Tana

I have set this givealittle page up for a very dear friend of mine whose disability assist dog has recently and suddenly became very ill on Friday 5th of June. He was in a critical condition and there was a serious risk of losing him. Tana had three hours of major surgery on Saturday and a specialist surgeon needed to be called in to assist mid way through. Miraculously Tana survived the surgery and appears to have turned a corner for the better, giving much needed hope. Dr Liza and Dr Tara at Holistic Vets in Tauranga have gone way above and beyond the call of duty showing exceptional compassion and expertise to save Tana's life. They came in on their weekend off and have stayed with him through the nights to ensure he has every opportunity possible to recover to his previous happy self. They are committed to not only seeing him survive, but also to see him work again as a disability assist dog and resume his volunteer role in the community. Tana is improving, slowly but surely. His daily treatments in the hyperbaric chamber are undoubtedly a key contributing factor to the gradual progress Tana is making. The cause of Tana's illness remains a mystery although test results appear to show an acute illness rather than a longer term disease - this is great news as it means that if Tana pulls through he is highly likely to return to full health with no long term detrimental effects. The challenge is that Tana has been incredibly unwell and it is going to take time for him to recover enough that he no longer requires hospitalization and ongoing treatment.

Update for 10 June: They now know that Tana has septic peritonitis but need to remove whatever has caused the perforation in his gut and the serious infection that has resulted. Knowing what is going on is encouraging for planning treatment. Thank you for all the donations so far. They are very much appreciated!

All money donated will be given directly to Holistic Vets to contribute towards the bill for Tana's surgery (or two) and treatment. The plasma for his infusions cost $1000 each, the antibiotics and medications needed to keep him stable are costing thousands of dollars, the hyperbaric chamber is absolutely essential in keeping him alive, he's needed 5 nights of hospitalization with 24 hour intensive care to date, with another week or more anticipated, the surgery and additional cost of bringing in a specialist surgeon mid way through the surgery all adds to bringing the cost to being so high. A second surgery is expected to be needed when Tana becomes stable enough (hopefully within a day or so). The wonderful vets at Holistic Vets are discounting the cost wherever they can.

Update on 12 June: Tragically Tana died last night, despite putting up the bravest battle for his life. Belinda is understandably devastated. She gains some comfort from knowing that she and the vets gave Tana everything possible to save his life. Tana didn't die from lack of treatment or expertise. The infection was too severe. An hour and a half into his second surgery, he stopped breathing and very soon afterwards his heart stopped. Dr Liza and Dr Ben did all they could but Tana couldn't be saved.

Unfortunately Belinda is left with no Tana, and a large vet bill - but Tana was worth all the treatment efforts. We can show our support to Belinda by continuing to donate to this fund, to help take some of this stress from her. I know she is very grateful for all the help.