The rescue team wanted to name the paralyzed dachshund given a second chance days before Christmas “St. Nick.” Instead, the dog — once scheduled for euthanization, now living with a foster family in Gainesville — was dubbed “Vixen.”
The 4-year-old female wiener dog was suffering from intervertebral disc disease, a neurological problem affecting the spine, when she was dropped off at Miami-Dade Animal Services on Dec. 21.
She was unable to walk and was scheduled to be put down at noon the next day, said Steven Spierer, a board member of the Dachshund Rescue South Florida organization.
The afternoon Vixen was dropped off, a staff member contacted Dachshund Rescue South Florida.
The organization does not accept dogs with Vixen’s disease because of the difficulty of finding them homes. The cost of surgery and recovery can run up to more than $5,000, Spierer said. But the organization still wanted to help.
As soon as it heard about Vixen, Dachshund Rescue South Florida posted about her on its Facebook page.
Shortly after, they got a response from Carrie Santare, a neurology resident at UF’s College of Veterinary Medicine.
According to an email from Sarah Carey, the director of Public Relations at the college, Santare offered to foster Vixen — if she had feeling in her legs.
If a dog with her disease can feel its legs, it has an 80 to 90 percent chance of recovering enough to walk.
Santare agreed to foster Vixen.
A group of seven people relayed Vixen from South Florida to Gainesville that same night. Vixen traveled for about six hours, and Santare drove an hour and a half south of Gainesville to pick her up.
“It’s remarkable what can be done when just normal people work together for a cause,” Spierer said.
Within the next couple of days, it was determined that Vixen’s disease was caused by a ruptured
intervertebral disc. A donor provided financial assistance, Carey said.
On Dec. 24, Vixen had an emergency surgery to decompress her spinal cord.
On Christmas morning, Vixen went home with Santare.
On Dec. 26, she was walking with a wobble.
“I have fallen in love with her, but she needs a forever home,” Santare said. “She is great with my two boxers and the cat. She has a heart of gold and will make someone extremely happy. She is my Christmas miracle.”
After being scheduled to be put down on Dec. 22, Vixen, a 4-year-old dachshund, found a home with a foster family in Gainesville.
