Ibella Bell Norman |
Ibella's arrival in our home was a dream come true. She was a gift from my parents
for Christmas, my name-day, my birthday and my school-leaving exam, and
I can honestly say that she was the best present I have ever had. She was born 7 November 1998 at the Norman kennel in Olomouc, Czech Republic. When she was only fourteen days old her mother, Elsa, died from torsion but her breeder, Iveta Bouchalová, made a great job of caring for the seven tiny puppies. We brought her home at the age of seven weeks. At the time we had two Shar-Pei bitches, six year old Bauty, who became Ibella's adoptive mother, and one year old Qiny, who became a great sparring partner in all Ibella's games. When Ibella was three years old, I mated her to a young male import, Pitlochry's Samuel. She had a litter of ten puppies, nine males and just one girl. It took us a long time to find good homes for all of them, but I'm happy to say that they are all settled and well looked after. Ibella is a good girl, who makes me very happy - though she has given us a couple of scares. One night in spring 2003 she got us up in the middle of night and one brief look at her was enough to show us that she had torsion. We rushed her to the veterinary clinic, where fantastic Dr. Coudek carried out surgery, and just two hours after we arrived at the clinic he told us that it looked as though she would be all right. I can never thank Dr. Coudek enough, nor all those who took care of her during the two days she spent at the clinic. Then in November 2004 she developed torsion of her spleen, requiring emergency surgery. Again her life was saved by swift and expert veterinary attention, and our thanks go to D. Noomanova and Dr Dokic. In September 2005 Ibella became ill again, but for quite a long time we didn't know what the problem was. Then blood tests showed inflammation, unfortunately in the worst possible place - she had a severe bacterial infection of her heart, which was why she had been feeling so ill. We went through some critical weeks with her, but thank God, the antibiotics worked well and she improved. After three months on antibiotics, she underwent cardiac testing in mid January 2006, and the results were excellent. Although her heart will never function as well as before, she is doing well on twice daily medication and the prognosis is good. In January 2007, Ibella suffered an intestinal obstruction. Seriously ill and unable to eat for two weeks, we feared for her life, but we underestimated her great courage and will to live. Thanks to our vet, Dr Peter Scheer, she survived not only the illness, but also the final hurdle of total amputation of her tail as a result of a long-standing injury which had refused to heal. Please keep your fingers crossed for our brave lady, who is so happy and full of life again. |
