Maximus' Story

How can we say Thank you to the staff involved in saving the life of our 9 year old X -Racing Greyhound, Maximus. In the very beginning when we arrived with Max, our initial visit was with Dr. Caitlin Heffernan, and she was the one to sound the alarm that Maximus was in a very serious condition. She informed us that it was a life threatening situation. She was so very patient with me as she showed me his x-ray and explained to me why Max needed abdominal exploratory surgery immediately, and that she wanted to call the On-Call Surgeon immediately. There wasn’t too much deciding to do, as Maximus is part of our family, and considered one of our kids, although he may be a FurKid. A whole hearted “Yes” went out to have the surgery, don’t worry about the cost. I left Max in their capable hands, as there was nothing else I could do.

As I was headed home, my cell phone rang, and it was Max’s surgeon, (Dr Jeff MacLellan), calling to talk to me about his surgery, and explain to me what he would be looking for during the surgery. He was so kind and helped me to understand what he would be doing to help Maximus. We couldn’t have asked for a better friend for Max.

We heard from Dr. MacLellan after the surgery that Max had an ulcer that made a hole in his stomach, but that Max was in recovery and doing fine, we could come see him in the morning. It took seven days to get Max well enough to come home, but we are so elated to have him back with us now! Here are some photos that we took to share with our friends and family about our journey with you and Max.

Maximus in ICU recovering, feeling a bit tough.

This is Julie, another one of Max’s Angels, that cared for him in ICU at night. She made sure Max had a blanket on him at night to keep him warm.

At one point Max’s GI track had gone into Stasis, (not working), and Dr. MacLellan and 3 other doctors put their heads together to come up with an idea on how to help him. One of Max’s Angels (Dr. Todd), called me to let me know of a drug that would help him, and we were all for it. Once he started receiving the drug, his GI tract started working again. YEAH!

Max was finally getting up and moving more, and the most important part, EATING and POOPING!

The time had finally come home that Max’s Number 1 Angel, Dr. MacLellan said we could take Maximus home, we were so excited! Dr. MacLellan walked Max out to us and he gave us terrific instructions on how to care for Max once we got him home. We think the world of Dr. MacLellan and his staff!

This is Maximus now, two weeks past his surgery, and he’s starting to feel and act more like his old self.

This is Maximus in his yard with his goofy look, enjoying the sun in his face. Although he is still a bit thin, he is slowing gaining his weight back, (from 68 to 70 lbs). He is now getting an attitude (barking), at the neighbor’s dog, and us when we are not delivering his food fast enough to him.

Needless to say folks, we were so lucky to have walked into the U of M Veterinary Medical Center on that Saturday, July 12th. We can’t say enough good things about you, and your staff. We are grateful to Dr. Heffernan for her quick diagnosis, and calling Dr. MacLellan to come in to do surgery for him, (so glad you were on call Dr. MacLellan!). We are grateful for Dr. MacLellan’s skill in doing a surgery that saved his life. The ICU staff we met, Nico, Julie, and several others, were so nice to us, and always allowing us to stay as long as we wanted, in order to keep Max company. It helped us to believe that we were also taking a part in helping Max recover and to let him know that we hadn’t deserted him. Blessings to all of you!

Maximus’s Mom and Dad
Millie, Bob, and his roommate Trigger