In Memoriam: Rebecca Ann Swender  

Mother of Matilda (Tillie)

July 12, 2008

Hi, I am Melissa. Matilda's Aunt and Becca's Sister. It is with great sadness that I tell you that Becca passed away on June 14th, after a long battle with cancer.

Becca adopted Matilda several years ago from Shar Pei Savers and as you can see from reading her story below, Matilda herself had a lot of health problems. She needed life saving heart surgery. With the help of Shar Pei Savers and her Mommy's love she had the surgery and continues to live a very healthy and happy life.

Just as Becca nursed Matilda when she was sick, Matilda cared for Becca during her illness with all the love she had. Always there for hugs and licks and would even lick Becca's feet when they were sore.

Matilda is very sad her Mommy is gone, but glad she has her Daddy Alex to live with. Becca requested that in lieu of flowers, people make donations in her honor to Shar-pei Savers. This dog brought endless love and light to Becca's life at such a difficult time.

Thank you,
Melissa

If you would like to make a donation in Becca's honor, please click on the button below.

Tillie's Story

Rescue Dog Needs Expensive Heart Surgery to Survive

February 21 Update
(From Becca, Tillie's mom) As you can see from the most recent pictures, Tillie has enjoyed a quick recovery from her first surgery! She is in very good spirits. Her energy is up and her fur has almost completely grown back!! (In fact, people on the street are always remarking about how pretty she is). The incision healed up very quickly and there were no complications from the operation itself. Tillie has really enjoyed the winter (the snow! the snow!) but the cold weather has been trying on her weak circulatory system. It seems clear that she will need to undergo a second operation to try to widen her artery more. Obviously this is not what we wanted and the idea of putting her through the procedure again saddens me. However, I have great confidence in her ability to rebound and to thrive. She has already made it so far with so many obstacles. I look forward to a full and quick recovery from this miracle pooch!

December 29, 2004 Update
Tillie went in for her surgery today. She also had a bronchial wash to see what was going on in her lungs ... she hopefully just has a bad cold. She's been having some breathing problems, so they wanted to check it out and make sure she doesn't have a lung infection. Poor girl! Unfortunately, the hospital had an equipment malfunction and wasn't able to complete the surgery for the aortic stenosis. They made it a little better, but they didn't have the correct catheter to widen the valve enough (which they didn't know until they were in the middle of her surgery), so Tillie will have to go back in for surgery again in 2 months.

Becca went to visit Tillie this afternoon and was going to pick up Tillie tonight if they said she was OK to go home. The vets said Tillie did really well in surgery and was recovering very fast from the anesthesia. Tillie has a 4" incision on her neck where they inserted the catheter -- I guess it is pretty scary looking but much better than if they had to do open heart surgery!

We will keep you all posted on her progress. Thank you again SO MUCH for helping this Tillie!

November 20, 2004 - Update
Tillie's heart surgery is scheduled for December 29th.  Tillie's foster mommy, Becca, will have two weeks off after Tillie's surgery to help nurse her back to health.  Tillie has been taking beta blockers to control her rapid heart beat and will most likely need to be on them for the rest of her life.  Becca has been keeping Tillie very quiet to avoid a heart attack, which isn't too much trouble because Tillie gets tired very easily.  Since not enough oxygen is getting to her body, even climbing a flight of stairs is exhausting to her.  Becca takes Tillie for short walks and let's Tillie determine the pace, unless Tillie sees a squirrel, then she has to work a little harder to keep Tillie calm.  

Tillie also has a second congenital heart defect, Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD).  A hole between two lobes of the heart didn't seal like it should when Tillie's heart was being formed in utero.  This also causes her some trouble (heart murmur) but the Aeortic Stenosis is what is really worrying the doctors.  Tillie can live with the VSD and won't need surgery for it.  The Aeortic Stenosis could give her a heart attack and will greatly shorten her life if she doesn't have the surgery.

Shar Pei Savers still needs to raise several hundred dollars before 12/29 to pay for Tillie's surgery.  If you could help with even $5 or $10, we would be so grateful!    

November 11, 2004 – Matilda (“Tillie”), a one-year-old rescue dog, has been diagnosed with Aortic Stenosis, a rare congenital heart condition where the aorta is too narrow at the heart base. Without surgery, Tillie’s outlook is bleak.

Aoritc Stenosis is a condition is so rare that it had all of the vet students at the University of Wisconsin Veterinary Hospital rushing into the consultation room to listen to Tillie’s heart beat through the stethoscope.

Tillie, a Chinese Shar Pei mix, was rescued from a high-kill shelter in Detroit, MI by Shar Pei Savers. Tillie is being fostered in Madison, WI, by an instructor at the University of Wisconsin.

Tillie’s foster mom, Becca, stated “Tillie is in danger of having a heart attack at any moment.” She also said “The echocardiogram performed by the UW Vet Hospital explains Tillie’s exercise intolerance – each time her heart beats, the heart defect significantly reduced the amount of blood pumped into Tillie’s aorta to supply her body with oxygen. Tillie also has episodes of a very rapid heart rate, further reducing the amount of blood pumped to her body.”

The University of Wisconsin Veterinary Hospital said “The narrowing in Tillie’s aortic outflow tract can be widened surgically by placing a collapsed balloon in the vessel and enlarging the balloon. We recommend the surgery due to the severity of the condition. Without surgical treatment, her survival is not likely to exceed 2 to 3 years. If the surgery is successful, she may be able to survive into middle-age.”

Tillie’s heart condition is devastating news to the volunteers of Shar Pei Savers. Tillie’s foster mom has already fallen in love with Tillie and would like to give Tillie the long, healthy, and happy life she deserves.

According to Tillie’s foster mom, “There isn’t a dog out there with a better temperament. She’s so sweet. With the tough life she’s had from abuse and neglect as a rescue dog, she deserves to live a long, happy life. I want to be a part of that.”

Tillie’s treatment will cost over $1900 and Shar Pei Savers is seeking donations to help pay for Tillie’s surgery. We would be so grateful for your help! Tax-deductible donations can be made via Paypal by clicking here or can be made payable to Shar Pei Savers and mailed to 649 Church St., Beloit, WI 53511. (The University of Wisconsin Veterinary Hospital will not allow donations to be made directly to them, sorry.) For additional information, please contact: Stephanie Dorman at (608) 436-3037.

Tillie's Guardian Angels

(We thank them for their care, concern, and generosity!)

Anna Payne, Redding, CA
Barbara Krimminger, Bellevue, NE
Katherine Spring, Madison, WI
Jerry and Stacey Moore, Columbus, OH
Heidi Engel, Mt. Prospect, IL
Lynn Ashley, Miamisburg, OH
Debra Linn, Rockford, OH
Michaela Watkins, Los Angeles, CA
Lois Karasek, Dogagiac, MI
Joni Peters
Kristin Waters, Scotia, NY
Carol Judge, Chicago, IL
Jesse Lusk & Family, St Paul, MN
Jan Miller, Pandora, OH, in memory of Savannah (aka Minnie)
Stuart Vculek, Lincoln, NE
Edith Blake, in memory of Buc the Wonder Dog
Donna Jensen
Kevin O'Connor, Naperville, IL
Joanne Kehoe, Chicago, IL
Tina Wissen, VA
Elisa Orozco, Mission Hills, CA
Cindy Sherrill, Dechard, TN
Beverly Lussier, Boulder, CO
Denise Muller, Aptos, CA