06/02/2026
Next up, meet Belle. Belle is a 15 year old Boston Terrier that hails from our friends at Montgomery County Animal Care and Adoption Center. Belle was turned into the shelter after her original owner died and her new owners were not very kind (they were keeping her outside in a plastic carrier). She was labeled as aggressive. She had some skin issues from fleas, her nails were overgrown, and her body condition score was a 2 (meaning really underweight) - her ribs were showing and she weighed about 10 lbs. Her vision is poor and she may have some chronic dry eyes - her eyes were red and irritated. Her chemistries and CBC were all normal, though. Belle joined our family just over a week ago. She was doing great at first - navigating the yard, making friends with the other dogs, and relaxing into a home where she is loved. She tolerated being picked up and loved and even was giving kisses! She was eating GREAT and LOVED her food. Today, though, she took a turn for the worse - with some respiratory distress and lethargy, along with lack of appetite, so we made a visit to the vet. I thought maybe she had pneumonia. However, x-rays showed no pneumonia or fluid in the lungs, and she is afebrile. The x-rays did show an enlarged heart (though she doesn't have a murmur), an enlarged liver (although her liver enzymes were normal last week), and enlarged gallbladder with perhaps some sludge or stones. We surmise she may have some type of cancer, but really don't have a clear diagnosis. We are palliatively treating with steroids and antibiotics and hope this will help make her feel better - but her prognosis is guarded at this time. As I write this, she is resting quietly on her bed at my feet. She seems comfortable and is without respiratory distress, although she has not wanted to eat yet. No matter what happens, she will be loved and pampered here until it is her time to make her way over the Rainbow Bridge.
