Below, I am waiting for my curtain call the day I was on the news.

     
Above, the grub on the set is fabulous!  Rice and filet mignon!

Click on thumbnail for larger image

You can't really tell in this photo, but my foster dad
is giving me a tummy rub.  I love tummy rubs!

This is me an my foster sister, Bee-Anka (Bianca).  Bee-Anka isn't
embarrassed at all that her ear is flopped back, but I am.  Sheesh!

  
Above, Misia meets her Forever Mom

May 4, 2008

 Hello Everyone!

I’m back becoz I no you are wondering about me.  And also becoz I want to tell you what happened yesterday.

So yesterday was a big ee-vent called Reston Pet Fiesta. My foster mommy said I can kom but that she will furst take Bee-Anka becoz she has to fund a home and shez sined up for the fashun show. So we all went for a wok in the woodz early in the morning and my foster daddy had to carry me most of the way becoz my tummy iz giving me trubl and it sometimes hurts when I wok so my foster mommy is giving me speshul food and some medikashun but if this goes on I will have to go to see the doctor and I’m not too hapee about that but I do get to be carried and I like that becoz I can look down on everee one and that neet, So we went woking and we met other dogs and I saw skwirulz and I hate skiwrulz and I always want to rip them apart but kan nevur get to them kwiklee enuf. After the wok my foster mommy took Bee-Anka and packed the car and they left. And I wuz happee becoz that Bee-Anka thinks sheez here at home and shez not so I was thinking somebodee was going to take hur away to hur new home.

Finalee my foster daddy put me in the car and took me to the Fiesta. Ow boy! That wuz a zoo. I mean, I never went to the zoo (I kan’t, dogs are not allowd) but that’s how I imagine a zoo. There wur a lot of peepl. A very big lot of them and even more dogz. Some wur tinee, even smaller than me. They could be my pets or my beenie babeez. Some wur like giants. I could pass undur them and they wood not even now. But some were dresst up funee. Now, I don’t now wot u think, but I think dressing up dogz is sillee. So there wuz this one big blak dog walking around in a ballet tutu (my foster mommy helped me spell these wurds). A pink ballet tutu! That dog did not want to look any othur dog in the I becoz she was so a shamed. And she wuz hot.

And Bee-Anka told me she got to wear a tea shirt. So how do they make shirts out of tea? She was also hot and was skured becoz it was noizee and there wur lots of peepl and dogz and she had to wok on a hot blak stage, but she got kuddlz and kisses and she didn’t mind that much.

My foster mommy took me to get a har-ness and we had to wok ovur to the bee-chon freezay booth for that. Those bee-chon freezay dogs are funnee, like puffs. I was on the ground to try on the har-ness and one of them woked up to me from bee-hind and tryd to sniff me! I gave that puff a peace of my mind. I may have a brokun jow but no dog is going to kum up to me like that! So my foster mommy said that was not good, she put the har-ness on me and took me back to my foster daddy who took me back home.

But beefor we left, I got to see some weerd thingz. There wur peepl with rabbits in bags. Big rabbits with big ears and wisskurz and they wur sitting in bagz that these peepl carried on thair sholdurz. And there wur girl dogz in dresses! And dogz with stuff in there hare. I tell you – hoo duz that? We are dogz. We like stuff peepl think is diss-gusting. Like Gelo, my foster bruther. My foster mommy gets veree angree at him becoz he eats nastee stuff in the woods. She sez she duz not want to think about the stuff he eets becoz it makes hur sick. But it’s OK with us! Gelo sed he wonts rolled in kow pattee and it felt real good and my foster mommy and daddy did not no how to get him in the kar aftur that! We all laffed and laffed at that!

April 26, 2008

Dear Friends and Fans,

I have some grate news: I think I found my forevur Mommy. U see, my foster Mommy put me in the car yesturday and she said we were going to an Apoolis again. Well, I didn’t know if this was such a good thing, bee coz she brot another dog into the hows two days ago and I was consurnd this dog was going to maybe eat my food and sleep in my bed and just be a generl pane. Well, she is a pane anyway and I don’t like hur becoz she does try to eat from my bowl and stuff like that. And sheez still lurning about going awt and not making a mess in the hows and sheez just unejukatd like that. My foster Mommy sed I’m jell us. No I’m not! I don’t even like jell!

I was not happee, but I’m small and nobody asks me. So I slept all the way there. Just my foster Mommy tocked a lot to the other stoopid drivers. Well, we got there and it was the same place that had all that good food and where I was on teevee. Onlee this time, there wur a lot of peepl and a lot of dogz. Too manee dogz, if you ask me.

We stayd there a long time. All evening until it got dark. Everybodee was having fun. It was warm outside. But let me tell you the bestest thing of all: I met my fuchr Mommy there! She held me all evening in hur arms and I felt real good. I felt so good I let myself go a bit and got reel reelaxt and my tong stuck out and my foster Mommy took a pikchr and I feel silly. But have a look. Don’t you think I look reel happee?

So after I have my surgeree to take off this stoopid thing I have stuck to my jaw and I’m doping well, I will go to live in a diffrnt place. That’s what my foster Mommy tells me. I don’t think I know what that meenz, but I think it will be veree good.

My foster Mommy wants me to tell everee one that the Kay Nines and Kok Tales is veree nice and pleez come if u can. I sed I want to go too bekoz I can get held and I like that veree much.

I will keep you informed about how I’m doing. I think I am doing veree well and my foster Mommy and Daddy say the same thing.

I love you all!

Misia

April 27, 2008

Post script from Misia’s foster mom:

 Today was a big breakthrough for Misia: She played with our new foster (whose name we still have to decide). We have never seen her playing and it was a wonderful sight. It means she’s feeling much better and more secure. We just have to monitor the playing since the new foster is still very much a pup and we don’t want her to inadvertently hurt Misia’s jaw. Still – this is a first and we’re very happy about it.

April 22, 2008 Update

Misia had her post-surgery follow-up visit today. The news is good: She’s healing well and the external sutures (the ones under the chin that the pictures didn’t show) came off. This little girl is a real trooper. She followed the vet into the special procedures room and just lay down for him and let him remove the sutures without as much as a peep. She has been off her pain medication for a couple of days now and the anti-pain patch was removed some three days ago - so she’s doing very well.

Even though the antibiotics she has been taking are giving her some major tummy upsets, Misia has put on a little bit of weight, which is good. She can now slowly and progressively move to hard kibble.

We think that she must be feeling much better because she’s become much more relaxed around other dogs. This means that she no longer feels as vulnerable as she used to and is confident enough to walk up to them for an introductory sniff. This is progress and she seems to be enjoying her new-found courage.

Misia will have to undergo outpatient surgery in about four weeks to remove the outside brace. She’s expected to make a full recovery and finally be able to enjoy not only kibble, but greenies, and chews, and most importantly - life free of excruciating pain.

Misia Newsflash! (4/15/08)

Dear Everyone!

I became a movie star today. I’m not sure that this is the lifestyle for me, but it was OK for one day. My foster mommy and I went to An Apuliss today because we were invited to appear on television. I had no idea what all this meant, but my foster mommy said it was a good idea because she needed a break after giving a lot of money to the Eye-R-Ess that she thought would be better used somewhere else.

So late this morning, she put my soft bed (let me tell you about it – it has a pillow in it and a fleece blanket with monkeys and palms on it and I just love it) in the car, prepared a bag with water, food, a camera and other stuff humans carry around with them, and we went to pick up my foster grandmother and we all drove to an Apuliss. I slept all the way, so I don’t remember how to get there. I’m a tired girl, I have to go on walks in the morning and I don’t always want to, so my foster mommy carries me and holds on to Juliet and Angelo and she gets angry at them when they try to chase skwirels because she says they pull her around like crazy and she has to carry me. I asked them what it means to run around like crazy, but they said they didn’t know, that it’s just something humans say so it’s got to be a human thing.

We got to Apuliss and we went to sit in a place where my foster mommy and grandmother had something yummy to drink. I wanted some, too, but they told me I could only have water. Well, I didn’t want any of that water and they had to empty my bowl into a planter. But their drinks smelled real good. Something called kaapoohcheeno. So we sat there and I was all comfortable in my foster mommy’s lap. Then people started coming in and looking at me and talking to me and I felt speshl. It was when the other dogs came that I really did not like it because I knew they came there to take my food and draw attenshin and tell me I had a weird thing on my face.

All the dogs had to go on a little par-aid. But I didn’t want to. I had to keep an eye on those dogs behind me and I did not want to walk and I had to be carried. My foster mommy said they were filming us, but I didn’t care. I did not want to have any dogs behind me. You just never know. They can get real sneaky. And I got to be carried. Remember? I had Sir Gerry just on Friday and I take pills and things like that, so I can be carried if I want to. And I want to.

We sat at a table and I wanted to get on top of it because I knew there were dog cookies there, but I was told I could not. They tried giving me water again. All the dogs got water. There was a speshl place just for water and they asked me what kind I wanted! It was all in bottles. There was San Pell Eh Greeno and Ey Vion and Fee Gee and others I can’t remember. Well, they gave me this Ey Vion but I prefurred Fe Gee so I went to a different bowl and took some from another dog. And we had sheshl bowls on placemats and it was very fancy.

So finally this man talked to my foster mommy and another man stood there with this big black box with stuff sticking out of it and my mommy spoke into this long thing that I had to sniff because I thought it could be food and I did not want to miss out on it. She told them everything (well, not everything, but a lot) about me, how I was in pain, how I had Sir Gerry (three times, she said) and how I’m really good and all that!

I made friends there. Everybody wanted to know what happened to me. I could not tell them, but the humans with me did all the talking. They talk real well. .

But the part I liked the best, you will not believe. There was a lady there with a big pan and food in it and bowls. And she was cooking for us, the dogs! We got lunch there! They said something called Fee-Lay-Me-Nion and rice. I will tell you the truth: I don’t care what they call it, it was the best food I’ve ever had. My foster grandmother said I would not eat it because she thought I have problems eating because of the wires and this weird thing attached to my cheek. Oh pooh! Just take a look at the picture my foster mommy took. I wiped that bowl clean (that was nice because they won’t have to wash it now). I like that place. I’d like to go back. My foster mommy says we will go back because there’s a koktale there on the 25^th. This time she said she will also take my foster siblings. I don’t know about that. They may want to eat my food.

I slept in my bed all the way back home. My bed felt very good. I’ve been thinking about it. I don’t think I want to be a movie star, but I would like to become a food critic.

I love you all!

MISIA

Please watch the clip on the WJZ Baltimore website about the Loews Annapolis event attended by Misia and other amazing dogs that came to Annapolis today, Tuesday, April 15:

http://wjz.com/video/?id=37830@wjz.dayport.com

Misia Update!  4/12/08: 

To all of you who have responded to our appeal and to those who are concerned or first-time visitors!

Misia had her surgery yesterday, Friday. April 11, in the morning. We received a phone call shortly after 1 p.m. to let us know that the surgery went well. Misia was fitted with a fragmentary wire and an external communicator with connecting bar that is fixed to the outside of her jaw with pins going into the bone. She spent all of yesterday and a good part of today, Saturday, at the veterinary clinic. To make her comfortable, she was on a morphine drip in addition to a patch. She was weaned off the morphine today, but has been put on oral anti-pain meds. And, of course, she’s on antibiotics to make sure there won’t be any infection. The pictures give you an idea of what we’re talking about.

We picked her up shortly before 6 p.m. and she was carried out wearing a fashionable bright blue collar. She’s not too crazy about it, though.

As soon as she returned home, we tried feeding her, but with the contraption fixed to her jaw and the collar…. It was no easy task. She has to remain on moist food for 10 days at least. So we whipped out the canned food, put the meds in it and tried feeding her by had. Easier said than done. The food stuck to her palate and she spat out the meds. We tried again with equal lack of success. Aha! Since her foster brother, Angelo, had a bout of tummy problems a couple of days ago, we had cooked chicken in broth that we passed through the food processor and mixed in with the canned food. Now we were talking! The food, though in small amounts, and meds went down quite well.

Misia toured the backyard on her collar as she went about her doggy business. We have to be careful and make sure she does not fall down and hurt herself. She’s resting now on the sofa next to her foster dad.

We don’t think that this “Jaws Outfit” style will appear anytime soon on the catwalks. Then again…. Given how fashionable piercings are, pins in the jawbone just might become popular.

Jokes aside, none of us would want to walk in this tiny dog’s shoes. Those of us who had ever suffered from a toothache or had serious oral surgery can relate (and we didn’t have to wear collars).

Misia will be going back for a check-up in 10 days. In the meantime, we will keep you posted and informed thanks to Misia Newsflashes!

Beagle Maryland is once again calling on all its friends and supporters to come to the rescue of one of our dogs. It is with dismay that we just found out (April 4) that little Misia has a fractured jaw. Her foster parents noticed that Misia refused to eat dry kibble, kept pawing at her nose, tried to constantly chew on sticks and rubbed her face on the ground. When petted under her chin, she often cried in pain and cowered.

It eventually turned out that one of her molars was cracked and a very serious infection was wreaking havoc in her jawbone. The tooth was removed – although not without difficulties – and during a second visit for continued pain and discomfort, it became clear that this was a bigger problem. The infection, which she must have had for quite some time, had so badly weakened the jawbone that it fractured. We enclose the picture we received where it can be clearly seen.

Misia will have to undergo specialized and delicate surgery to repair her jawbone and realign the jaw. It will be a long and painful process – and a costly one at that. We would like to raise $1800 to cover the cost of repairing this little one’s jaw.

Misia must not have had a very good life before she came to us. At barely over 15 lbs, she’s very submissive and cowers every time somebody walks up to her. She’s very afraid of raised voices, noises and objects she’s not familiar with. Yet she loves being held and spent a good part of the time at the vet’s office in the arms of the receptionist. More than anything, she craves human touch and warmth, and basks in praise. But she has a long way to go before she can fully trust humans.

Please step in to help. Every little bit will help. Let’s think in terms of frappuccinos or some other (delicious but addictive) drink – if you can give them up for a week that amounts to a nice donation. Not to mention that your arteries and calorie count will thank you. This is just an idea, but it might work!

Of course, Misia put the bits and pieces of her fractured tooth under her pillow in the hope that the Tooth Fairy will give her a nice break and finally allow her to live a happy and pain-free life (something those of us who suffered a toothache can well relate to), and enjoy an occasional chew or greenie.

Finally – let Misia’s story be a reminder to all dog (and cat) owners: Your pet’s dental hygiene is of paramount importance. Please take good care of your pet’s teeth. It will save them a lot of pain and agony and a lot of money to you.

P.S. Just in case you were thinking that her jaw just hangs loose – it does not, as these pictures show.  But this in no way takes away from the pain, which is obvious, especially when she whines and whimpers at times.

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Adoptive Status:  Will be spayed, UTD on shots and micro-chipped within two weeks after the posted date.

Dream Home Minimum Requirements: Just needs love and a human to love her.

Owner Aptitude Level:  Beginner.

Posted:  3/22/08