06/03/2026
It is with a heavy heart that I say goodbye to Hershey. 💔
Hershey was sent to me over two years ago as a half paralyzed rehab that no one else was able to help. He was unable to submerge properly from gas trapped in his abdominal cavity, and his entire back half was completely paralyzed. After some oral medication regimens his GI issues thankfully resolved enough for his buoyancy to return to normal, but his paralysis still presented a major problem.
His spine remained abnormally curved, and it occurred to me that he probably had a significant amount of muscular atrophy. With this in mind I decided to attempt some 'physical rehab' exercises with him. While holding the front half of his abdomen in place, I would gently push his spine back into alignment and then release him. He would then wiggle around for a bit before resting.
A few days after beginning these sessions I noticed his hind toes beginning to twitch, and the following week he was picking up his hind legs and flexing his feet while sitting still. Before I knew it he was walking around using his hind legs and swimming using his tail again. His spinal curvature remained, but he was ambulatory and clearly enjoying life again!
Unfortunately it was not meant to last... Last month he began floating again and started losing weight. I tubbed him immediately to provide intensive care, but he was completely unable to keep food or medication down. On seeing our veterinarian yesterday for imaging it was determined he had a GI mass/growth and that euthanasia was necessary.
Swim happily in the great lake across the rainbow bridge my sweet boy. I'll never forget you. 💔