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PORT ANGELES — How a 14-inch stick came to be inside the stomach of a young black lab mix remains a mystery.

But the dog, a sweet 2-year-old named Rosie, is now well and living with a loving Port Angeles family, thanks to a special medical fund managed by the Olympic Peninsula Humane Society.

Nearly a year ago, a very ill stray was brought to the Humane Society shelter at 2105 W. U.S. Highway 101 in Port Angeles.

The 1-year-old dog was lethargic and vomiting, said Mary Beth Wegener, executive director of the shelter.

After examining her, the shelter’s veterinarian, Dr. Suzy Zustiak, decided that the dog, who had been named Rosie, needed more advanced treatment than the shelter could provide.

The dog spent a few days at Angeles Clinic on intravenous fluids and a variety of medications and seemed better but was not completely well.

Zustiak took Rosie home over Christmas to monitor her condition and administer medication.

Despite the care, Rosie

got worse.

She was vomiting frequently, had stopped eating completely and appeared to be in a great deal of pain.

X-rays showed nothing definitive.

The only other option for Rosie was exploratory surgery.

“We were really concerned about Rosie,” Zustiak said.

“We had tried pretty much everything we could think of, and we were at a point where surgery was the only option left.”

The Humane Society has a special medical account, called Jerry’s Fund for situations like Rosie’s.

Thanks to a generous donation, Rosie’s surgery was paid for.

Rosie went into surgery the same day, and the result shocked everyone.

The surgeon, Dr. Lark Gustafson of the Penn Cove Veterinary Clinic in Coupeville, explored Rosie’s abdomen and felt a hard, blunt object inside her stomach.

Wooden stick

When Gustafson cut the wall of the stomach to remove the object, the veterinarian discovered a 14-inch-long wooden stick.

“The vet thinks that she swallowed it,” said Heidi Pedersen, who, with her husband, German Pima, adopted Rosie in February.

“But there’s no way to be sure how it got in there,” Pedersen added.

Just one day after surgery, Rosie began acting more alert and happily eating food, Wegener said.

Two weeks after surgery, she was back to being a normal dog and would freely romp and play, she said.

“It was clear she was happy to be alive and pain- (and stick-) free,” Wegener said.

At home in PA

Adopted around Valentine’s Day, Rose lives with Pedersen, Pima and their 5-year-old son, Lucas.

Alerted to the dog’s need for a good home by Humane Society volunteers, the couple tried Rose for an overnight stay.

At first, Lucas didn’t like her, Pedersen said, but “the next day, he said she could stay.”

“She’s a very sweet dog,” she said.

“She’s one of those dogs that everybody loves.”

Now, Lucas “calls Rosie his dog sister,” Pedersen said.

Although Rosie’s case is unusual, the need for funds to treat the medical needs of animals brought into the shelter is all too common, Wegener said.

“Rosie is a wonderful example of why Jerry’s Fund is so important,” she said.

“She was a young, otherwise healthy dog who came in with a life-threatening condition.

“If not for Jerry’s Fund, we would not have had the funds for the surgery which ended up saving her life.”

Jerry’s Fund

Jerry’s Fund was created in honor of a very ill springer spaniel puppy that came to the Humane Society several years ago.

When the story of the puppy’s plight was released, the community responded with donations for his care, Wegener said.

The puppy died before it could be treated, but his legacy lives on through the special fund, she added.

Recent donations have brought the fund up to about $1,000, Wegener said last week.

But more is needed.

“If we were to get another case like Rosie,” the $1,000 would not be enough, she said.

“I’d be more comfortable with $5,000 to $8,000.”

Sensitive stomach

Since her surgery, Rosie has remained in good health, though she has something of a sensitive stomach, Pedersen said.

Rosie does have a propensity for chewing on sticks, she added.

“She definitely likes to chew on things,” Pedersen said.

“We don’t let her chew on big sticks.”

To donate or get more information, phone the Humane Society at 360-457-8206.

The shelter is open to the public from noon to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.

A private, nonprofit corporation, the Humane Society is financed primarily by private donations and gifts.

No animals are turned away, and about 2,000 animals pass through the doors of the facility annually, Wegener said.