TESTIMONIALS
TESTIMONIALS
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| Angel | | Bruiser | | Buddy | | Coco | | Daisy | | Daisy | | Denali | | Jake | | Kodi | | Kodiebear | | Lakota | | Lily | |
| Maggie | | Maxfield | | Mouse | | Quincy | | Rhea | | Samson | | Slugger | | Sonia | | Stratford | | Tahoma | | Tucker | | |
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History: Slugger was deprived of almost all food at the age of four weeks. At six weeks of age he was dumped outside (in December) and left for dead. Five days later someone found him unconscious and literally skin and bone. We received him as a foster that afternoon but were told he most likely wouldn't live through the night. After three weeks of round the clock care it was determined he would make it. However, due to the severe malnutrition he had many problems such as an undersized heart, underdeveloped lungs, and deformed bones. Slugger had no energy and had an extreme limp along with a great amount of pain in one elbow and leg. Due to these medical conditions we decided to adopt Slugger to make sure he would get the medical attention he would need the rest of his life. He will never be normal no matter what we do, but his one leg was so bad it needed two operations before he was six months old for him to have any chance of walking fairly pain free. While the surgery was deemed a success Slugger still had a very noticeable limp and quite a bit of pain. We were determined to find a way to make Sluggers quality of life as good as possible.It was at that time that we were fortunate enough to learn about hydrotherapy and even more fortunate to come across Sheila. I wasn't optimistic at first since Slugger "was scared to death" of water. I voiced my concern to Sheila during our initial phone conversation. She convinced me that she could probably get him in the water. So I decided to try one session before making a decision about further sessions. I carried him into the first session, he was so weak, and he just lay on the floor shivering on his blanket, too weak to even get up and explore. And then I was astonished. Here was my weak, scared little puppy in the water within a couple minutes seemingly as relaxed as could be. This was totally due to Sheila's gentle and encouraging demeanor. Slugger was in total bliss. I was so happy. We started out with twice a week. Within a very short time we saw a tremendous improvement. We then went to once a week and are now doing every other week. Slugger continues to make progress and while in the pool is most happy when retrieving whatever you throw for him and giving Sheila kisses. He loves the massage part a lot too. He went from a dog that couldn't walk to the mailbox without causing days of limping and crying, to a dog that can run around at full speed and rough and tumble around with his sisters. His stamina isn't that of a normal dog due to his heart and lung problems but that has also improved with his hydrotherapy sessions. We believe hydrotherapy is a great tool. Even more than that, we believe the success we have achieved is due to Sheila's knowledge, expertise and her incredible way with dogs. We're convinced Sheila is the best in the business. Thank you Sheila for giving Slugger the ability to run and play. Update from Debbie... Hi Sheila,It's been a long time since we've seen you. But I sure hope business is good and more importantly your health is good. I just wanted to let you know that we think of you EVERY DAY. We know in our hearts that Slugger wouldn't be where he is today without all the help you gave him. He runs full speed (vets said he may never run) - and 99% of the time he doesn't even limp the next day.And - believe it or not - he is now the swimming king. We call him
motorboat man. He dives into the water and swims like crazy, he brings
things back (in fact he won't come back in unless he has retrieved something -
so many times he just treads water while waiting for an object), and at the
end he won't leave the water - we have to get a leash and put him on it and
keep it on until he is in the car otherwise he runs straight back to the water.
Yesterday he even swam in a river (small one) and in places the other dogs
couldn't swim he swam up-river in the current and made it look easy. Debbie & Slugger |
 Debbie and Slugger, American Staffordshire Terrier  Slugger loves to fetch in the pool  Working with Sheila  Happy swimmer! |
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