Back to Kaiser's Bunker
I struggled with whether or not I should talk about Kaiser's injuries, but they are part of his story, so I decided that I should. The point I want to make, is that every time he was injured, many people commented that I should just "put him down" rather than spend the money. But money does not kiss you when you tuck money in bed at night. Few people would have changed a dog's diaper 4 times a day or knelt in the snow at -30 to help him poop, but I loved him. If he needed my help, then I was there for him. No question.

Its appropriate here that I thank Kaiser's Veterinarian, Dr. Amy Schneider. I credit her with saving his life four times, and for that I will be forever grateful.
The Eveready Dachshund


Kaiser had several brushes with death and I used to comment that he must have had nine lives like a cat. The poor little guy took a beating but kept coming back.

In April 2001 he herniated a disk in his spine when he slipped on ice going outside after an ice storm. I drove him 4 hours to the Veterinary College on Prince Edward Island (PEI) where he underwent emergency surgery. $2500 later He returned with a horrible scar, but healed eventually and it appeared he would be fine.

Sadly, even though I kept his weight perfect and kept him from jumping off of furniture, in 2007 Kaiser (who then 10) could not walk and was is in terrible pain, crying and howling. He was rushed back PEI, where a myelogram showed that he had ruptured a disk in his back again. He was operated on and his vet bill that time was over $3500. Thta is a lot of money to me, so I sold some of my collection to pay for it and would do it again. Unfortunately, this time there was permanent damage; his tail which had wagged so fast that I thought he would hover, was now paralyzed. He never moved it again. He lost much of the muscle mass on his bum and he lost complete bladder and bowl control. This is why in so many photos Kais is wearing a diaper around his middle; he could not stop his pee. Several times a day I had to help him poop, but he was my little buddy and if that's what I had to do, so be it.
Kaiser healing after his neck injury 2009
In 2008 I was told had that his heart was enlarged and he was placed on heart medication which he stayed on for the rest of his life at $100 a month. As if that was not enough, I noticed his hair had not grown back for surgery and he was diagnosed with Canine Cushing's disease. But his injury in 2009 was horrible.

In 2009 while visiting friends in Ontario he was stung by a wasp or a spider or cobra or something on his neck. Whatever it was, it was a lot of venom and he had a bad reaction resulting in a huge lump on his neck the size of an orange; I cut the vacation short to get him home to his vet. and while driving through Quebec city, his neck was so swollen it split. I dressed the wound and then set the world land-speed record coming back to Fredericton, where Dr. Amy said it was an abscess. Brace yourself for photo, he lost the skin on his neck leaving open muscle. I had to apply a sugar dressing twice daily and I could not believe it, but his skin grew back. Two months later he was at the park, and he was barking and running and back to his own scampy self. Unfortunately, I was wrong about Kaiser having nine lives, he only had four, and by Oct 2010 he had used them up.

WARNING! THESE ARE GRAPHIC
Click on the thumbnail picture for the full-size photo.
April 2001
Nov 2007
Aug 2009
Sept 2009
Healed, happy, & in little boy undies 2010