Back in Berat

Happy New Year 2009!  Hard to believe that my time her in Albania is already into the new year, and that I have 9 months under my belt.  Still feels like just yesterday when we first stepped off the plane.  Speaking of getting off a plane, I should let everyone know that my plane rides back to Albania went much better than the ride home.  No delys, no airline problems, no missing luggage, just an easy ride all the way back.  Perfect end to a great trip home for Christmas.

Things however were not so great when I got back.   The little dog the I have semi-adopted was not well upon my return.  I had received a message from a friend, while I was in Dallas, that Clara had been bit by a dog on her leg and that she wasn't doing very well.  Well.... that was a huge understatement!  I expected to come home to find her with an ugly cut on her leg that maybe should have had some stitches, but instead, her back leg was so mangled I knew that it would have to be removed, and quickly.  

I called my friend in the next city over, about 1 hour and 30 minutes car ride away, and the home of the nearest vet office.  We set an appointment for the next morning for her to have the leg amputated.  Sounds easy, but getting her there would prove to be challenging and, as it turns out, expensive (by peace corps standards).  I ended up hiring a taxi to take us and just wrapped in a towel, not knowing how she would react to her first car ride experience.  She did fine, although she did throw up about half way through our trip.

Got to the vet in Fier, and laid her out for an "examination".  Let me also say that this is nothing like taking your dog to the vet in america.  In fact, I'm not sure that this vet had examined a dog in quite some time.  Anyway, so there she is laying on the cold floor of this one room vet office, and Gensi (the vet) let's us know that he is not comfortable doing the amputation, and that he would just put her down.  That not being and option at this point, I ask if there are any other alternatives.  He calls his professor from university, and he agrees to do the amputation.  So we are off to Tirana, yes, in another taxi!  At least this time we have a dog cage. (Jack is my friend Stephanie's dog from America and he had his create from the plane ride that we borrowed)

So, once in Tirana, the vet there looked at her and listened to her heart and was worried that due to the infection spreading in the body, she may not make it out of the anesthesia.  Without any alternative, that was just a risk that we would have to take.  Stephanie and I left for about an hour and return to find Clara, leg cut at the mid thigh, u awake and ready to go home.  Albanian after patient care is also much different than in the states.  She would go home to Fier and get antibiotic injections from Gensi over the following 6 days, then we would be able to return to Berat.  

The next week she did a little better everyday.  Eating and drinking were big steps and she started to get more strength back.  She also started to hate going on her daily trip to the vet more and more, and with more energy was able to show us just how she felt about getting that injection!  At the end of the week, we returned to Berat.

Since being home, she seems to continue to make good progress towards recovery.  I think that she likes her warm inside bed at night, which is a new luxury, post surgery.  We are going to go back to Fier this weekend for the stitches removal, create return,  and final checkup.  Hoping that she will be a good patient and get a clean bill of health!