Dr. Elizabeth Konoski, One of Miracle's Doctors, Releases Statement for Miracle's Supporters

Christopher received this information from Dr. Elizabeth Konoski yesterday regarding Miracle's medical status. 12/28/07 Miracle continues to stay strong and battle through her recovery. Over the last few weeks we have been dealing with multiple complications as her burns begin to heal. One of the biggest complications is scar contracture as the skin tries to heal the defects left by the 3rd degree burns over her rear limbs. The contracture began pulling her limbs up towards her body, making it more difficult for her to walk. With the help of scar release incisions, physical therapy and splints she wears 23 hours a day we are getting some range of motion back in the rear limbs. She can again walk, although her rear limbs are not normal and so she still carries most of her weight on her front limbs. Miracle did have some small skin grafts performed to cover exposed boneover joints on her rear limbs. After a brief anesthetic procedure for a release incision 2 weeks ago, Miracle developed acute kidney failure. Using IV fluids we were able to reverse any injuries to her kidneys, and returned them to normal within 48 hours. We continue to monitor her bloodwork carefully. Another issue Miracle has had since the beginning is constipation. This has been further complicated lately as the skin beginning to contract over the base of her tail, pulling up on her rectum causing a partial obstruction. She is requiring stool softeners and sometimes daily enemas to make sure she is passing stool. On the positive side, her appetite seems better than ever lately and she did gain a little weight, now approximately 4 1/2 #. She has stolen the hearts of many of our staff, and we all hope she continues to gain strength and mobility in her back legs. The final outcome remains unknown, but our main goal is for her to have the best quality of life possible. The continued support from people across the world is appreciated and wonderful! Dr. Elizabeth Konoski, Emergency and Critical Care department at OVRS

Miracle's Holiday Update...

Thank you all for your emails inquiring about Miracle's status. While we can say that Miracle has made some progress again, it is important to know that with burn victim cases such as Miracle, there will be many "touch and go" days. While Miracle's latest turn for the worse looks as if it has subsided, we can not take this for granted as there will be many, many days ahead of her that she will need to continue to overcome obstacles as a little burn victim. While I know that this may not be the news most of Miracle's supporters would like to hear, it is important to understand that she is being given the best possible care by the talented & experienced veterinarians & licensed veterinary technicians & that the days ahead are uncertain & the promise of tomorrow is never a promise, not for any living creature. At this juncture in time, what I can promise is that Christopher will be getting an update from one of the OVRS veterinarians as soon as he can & we will publish that once it becomes available. What we can offer now is a recent news release from OVRS as published by the Oakland Press: http://www.theoaklandpress.com/stories/121807/loc_20071218206.shtml Once again, thank you all for your emails & best wishes for Miracle. Miracle's petition & blogspot have brought not only global attention from all angles of the earth but also generous contributions to the TEAR foundation for Miracle's care. Thank you & Happy Holidays!!!

Heart Wrenching News For Miracle

Miracle has taken a slight turn for the worse. A doctor at the Oakland Veterinary Referral Services (OVRS) will write an official statement for us about her medical status. She is loosing weight and the surgeries she is facing are taking a huge toll on her body. Please keep praying for a Miracle that Miracle will survive. As of today, the prognosis is dismal for the sweet little girl. Please stay tuned for an updated press release from OVRS.

Miracle Gets a Bath & is Receiving Hydrotherapy

Here she is!!! Little Miracle gets a bath. You can see in this photo where the fur is completely gone.

An anonymous donor has donated enough money to the veterinary hospital in order that Miracle get hydrotherapy. This is helping Miracle recover significantly.

The veterinary hospital still needs help as they would like to purchase a hyperbaric chamber. Please see the quoted press release below from the hospital.

" Miracle still has a long road to recovery and we are committed to providing her with the most loving and technologically advanced care possible. The Foundation hopes to raise enough contributions to purchase a piece of equipment called a Hyperbaric Chamber which would significantly improve her chance for survival and also dramatically accelerate her recovery. Hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy involves exposing patients to 100% pure oxygen at greater than atmospheric pressure. The patient is placed in a sealed chamber, and pure oxygen is delivered into the chamber at pressures above atmospheric pressure for a short period of time several times daily. This serves to super saturate the blood stream and tissues with oxygen. This process results in several advantages, including increased delivery of oxygen to injured tissues and regions of compromised perfusion, supra-physiologic oxygen levels to compensate for states where oxygen-carrying capacity or blood flow is decreased, and stimulation of bone marrow stem cells, which play a vital role in healing. Burn victims like Miracle benefit because of increased oxygen and mobilization of stem cells that provides optimal healing of severe burns. The TEAR Foundation needs approximately $50,000 to purchase the Hyperbaric Chamber that would benefit both Miracle as well as other pets that have a variety of medical conditions including some forms of cancer. "

If you would like to help Miracle by donating money towards the HBO, please click on the link to the left or call the TEAR Foundation directly.

Miracle's First Steps... The Heart & Soul of a Lion.

Miracle's First Steps... What can we say? This is a true miracle. After so many days of lying still & fighting her pain & potential infection, our hearts sing with happiness & our eyes flood with tears of joy that little Miracle has made it this far. This is a very promising sign for her. As she continues to heal & continues her surgeries for skin grafts & removing layers of dead skin to help fight infection, we know this... Miracle is a fighter & while she may be a tiny 4+ pounder, her heart is that of a lion... let us roar for her as her voice can not be heard around the world:

DON'T LET THIS HAPPEN TO ANOTHER INNOCENT PUPPY! FELONY PUNISHMENT FOR THOSE WHO COMMIT THESE CRIMES!!!

Miracle... The Morning After One of Her Surgeries... With Many More to go...

Little Miracle... here you are, still struggling to be free from what was afflicted upon you.

This is an image of Miracle the day after one of her first surgeries. The very long surgery that she endured was to help remove dead skin in order to make way for new skin to form, which helps to prevent infection.

Many people have contacted us and asked what they can do to help Miracle. Besides contributing to her healthcare fund at TEAR foundation & donating to her "Miracle Apprehension Fund", we would ask that you write letters and emails to Michigan officials, to the ASPCA, to the Human Society, to PETA, to tv personalities, to news stations... basically, to anyone who can help on a higher level to help Miracle get the justice she deserves. We need to change Michigan's laws on animal abuse & cruelty for criminals who commit these offenses to felony charges, mandating at least 10 years in prison for these types of attrocious crimes.

Saturday, November 10, 2007... Donate to the Miracle Apprehension Fund & help entice Detroit citizens to identify the arsonist killers

Miracle continues to improve. She is not out of the woods yet. She will need more donations to help her long term care. There are also some new updates to Miracle's story. An annonymous donor has set up a fund to entice people to come forward to identify the arsonist killers. The money from this fund will not be dispensed unless the perpetrators have been positively identified & arrested for the crime, which is not only arson (a felony punishable with jail time) but also for animal cruelty (charge has yet to be brought forth by the human society, this is unfortunately just a misdemeanor, which typically gives a slap on the wrist). The fund has been lovingly named the "Miracle Apprehension Fund". People wishing to donate to this fund to help with the hunt for the suspects can do so by going into the nearest Comerica bank & donating the funds into the account or they can send checks made out to "The Miracle Apprehension Fund" & mail to

The Miracle Apprehension Fund

7351 Roberta Lane

Waterford, MI 48327

The trustee of the account will deposit all checks. If the criminals are not caught & brought to justice, the Miracle Apprehension Fund will be given to Miracle for her care.

Saturday, November 10, 2007... A Letter from the TEAR Foundation

This letter was sent by the TEAR Foundation... The Emergency Animal Relief Foundation (TEAR)... Miracle http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=loofngcab.0.0.crczmzbab.0&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ovrs.com%2F&id=preview The TEAR foundation at The Oakland Veterinary Referral Services is currently dealing with a heartbreaking case. One week ago, a group of teenagers took a litter of puppies into an abandoned house in Detroit. The puppies were hog-tied, and the house was set on fire. A neighbor saw a group of kids running out of the house screaming "fire". Sadly, all of the puppies perished except for one 8 week old female, rescuers later named "Miracle" because they truly felt that it was a miracle she survived. Miracle was taken to The Oakland Veterinary Referral Services for much needed 24 hour intensive critical care and treatment of her burns. Miracle suffered burns over approximately 80% of her body. The following link from WXYZ Channel 7 in Detroit tells the story. Click here for "Miracle's" News http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=loofngcab.0.0.crczmzbab.0&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wxyz.com%2Fmostpopular%2Fstory.aspx%3Fcontent_id%3Deb070cb7-8b05-4262-8415-2bc5b5fa4f30&id=preview The specialists at OVRS tell us Miracle is doing great and is making progress every day. She is still receiving pain medications, antibiotics, IV fluids and we are closely monitoring her burns. She is now able to eat on her own. Her prognosis may change on a day by day basis but we are pleased with her response to care thus far. Her treatment is likely to take several weeks and could involve surgical intervention. Miracle's story made us all want to reach out and help her and this is why the TEAR foundation decided to fund her care.

Friday, November 9, 2007

More information on what the police are doing... We called the Detroit Police Department responsible for the area in question where Miracle & her siblings were set on fire. When we asked for the person who might be able to give us an answer as to what the police are doing, the woman on the phone told us to call animal control. When we politely said "no, we would like to find out how the investigation is going & what has been done to find the people who did this", the woman answered with "I'm gonna do this, call animal control. You all set" and then she hung up on us. While this was rude & unprofessional, we continued our search for answers to the Detroit Arson Division where we spoke to a captain who said that while it "wasn't a big thing" there was someone looking into it & that person was off today. We thought "big thing"? I guess to him, puppies lives' are worthless. We were pleased that he recognized that people that do this to animals, do this to people. But, still... how does that relate to his comment of not being a "big thing"? We did eventually speak to someone who was able to give us a little more information from the police department. We now know that the police only have one eye witness, a neighbor. This eye witness said that they were young black males. Which does not help since the police gave the statistic that 90% of Detroit are African American. They also said that they can only speculate at this time since there is no solid evidence & most people within the neighborhoods of Detroit do not want to help police nor do they want to offer any leads. If the community doesn't cooperate with the police, they have their hands tied.

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Please click on this link to see a video feed of Miracle that was taken at Oakland Veterinary Referral Services: http://www.clickondetroit.com/video/14516927/index.html This afternoon we spoke with the Oakland Veterinary Referral Services (OVRS) Clinic & are happy to report that Miracle is still hanging in there. She is not fully out of the woods yet, however. The veterinarians' major concern is dealing with infection. Miracle is free from pain, breathing on her own & eating on her own. We also learned that Miracle was out three days without medical attention, which is truly a miracle already. TEAR foundation, which is part of OVRS, reports an incredible amount of nationwide support for Miracle. While it took a few teenagers to do something so horrendous to five helpless little creatures, let us hope that it pulls a nationwide congregation of people together to help Miracle recover & petition the Detroit Police Department to put out a warrant. Keep fighting Miracle, we are right beside you!!!

At 8 wks old, this is a terrible plight for one little Miracle

Little Miracle... Veterinarians are trying to save this little puppy, the sole survivor of a litter of five, which killed all four of her littermates on Saturday night, November 3, 2007 in an arson at an abandoned home on the west side of Detroit.

Neighbors reported that a group of teens took the puppies into the abandoned home on the 7400 block of Faust and fled after setting a fire, said Detroit Police Officer Jennifer Halfacer. Neighbors also recount hearing them yelling "fire, fire". Some of the puppies were found hog-tied. "It was really sad and disgusting," said Halfacer, who came up with the name Miracle.

After Detroit firefighters pulled 2-month-old Miracle from the burning house, Halfacer took the puppy to a shelter in Oakland County, where she volunteers, which is called Almost Home Animal Rescue. On Sunday, Almost Home Animal Rescue moved the bandaged puppy to Oakland Veterinary Referral Services in Bloomfield Hills. Veterinarians said Miracle has first, second and third degree burns to 60% of her body.

"Right now her chances are somewhat guarded," Dr. Karen Fidell, a veterinarian, said Monday. "It's 50-50 at best. She's been treated for some very serious burns." The fire and animal abuse are under investigation.

Anyone wishing to donate to Miracle's care can call the veterinary services emergency relief number, which is 248-334-6877. Her initial care is being funded by The Emergency Animal Relief (TEAR)Foundation.

They need donations to help pay for Miracle's extensive treatment.

• Oakland Veterinary Hospital 248-334-6877 http://www.ovrs.com/

If you would like to help Miracle with a donation, you can send checks to:

Oakland Veterinary Referral Services

1400 Telegraph Road

Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302

Call them directly at 248-334-6877 to use your credit card since they are not set up for paypal.

Here are several news articles regarding Miracle's plight:

http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/14511513/detail.html

http://www.care2.com/news/member/285806679/532392

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071106/METRO01/711060373/1006/rss01

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007711060333