Merlin was our first Eddy Fund recipient. Merlin came to NCR when a good Samaritan answered a Craig’s List ad in which Merlin and his brother were listed as “free to a good home.”  Their living situation with the original owner was grim, but thanks to a caring collie lover, they made it into NCR where good homes could be found for both.

Merlin had some health problems that NCR addressed as best we could.  Among other things, he had a mysterious abundance of kidney stones, perplexing to say the least for his young age (less than 1 yr), that were found by accident then he was neutered.  Because he was crypotorchid, the veterinarian had to go searching inside his body cavity where the kidney stones became obvious in his bladder.  We worried about the cause of these unusual stones, but our NCR veterinarian did not put 2+2 together, perhaps because Merlin’s condition is quite unusual.

When Merlin was adopted to a fabulous home, his new owners had their veterinarian examine him.  This veterinarian immediately linked the clue of the unusual kidney stones with other symptoms and alerted Merlin’s owners that he might have a congenital portosystemic shunt in his liver. This condition means that he was born with a birth defect that caused most of his blood to bypass the liver on the way through the body.  The liver plays an essential role in removing toxins in the blood and regulating a number of metabolites.  If his blood could not pass through the liver normally, Merlin would live a short life with some certain degree of suffering as he become increasingly ill.

Because the liver shunt can be fixed with surgery, Merlin qualified for the Eddy Fund: He was a young dog with a genetic defect, which could be fixed and allow him to live a long, normal life. The surgery, however, is quite expensive.  Tada! That is where the Eddy Fund can make a difference. So Merlin’s owners took him to the UC Davis Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital (VMTH) where the best available medicine could be applied by the most qualified veterinarians in the region.

Merlin’s surgery, supported in part by the Eddy Fund, was a guarded success. Merlin’s prognosis after the surgery would be more evident with time, as it was not possible right after surgery to be certain that the new blood flow pattern into Merlin’s liver would work.

Time has passed, and it turns out that Merlin is doing very well.  Here is what his “mom” had to say about his current state of health: “He has been very healthy since his experimental surgery at UC Davis. His energy level is as high as any other dog and his lab tests, at our Vet, have all been normal. Our vet follows him with yearly liver enzyme studies which have all been normal.”

“Merlin is a great dog! He was described to us as a “velcro” dog and he is just that. He loves people, anyone. He is the first collie we have had that doesn’t show family favorites. He also loves having other dogs around. He has a friend who comes here at least once a week for “play day” and they love it. They run and tease each other like best friends. He is a talker, like all Collies and of course very smart and tuned into what is going on around the house. We really enjoy having him around. When Bill gets home from the office he runs in the bedroom, gets on the bed and waits for Bill to change so that they can have their evening conversation. At 5:55 PM, he is ready to EAT. He somehow knows that it is time.