Isabel's Story

July 1, 2004

Dear Dr. Fingland:

In early April, Isabel, an English Setter, developed a strange cough following a trip to a dog show. When our primary care veterinarian did an X-ray, he found that Isabel's lungs looked awful and she was indeed much sicker than she had first appeared. Together with our local veterinarian, we made the decision to seek further care at K-State.

This was not the first time Isabel had been to K-State. At the tender age of five weeks, she and the rest of her littermates had been there to be BAER tested by Dr. Walter Cash. We have had Dr. Cash BAER test all of our English Setter puppies. Dr. Cash has always been very pleasant to work with and is very patient with the dogs, which isn't easy when you are trying to get 5-week-old puppies to sit still. So, when Isabel got sick in April, there was no doubt that our first choice of specialized care would be K-State.

Upon arrival at K-State, we were fortunate to meet Dr. Ken Harkin. After an exam and further X-rays, Dr. Harkin prescribed two different antibiotics, and he also recommended that we keep Isabel home from shows for three months in order to avoid exposing her to illnesses that could further test her already weakened immune system.

Finally, after keeping her in pseudo-quarantine for three months, Isabel was able to attend a dog show. She is owned and handled at the shows by my 14-year-old daughter, Leslie. Leslie and Isabel came back in style by winning Best Junior Handler on Saturday. On Sunday, the two won Best of Winners for the final points needed to finish Isabel's American Kennel Club championship.

We are very grateful to Dr. Harkin and the staff at K-State for their wonderful care of Isabel and their kind treatment of us as owners.

Patti Miller
BELA English Setters