Atlantic
Animal Hospital is proud to present Rogue and Phoenix Corbin as Companion
Animals of the Month for January 2010. This dynamic duo is owned by the Lead
Veterinary Technician Kaleia and her husband Chris. Phoenix is a 4 year old
Golden Retriever, Rottweiler mix (AKA a Golden-Rottie) that was adopted from
Halifax Humane Society as an 8 week old puppy in 2006. Rogue is a 4 year old
Rottweiler that was rescued by a breeder then adopted by Chris and Kaleia at 8
weeks old also in 2006. Rogue and Phoenix were brought home about 2 weeks apart
and been inseparable since.
Rogue and Phoenix are very active dogs. They spend a lot of time at the local dog park and taking long walks with both Kaleia and Chris. Phoenix’s favorite past time is fetching a tennis ball connected to a rope and splashing in the lake at the dog park. Phoenix is more laid back of the two and tends to stay right by Kaleia’s side. Rogue on the other hand is the out going and the more talkative of the two. She loves to talk and can speak on command. Rogue loves attention from any one and loves to show off her tricks for treats.
Since he was a puppy, Phoenix has had an uphill battle with allergies. It first
began with a diagnosis of demodex mange as a puppy which required oral
Ivermectin and topical Goodwinol ointment to kill the mites and help his hair
grow back. Once he reached one year of age, he began to have persistent skin
infections from an unknown cause. Dr. Sukhija recommended having Phoenix under
go allergy testing to rule out environmental and food allergies. Test results
revealed that he is allergic to things such as pine trees, cotton, fleas, dust
mites, and grass. Treatment for the allergies started with allergy injections
that were given every other day and then slowly weaned to one injection every
three weeks. He receives a bath once weekly in Sebolux shampoo and is given
antibiotics and antihistamines as needed. The fall and winter months are the
worst for Phoenix. However, no matter how sick he becomes, he is always wagging
his tail.
At 6 months of age Rogue started developing a limp. Kaleia started noticing that when she would play hard she would lift up her right hind leg for several minutes and then she would be fine. By 8 months of age, Rogue began to have difficulty walking and getting up after lying down. Radiographs preformed by Dr. Sukhija revealed that not only did Rogue have hip dysplasia, but she had grade 2 patella luxation. This means that her knee cap (patella) can pop in and out of the joint at any time. Due to her young age, medical therapy versus surgery was chosen for Rogue to help manage these problems. She was placed on Deramaxx a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) to help with the pain and inflammation. She was also put on a special diet, Hill’s Prescription J/D, which is very high in omega 3 acids which reduces inflammation and prevents further arthritis from forming. These days Rogue still has some problems with mobility but maintains an active life style.
--Written by Kaleia Corbin & Tiffany Rice
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