spayed a dog and removed a huge mammary tumor. Removing the tumor alone took 45 minutes. He knew the owner had no money and that neighbors brought the dog and were paying. He charged only $20 to remove the huge tumor. We have two amputations scheduled for the next clinic. I'm sure he will charge only $40 for those, the same as he has in the past. Of course he charges "the going rate" at his clinic in Costa Rica, but at the clinics he does his part in the community service that it is. Someone brought animals to our clinic; they also use the "vets in question" and like them. I asked why, if they like them, they don't have their animals spayed/neutered by them "Too bloody expensive," was the response. (By the way, I love Dra. Chely, too. When I first started the clinics in Volcan, she and several of the Boquete group came for several months to help me. I didn't have a clue! I'll always be grateful to them!) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Franagain Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 (edited) 21 hours ago, Dottie Atwater said: There certainly are many 3-legged dogs that don't even know they have a limb missing. I've had several myself. Miss Waggles could dig a hole to China with that one front leg. (Miss Waggles has crossed the Rainbow Bridge. She was old, and told us she was ready to go.) I just do HOPE that Dr. Tello will be the one to diagnose the problem and perform whatever surgery is necessary.There are horror stories galore about the "darlings" I assume you are planning to have do the surgery. I'd hate to say "I told you so," but I will. I also have had the experience of dealing with the popular David vets, also with bad and incorrect diagnosis which could have been disastrous had I not consulted with Dr. Tello. Dr. Tello fixed the hip problem with my Bob and I couldn't be more pleased (Bob is, too). Dr. Tello actually loves dogs, unlike some other vets who are only interested in how much they think the owner can afford. I also agree that many dogs have three legs and it doesn't slow them down or prevent them from doing anything a 4 legged dog can. In this case, I think the recovery would be MUCH easier on the poor dog than going through all the pinning and attempts to save the leg, especially in view of the high potential for bad surgery by David vets. I hope the dog's welfare (not the advice of David vet) is the first consideration. Always. As for the issue of ''discounts'' for ARF and other frequent flyers... it's just a numbers game, folks. Like the dentists and many other professionals, ask about a discount and they'll tell you it is already included in the price. Who can prove them incorrect? Edited February 16, 2016 by Franagain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dottie Atwater Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Right on, Fran. " In this case, I think the recovery would be MUCH easier on the poor dog than going through all the pinning and attempts to save the leg, especially in view of the high potential for bad surgery by David vets." And if amputation is necessary (which I'm guessing it will be), I hope ARF will consult with Dr. Tello to determine the best course of action. It would be horrible to put the dog through all sorts of (probably ineffective) surgery, only to have the leg amputated in the end. We KNOW that Dr. Tellio always gives BIG discounts to his patients at the spay/neuter clinics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoSailors Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Thank you Dottie, for your insight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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