RUSSELL

My story

RUSSELL Attributes Dog friendly Playful Snuggly Medium energy Housetrained Good with children of all ages Crate trained Requires a fence Fence climber Good in cars Not best for apartments Special needs Russell is a medium energy, 30-pound, 3-year-old beagle boy ready to find his forever family. His foster family describes him as a big, squishy snuggle bug. He is a sweet, gentle soul who loves everyone he’s met and gets along well with other dogs. He especially loves babies/infants (see pictures). He loves to give kisses and snuggle with his humans. Russell is a medical marvel. When he first came to us, the doctor noticed a significant heart murmur. Further testing by a cardiologist revealed that Russell had a birth defect that was causing a severe blockage in one valve in his heart (pulmonary stenosis). The blockage caused Russell to experience lethargy and weakness. Even worse, the doctor said he was at significant risk of heart failure if the blockage wasn’t resolved. The good news is that Russell had landed with Midwest BREW, and they got him in to see some brilliant doctors at Purdue Veterinary Medicine. The incredible team at Purdue performed a balloon valvuloplasty, a procedure where a long catheter is fed through the jugular vein (the large vein of the neck) and into the right side of the heart. At the tip of the catheter is a long balloon. When inflated, the balloon stretches the blocked valve opening, reducing the blockage. Russell sailed through the surgery with flying colors. Follow-up tests revealed that the inflated balloon reduced the blockage by 52% - a very successful surgery! Russell has recovered from surgery and now has a new lease on life! He has lots of energy and seems to want to make up for lost time. He runs, plays, chases, and wrestles with the other beagles here. Russell now has a wonderful quality of life and excellent prognosis for a full life span, as long as proper follow-up care is given. Russell will need to be with a family who is committed to his follow-up care. Russell must see a cardiologist and have an echocardiogram sometime within the next 2 months as a follow-up to his surgery. Additionally, Russell will need to see a cardiologist and have an echocardiogram once per year to ensure that the valve in his heart remains unblocked. Russell also takes medicine twice per day to help reduce stress on his heart. Russell would do best in a home with a fenced yard or a family that enjoys lots of outdoor time with their dog. He especially loves to play outside. He is house-trained and will go to the door when he wants outside. Russell is a climber and will climb over baby gates. He has never climbed over our chain-link fence, but I suspect he would be able to if sufficiently motivated. If you want to be Russell’s new family, contact Midwest BREW. NOTE: Dog may be located in any of our six volunteer states (WI, IL, IN, OH, PA, MI).

If you have any questions or would like to adopt RUSSELL, please reach out to the adoption group directly. PetSmart Charities does not facilitate the adoption process. Thank you.