Blue Heeler Autobiography

It was all unexpected. My 14 year old heeler mix, Scout, passed away and two months later my family convinced me to adopt another dog. Our newest rescue was a hound mix and blended right in. Not even two weeks later a friend asked me to help her rehome a blue heeler; I was couldn’t say no.

From the moment I saw his picture I was in love with Crash. He looked so much like my beloved Scout. This pup was an owner surrender and my friend did not want to put his into the shelter system. She works at the shelter and told me that owner surrenders do not get much time—no one is coming for them. So, I met him and decided to adopt him.

From the beginning he was playful and super smart; typical of the breed. He did have intestinal worms, which concerned

My hyper little heeler sleep all day and yelp in pain when he tried to move. This lasted for a couple of days. The hardest part after that was to keep him calm. If you know anything about Blue Heelers, they are very high energy dogs that get bored easily. I needed to keep his blood pressure from rising for three months! You have to keep the calm or risk a blot clot. The sedatives them gave me made little difference.

Four weeks in, we developed a routine. Crash grew used to, although begrudgingly, sedentary life. He had no adverse reactions to the meds and all in all, he did well. After three months of treatment, we got the good news: he was heartworm free. Best of all, the damage to his heart was a non-issue and he’s as hyper and active as he was before the treatment. Now he’s free to live life to its fullest with a healthy heart.

The best advice I can give if you are ever find out your dog is heartworm positive, know that there are options. Yes, it’s expensive, but it’s a treatable disease. If it’s affordability that’s a factor, there are organizations that can help you with financial assistance.