The Amazing Rescue of Barbas and The Dangers of TVT

A few months ago one of HSTJ's volunteers received a call from a friend who told her that the night before he witnessed a truck that appeared to have run over a dog. He thought the dog was dead but the next day, he saw that the dog had been dragged to the side of the road and as he approached the dog, he said the dog was alive but his back legs appeared to be paralyzed! He took the dog immediately to the vet whose prognosis was that that the dog would likely not walk again.

Regardless of this bleak fate, he decided to take the dog home to recover and named him Barbas. With a special diet and medication, a few months later, Barbas amazingly began walking again! He was not theemost graceful runner but he appeared to be out of danger! A few weeks ago Barbas began to bleed from his penis and the diagnosis was that the dog has TVT (Transmissable Veneral Tumor) and will require at least 4 chemotherapies to solve the problem.  Chemotherapy treatments in Tijuana can cost up to $65 a session. I fyou are interested in spnosoring Barbas for his treatment, please Make a Donation.

There are many infectious diseases that we encounter down in Tijuana that are rather uncommon in the United States. For each disease the reasons vary as to why the prevalence is higher in a third world country, such as lack of vaccination, a lifestyle of living primarily outside, frequent contact with hundreds of other dogs, etc.

One such disease is Transmissible Venereal Tumor, or TVT. This ailment is most unusual because it is not caused by either a virus or a bacteria. TVT is caused by infectious tumor cells that become explanted either due to licking or mating. It is a mysterious disease because no one knows for sure from where these tumor cells originally came. They have a completely different number of chromosomes than a dog’s normal cells, and for that reason their origin remains a mystery.

Like any venereal disease, TVT most often begins when a dog mates with an infected partner. The tumors will grow very slowly over a matter of months, and usually the first sign of the disease is bleeding from the genitalia, although the tumors will sometimes begin in the mouth and nasal cavity as well. The tumors will continue to grow until they protrude from the orifices and spread to other areas of the body. The animals tend to be very painful at the sites of tumor growth, and the tumors will often bleed excessively.

Fortunately, the tumors are treatable with chemotherapy. They are one of the few cancers in dogs that are 100% curable, and the vets that work with HSTJ have treated several cases of TVT now. However, the best way to prevent the disease in the first place is to spay and neuter the dogs. HSTJ/FHSTJ has undertaken this large task not only to prevent the overpopulation of unwanted street animals in Tijuana, but also to improve the animals’ overall health. TVT, along with a few other diseases, can be prevented from spreading by spaying and neutering the dogs.

Barba's Before and After Photos -  Please consider sponsoring Barba so he can receive the proper treatment for his TVT, please Make a Donation if you are able.