Colorado Veterinary Specialty Group Blog

Willow, an 8-yr. old Yorkshire Terrier, was bouncing around her home after an outing to the dog park on Wednesday 3/12/2025, when her condition suddenly changed.  Willow’s owners saw her stumbling, beginning to appear weak, and struggling to breathe. Willow’s owners quickly wrapped her in a blanket, ran to the car, and sped to CVSG.

When Willow arrived at the hospital it was apparent her condition was deteriorating.  The customer service representative who met Willow’s owners called for an immediate consult by an ER team member.  The triage technician recognized Willow’s rapid breathing and pale gums as signs of serious distress. Dr. Stuhlmann immediately ordered an IV catheter to begin giving Willow fluids, lab tests to determine blood values, and did a brief ultrasound of the abdomen.  The ultrasound showed Willow’s abdominal cavity was full of fluid and a large mass was present on her spleen.

As Willow lay panting on her side, eyes half-closed, Dr. Stuhlmann consulted with her owners and put together a plan.  She began a blood transfusion and called in one of CVSG’s doctors, Carolina Orellana-Rosell, to perform emergency surgery to remove the bleeding mass.

Dr. Orellana-Rosell and Karen, one of our seasoned surgery technicians, quickly prepared Willow for surgery and operated to remove the mass and spleen.  Within a couple of hours following surgery, Willow was on her feet and walking around sporting a telemetry vest (a non-invasive way to monitor heart rate).

Quick action on the part of Willow’s owners and the ER team, combined with fast and skillful work by the surgery team, brought Willow from the brink of disaster to having a new “leash” on life.

Dr. Wendland is our board-certified Sports Medicine specialist and Eileen is her Labradoodle.  Eileen was born with only three limbs and was rescued at four days old by one of Dr. Wendland’s friends who operates a dog rescue in Arkansas.

As Dr. Wendland’s friend bottle-fed and cared for Eileen, she began regular calls with Dr. Wendland to troubleshoot how to teach Eileen, while she was still developing, to be a quadruped with only three usable limbs.  As Eileen grew, and Dr. Wendland became attached to this girl with the “I can do it” spirit, plans were made to transport Eileen to Colorado to become a permanent member of Dr. Wendland’s family.

At four months old, Eileen hopped on an RV for the trek from Arkansas to Breckenridge to continue her journey toward a full, mobile lifestyle.  Dr. Wendland’s continued work building Eileen’s muscle, using massage and acupuncture to ease pain, and the commissioning of a pink prosthetic limb has ensured the goal Dr. Wendland and her friend had for Eileen…that of living a happy, healthy, life in a loving home.

Follow this link to learn more about the therapies Dr. Wendland uses with Eileen and others available to support your dog living a happy, healthy life, too.  https://www.covetspec.com/sports-medicine-rehabilitation/

Veterinary Criticalists are veterinarians specializing in the emergency and critical care of pets.  After veterinary school, criticalists complete three or more years of intensive training in emergency and critical care medicine and pass a board examination administered by the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care (ACVECC).

Veterinary Criticalists are experts in managing seriously ill pets and life-threatening emergencies.  Typical cases they handle involve pets who need frequent monitoring of blood pressure, organ function, or electrolytes.  They also attend to pets who:

• Undergo traumas, such as being hit by a car, attacked by other animals, stabbed with a sharp object or burned
• Have difficulty breathing
• Require transfusions
• Experience life-threatening poisoning
• Shows signs of shock, seizures, or neurologic abnormalities
• Have severe urinary issues
• Suffer from complications like pneumonia, organ failure, or blood pressure irregularities
• Require extracorporeal therapies (outside the body), such as dialysis, mechanical ventilation or therapeutic plasma exchange

Criticalists at CVSG collaborate with our board-certified specialists in all areas of the hospital to support patients in our care.  Our team of dedicated emergency doctors work hand-in-hand with the criticalists.  This allows CVSG to offer the most advanced medical treatment and provide the highest-quality, innovative veterinary care to our patients.