If Not You, Who?

by Seymour Weiss

Summer 1999, Newsletter

The Capps were a nice family, as any other nice family and they only wanted the normal things that make life pleasant. When the Capps decided it was time to add a dog to their household, they wanted to do it right, make all the right choices for all the right reasons.

The first thing they would need to do is decide the type of dog they wanted. In keeping with their resolve to do this right from the get-go, the whole family sat down around the dining room table one evening to decide what the Capp family dog had to be. How big should their dog be? What kind of personality would they like in their dog? How much exercise would the dog need and how much could the Capps comfortably provide? What about training, grooming needs, barking, health profile? Whatever Edna and Charlie Capp and their children could think of, they put down on a list of particulars and decided on how they would find the answers to these questions.

The next afternoon, oldest son Bruce stopped at the public library on the way home from school and borrowed some dog books to help the Capps to make an informed choice. As Bruce was walking in the door, his sister Linda was at her computer surfing the net to find out what she could learn in cyberspace about man's first, and still best friend. Everyone took part in this canine compatibility quest.

From their research, the Capps decided they wanted a purebred dog; they like the idea of adopting a shelter dog, but they felt that they wanted to know how the puppy they hoped to find would look and act when it grew up. At this point a short list of candidate breeds was drawn up based on the photos and descriptions they had all studied. Interestingly, the list of breeds the Capps had narrowed their choices to was rather eclectic and different breeds were considered for different reasons. It had begun to get confusing.

Then one day Linda and Edna chanced upon an exhibit of various dog breeds put on by the local bank. There were about twenty dogs of various breeds and as each stepped into a makeshift ring, a representative of the local kennel club made a short speech about the breed and the particular dog. One dog in particular caught the fancy of both mother and daughter who hurried home to tell the rest of the family about their discovery of the Capps' perfect pet.

They had all seen pictures of this dog in ads and on TV, but never paid that much attention until now. The ladies' enthusiasm for the West Highland White Terrier now rubbed off on the guys and the next thing to do was to find their puppy - much easier said than done.

From the program Edna and Linda picked up at the bank, they found the name of the lady who owned the "Westie" which was what the announcer called it. They phoned her to see if he had any puppies. She did not but she did spend alot of time with the Capps to tell them what they should look for and who they might call to make the right connection. The Capps followed this advice, but as it developed, everyone they spoke to had no puppies to sell that that time and the Capps wanted a dog at that time because it was the best time for them.

It was really discouraging when after doing everything by the book, the breeders they spoke to were unable or not interested in helping them. Then one day Bruce and Linda found themselves at the display window of the local pet store looking at a nine-week-old charmer in white, a Westie just like what they had been hoping to find.

Several other people in the shop at the same time appeared to be interested in the puppies that were for sale and this little Westie was making the most of his opportunities. The younger Capps thought and acted fast, whipping out Bruce's plastic before any of the other potential buyers had a chance at this little guy. Before anyone knew what happened the sale was made and the excited teenagers rushed home with their new family member.

On their way back home, Bruce and Linda called their mother to tell her what they had done. At first mom was not sure about this, but soon she decided that since "when you snooze, you lose, they probably did the right thing. Once home, the puppy was settled in and cased the portions of the house he was in in typical Westie fashion. He also worked his magnetic charm on Edna Capp as he would later do when Charlie got home from work.

That night the whole family got together to study the papers that came with the new puppy. There was a blue slip that they would have to fill out and send to the AKC, a short chart that appeared to look like a genealogy and a health record. From the blue slip, it appeared that the Capps' new puppy had come from some distance - Kansas. Well Kansas was a good as anywhere else and this was the coolest puppy in the world, right? Right!

From the books and websites the Capps studied they knew their new puppy had to get to a vet within a couple of days of purchase. There was even a warranty from the pet store saying that if the vet found anything wrong within 72 hours, they would take the puppy back and issue a full refund. So, anxious to be good pet owners, the Capps piled into the Honda with "Chester" to meet the veterinarian and get the coolest puppy in the world a clean bill of health.

Chester passed his physical easily and Dr. Carter was duly charmed by the puppy. He did tell the Capps a little bit about health issues in terriers in general and Westies in particular, but assured them that all appeared to be okay with this little guy and that they could look forward to many years of happy pet ownership.

Life was good with Chester in the Capp family. The puppy was very bright and eager to please. He housetrained easily and got through the teething stage with a minimum of angst for himself and his humans. He ate well and was growing up nicely; it seemed as though this pet shop puppy was as good as many of the non-existent puppies from the breeders they had spoken to. Actually, Chester was better; he was theirs.

As Chester grew, so did his hair and before too long he was looking a little too scruffy even for the laid back lifestyle. A woman that worked with Edna told her about this nice shop in the mall where she took her Schnauzer to be groomed. Edna called up and made an appointment for the following Tuesday and dropped Chester off on her way to work. When she went back to bring Chester home, she was greeted by the sight of a squeaky clean white Westie with the faint smell of perfume and a trim she couldn't describe and was not too sure about. In any case, Chester was clean, groomed and happy, so Edna decided that the girls in the shop treated him well.

Soon after returning home from his first trim, Chester appeared to be doing an unusual amount of scratching. The Capps didn't know why, but they assumed that maybe it was something the groomer used and they would tell her to use something different the next time. Certainly there was no reason to take it up with the vet. Just the same as time went by, Chester was scratching more and more. At times it seemed like he would never stop scratching. It was starting to get on everyone's nerves.

When Edna called the groomer to make Chester's next appointment, she did mention the scratching and by this time the condition had gotten worse. Chester's once pretty coat was now punctuated by bare patches and his feet were turning pink from his constant licking. There were a few raw spots. The groomer told Edna Capp that she would look at Chester's coat when he came in and was sure there was something that could be done.

That turned out to be optimistic because a very different-looking Chester showed up at the grooming shop. The young woman who bathed Chester used a medicated shampoo this time with an oatmeal rinse and suggested that Chester should be seen by his vet as soon as possible. "Westies are known for skin troubles, you know." advised Cindy the groomer. "But," said Edna, "Chester's been nothing but healthy, and now this?" Cindy didn't know what to say, but again advised that a visit to Dr. Carter was in order.

The whole family loved Chester dearly even if he was starting to look ratty. After all, it's not like this is something he was doing just to make everyone mad. Edna called Dr. Carter and the following Saturday afternoon Chester was standing on Dr. Carter's cool, stainless examining table under the scowling gaze of his doctor.

"Chester has a bad case of canine atopic dermatitis," Dr. Carter told Edna and Linda. "There must be something we can do for him, isn't there?" asked the Capp ladies. "Dunno. We can start with some medicated baths. I have something here I can send home with you. It's new and supposed to be very good. Bathe Chester with this stuff twice a week and use an oatmeal rinse to follow. Bring him back in four weeks and we'll see where we stand."

Once home Chester got his baths more or less on schedule, but busy families get busy and sometimes the pup went without. He scratched more when that happened and it didn't look like the shampoo was doing much when it was being used. In a month, looking worse than ever and scratching like mad, Chester was back in the treatment room and Dr. Carter seemed far less than pleased with the progress of the case.

"I had hoped for some improvement, but I don't really see it. Chester is actually a very allergic dog and we will have to test to find out what he is sensitive to so we can treat him properly." advised the vet. "Our groomer said that Westies have a lot of skin problems." said Edna. "That's true," responded Dr. Carter, "but the time to have taken that into consideration was when you were deciding on the right breed. Now you have your dog and you need to decide what to do for him; how far you want to proceed with treatment."

Dr. Carter explained the allergy testing that would be required and what practical steps could be taken to provide the family pet with relief. Dr. Carter also told Edna Capp that there was a real possibility that Chester was also allergic to the diet he was being fed. He told Edna that there are special foods available for dogs with chronic skin conditions and that he, like most veterinarians, sold it. Of course, it was more expensive than mass-produced dog foods, but for dogs needing it, there really was no other option. That afternoon Edna told the rest of the family the unhappy news and what the family and poor Chester could expect.

Charlie Capp was a kind-hearted guy, but he quailed at the thought of what it was going to cost to get this little dog to stop mutilating himself because that what it had now come to. Anyway, they would at least go for the allergy testing. When the results came back it turned out there wasn't much the poor dog was not allergic to. Dust mites, wool, pollen, flea bites, grass, wheat, beef - the list seemed endless. Even if the Capps ripped up their whole house for Chester's sake, their next door neighbor was an avid gardener and there was no way to force her to change her environment for their dog. On top of this Charlie was a machinist at the local parts factory. With two kids preparing to apply for college, he could not afford to prop up a canine money pit even if they all did love him.

For the next week or two a cloud of anguish hovered over the Capp home. Charlie, Edna, Linda and Bruce all shared a monster funk. Only Chester was not touched by the palpable aura of gloom even though he was at the center of it. He remained ever cheerful and upbeat and always ready for some time with the family - when he wasn't working at himself.

Finally, the Capps decided that they could no longer keep this once happy, still trusting puppy. The only thing Chester did that was wrong was to be born with a disease that was overwhelming him physically and his family financially and emotionally. On Thursday afternoon they would all take Chester to the vet's for his last visit. They decided that if they couldn't make him better, at least they could stop his spiral of suffering.

When the Capps arrived at Dr. Carter's office, Charlie could not get out of the car and when the kids got out two steps toward the front door, these two cool characters collapsed sobbing into each others' arms. This left Edna, the strong one, the mother figure, to conduct Chester to his premature destiny. When the receptionist called her name, Edna got up slowly and in great distress. Standing in the same treatment room she was ushered into when Chester made his first visit here as a baby, Edna's eyes were red and the lids were puffy with tears. Before too long, Dr. Carter, with grave countenance, stepped into the room and slid the door closed behind him. At that moment, Edna Capp could stand no more; apologizing profusely she told Dr. Carter she could not stay. For Chester's sake she had planned to, but could not. Dr. Carter had been through such vignettes and understood. The Capps were a nice family and Chester was a cute pup; none of them ever deserved this.

Watching Edna's retreating back, Dr. Carter thought, "Heck, this is a busy afternoon and putting Chester down can certainly wait till later." Chester didn't understand why everyone seemed so terribly sad and where they all went to. He didn't understand why he was sitting in a cage in a back room at Dr. Carter's clinic. He anticipated that someone would come get him soon and he could go home.

Dr. Carter found himself putting off this unsavory task again and again. At length, his junior nurse Allison Grant, asked about the Westie puppy in cage #4. "Euthanasia," said the vet with great weariness in his voice, Would you like to help?" "But, he's only a puppy. Can't the owners do something for him?" "They did what they could both emotionally and financially, but they can't do anything more." "Well if they can't, maybe someone else can," said Allison with a tone of resolute defiance. "Who is going to take on this allergic, unsightly, itchy puppy and do everything necessary to make him whole again?" asked Dr. Carter. Who could possibly enjoy him in his condition?" "His condition can be helped" said Allison, and he's too cute and too brave to give up on." "So I ask you again," said Allison's boss, "who would take him?" "You never know until you ask," said the lively redhead...

Epilogue

Did Dr. Carter send Chester over the Rainbow Bridge that afternoon? Maybe, maybe not. This was only a fictional story. This was written for you to make your own ending. While you're thinking about poor Chester Capp, think about his condition and think about all the real life Westies both from puppy mills and from the finest breeding that suffer from Canine Atopic Dermatitis, one of the great scourges of our breed. Think about the potential of the Westie Foundation to make a real difference and maybe someday we will see a day when this horrific problem will be a thing of the past. It can be and if you help support the foundation in its most admirable work, that day may come sooner than we might dare to hope. If you liked this story, if it made you shed a little tear even, please reach for your checkbook. Your help will give our breed the brighter tomorrow every Westie deserves. Thanks for reading - and helping - for if not you, who?