In 2008, a little 8 week old terrier mutt came into my life. He was scheduled to be neutered that day. He was the last one left. His name was Leo and had one blue eye and one brown. I remember picking him up from his crate and my heart immediately crushing. Placing my hand to his chest I choked back tears knowing what his fate was headed. Leo had a grade 6 heart murmur. This is based off of a 1-6 grade scale. Grade one is you may hear it one day and not the next. A grade six was you could feel it without listening to his heart. The rescue organization that brought him to us ran solely on donations. Unfortunately, treating Leo's heart condition was not in their budget. I decided to take him home with me and give him the best life I could.

Something told me not to give up on him just yet. The next day, I brought him in to see a Cardiac Specialist. It was then that they told me he had Severe Pulmonic Stenosis. Basically there was a malformation in his heart that restricted blood flow from his heart to his lungs. The amount of pressure the heart needs to pump blood to his lungs should be less than 30mmHg. Upon an ultrasound of his heart, the pressure gradient was 220mmHg. The doctor was shocked he was as active as he was at that time. She told me his heart will fail without intervention. The prognosis of severe pulmonic stenosis indicated he had a few weeks to a month until complete heart failure.

I had fallen for this blue eyed baby and refused to give up on him. He went to see another specialist at the veterinary college nearby. It was only there that the surgery could even be attempted. Nevertheless, we scheduled the surgery. He had to be 16 weeks old before he could have the surgery and he was only 8 weeks at that time. I was told not to get my hopes up, that he would most likely pass before he hits that age. Four months passed and he was admitted to the hospital for surgery. It was a costly surgery and we relied on donations of any amount. The night he was admitted, my husband and I were literally rolling change in the hotel room. 3000-5000 thousand was what the estimate was. Again, we were warned that he may not make it thru the surgery. Sedation was a huge risk.

After his surgery, his pressure gradient went from 200mmHg to 82mmHg. We were all astounded that he made it, not only through the surgery, but had surpassed all expectations. Again we were reminded that he still has pulmonic stenosis but it had decreased from severe to moderate. When we picked him up from the hospital, we were told to see the receptionist regarding payment. We were ready for amount that was given to us. I remember pulling out my credit card and the lady telling me to wait. She told me that they owe me money from the deposit I put down prior to the surgery. We were charged only $950 dollars. We were shocked and concerned on why the change is price. He was brought out to us, and the doctor told us that, since this is a teaching hospital, this type of surgery isn't performed very often and that is was a great learning experience for the veterinary students. He later added that Leo wouldn't make it to six months of age. I guess he felt bad charging such a high amount for a grave outcome.

Six months passed and he went in for a recheck ultrasound of his heart. The pressure gradient had decreased again to 50mmHg. I starting crying, knowing he wasn't leaving us any time soon. Leo continued his recheck ultrasounds for the next year. When he hit his one year since initial surgery, the gradient decreased again to 35mmHg. Tears welled up in my eyes. He was a miracle. He had let every doctor know he wasn't giving up. Later on in life he was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis. Due to his heart still not in a good place, sedation was high risk. He was, once again, on deaths door. He had a spinal tap and CT and was sent home with medication. He recovered well. Of course, he wasn't done fighting for his life. A few years passed and he was diagnosed with a lung fluke. Another sedation and another diagnosis.

Working in the veterinary medicine field, you are often faced with innocent pets whose survival is put at risk. Most times, we cannot fight death, yet welcome it as a relief to their pain. I never planned on taking on that battle for a dog that was not my own. That all changed when that blue eyed miracle came into my life.

Now, you may be wondering how long he lived with the cards that he was dealt.
January 30th 2022 was his fourteenth birthday. He has defeated all odds and expectations. He is now a grumpy old man with multiple lumps and bumps.

As I am looking at him now, sitting in front of the fireplace, I watch him with loving eyes. He started out with having no one believe he could live a normal life and it will end the same way he came into my life. He never gave up on himself. Even when he was given a life sentence to death, he always prevailed.