Finkelstein, Susan I

English

ScholarlyCommons@Penn

Bellwether MagazineVolume 1Number 61 Spring 2005 Article 144-1-2005Alice the Wonder Dog: One Dog’s Recovery Froman Unthinkable InjurySusan I. FinkelsteinUniversity of PennsylvaniaThis paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. http://repository.upenn.edu/bellwether/vol1/iss61/14For more information, please contact libraryrepository@pobox.upenn.edu.B E L L W E T H E R  6 1   15By Susan I. Finkelstein“I named her ‘Alice’ because she looks like that Muppet on Sesame Street, Alice Snufﬂeupagus,” explains Charlotte Williamson, owner of the chestnut-colored mixed-breed dog that has become kind of a star at the Ryan Hospital—and around the world! Alice’s story is so extraordinary that not only have local newspapers and television stations run it, but the syndicated Associated Press story has appeared in hundreds of newspapers both here and abroad. A Trip to YorkOn Friday, November 12, Charlotte drove with Alice from Washington, D.C., where she currently makes her home, to spend time with a friend on his 100-acre farm in York County, Pa. When she arrived, Alice was anxious to frolic in the open space, and Charlotte thought the dog needed some “roaming time” after the long car ride. After nearly an hour, and several calls for Alice, the 11/2-year-old dog was still nowhere to be seen. It was then that Charlotte heard faint whimpering nearby—and discovered Alice cringing under the porch, her fur matted with blood, her right eye swollen shut. “I thought her nose was broken, or that she had been bitten by another animal,” recalls Charlotte. The dog was brought to a local veterinarian, who promptly recommended that Alice be taken to Penn. The cause of Alice’s injury was still undetermined.Alice Comes to Ryan“On presentation, she had a wound on her nose and a lower jaw that shifted to the right. She was referred to us in Dentistry for a possible jaw fracture,” says John Lewis, V’97, a lecturer in dentistry. Radiographs of the dog’s head produced shocking results: part of a ﬁber-glass arrow, about six inches long, was lodged in her skull. The three-bladed tip was a half-inch from her brain. The arrow struck her on the bridge of the nose and traveled downward, fracturing the jaw. Dr. Lewis estimates the arrow had been 30 inches long originally, and had broken off when Alice tumbled from the impact. But someone had forgotten to tell Alice what had happened: according to Dr. Lewis, “She was standing and her tail was still wagging.” Surgery was scheduled for the next day, Saturday, when few specialty services are available at the Hospital. Dr. Lewis and Dr. Steve Mehler, a soft-tissue surgeon, headed Alice the Wonder Dog: One Dog’s Recovery from an Unthinkable Injurya quickly assembled team from no less than seven sections (including Dentistry, Soft Tissue, Radiology, Intensive Care, Emergency Service, Anesthesia, and Transfusion Medicine) to work on Alice.Because of its razor-sharp blades, pulling the arrow out the way it had entered would cause further injury. An incision was made on the right side of Alice’s neck to pull the arrow through. After a four-hour operation, all but one piece of metal was removed; excessive swell-ing prevented extraction of a barb in her jaw. It would have to be taken out when the swelling receded. (On December 17, Drs. Lewis and Mehler successfully removed the third blade during Alice’s second surgery.)Recovery“She made it through amazingly well,” reports Dr. Lewis. “A couple of millimeters one way or another, and the dog would have been in much worse shape.” One of the lingering effects of the injury, however, is chronic nasal infections for the dog. Another is blindness in her right eye, although a bit of improvement indicates she might eventually regain some vision there.How the dog got shot is still a mystery. Charlotte surmises that perhaps the dog was mistaken for a fox, with their similar coloring, and was struck by a bow hunter. Of course, the possibility exists that the actual cause might be more malicious. Charlotte has kept the arrow shaft and blades to have them examined—in an attempt to determine who is responsible.  ■Photo by Sabina Louise Pierce.“…And her tail was  still wagging.”Broken arrow held up to x-ray after being removed from Alice.Alice, healed from her surgery.

Alice the Wonder Dog: One Dog’s Recovery From an Unthinkable Injury

Kosmopolis

Bellwether Magazine
Volume 1
Number 61 Spring 2005 Article 14
4-1-2005
Alice the Wonder Dog: One Dog’s Recovery From
an Unthinkable Injury
Susan I. Finkelstein
University of Pennsylvania
This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. http://repository.upenn.edu/bellwether/vol1/iss61/14
For more information, please contact libraryrepository@pobox.upenn.edu.
B E L L W E T H E R  6 1   15
By Susan I. Finkelstein
“I named her ‘Alice’ because she looks 
like that Muppet on Sesame Street, Alice 
Snuffleupagus,” explains Charlotte Williamson, 
owner of the chestnut-colored mixed-breed 
dog that has become kind of a star at the Ryan 
Hospital—and around the world! Alice’s story 
is so extraordinary that not only have local 
newspapers and television stations run it, but 
the syndicated Associated Press story has 
appeared in hundreds of newspapers both here 
and abroad. 
A Trip to York
On Friday, November 12, Charlotte drove 
with Alice from Washington, D.C., where she 
currently makes her home, to spend time with a 
friend on his 100-acre farm in York County, Pa. 
When she arrived, Alice was anxious to frolic in 
the open space, and Charlotte thought the dog 
needed some “roaming time” after the long car 
ride. After nearly an hour, and several calls for 
Alice, the 11/2-year-old dog was still nowhere to 
be seen. 
It was then that Charlotte heard faint 
whimpering nearby—and discovered Alice 
cringing under the porch, her fur matted with 
blood, her right eye swollen shut. “I thought her 
nose was broken, or that she had been bitten by 
another animal,” recalls Charlotte. The dog was 
brought to a local veterinarian, who promptly 
recommended that Alice be taken to Penn. The 
cause of Alice’s injury was still undetermined.
Alice Comes to Ryan
“On presentation, she had a wound on 
her nose and a lower jaw that shifted to the 
right. She was referred to us in Dentistry for a 
possible jaw fracture,” says John Lewis, V’97, a 
lecturer in dentistry. Radiographs of the dog’s 
head produced shocking results: part of a fiber-
glass arrow, about six inches long, was lodged in 
her skull. The three-bladed tip was a half-inch 
from her brain. The arrow struck her on the 
bridge of the nose and traveled downward, 
fracturing the jaw. Dr. Lewis estimates the arrow 
had been 30 inches long originally, and had 
broken off when Alice tumbled from the impact. 
But someone had forgotten to tell Alice what 
had happened: according to Dr. Lewis, “She was 
standing and her tail was still wagging.” 
Surgery was scheduled for the next day, 
Saturday, when few specialty services are 
available at the Hospital. Dr. Lewis and 
Dr. Steve Mehler, a soft-tissue surgeon, headed 
Alice the Wonder Dog: One Dog’s Recovery from an Unthinkable Injury
a quickly assembled team from no less than 
seven sections (including Dentistry, Soft Tissue, 
Radiology, Intensive Care, Emergency Service, 
Anesthesia, and Transfusion Medicine) to work 
on Alice.
Because of its razor-sharp blades, pulling 
the arrow out the way it had entered would 
cause further injury. An incision was made on 
the right side of Alice’s neck to pull the arrow 
through. After a four-hour operation, all but 
one piece of metal was removed; excessive swell-
ing prevented extraction of a barb in her jaw. It 
would have to be taken out when the swelling 
receded. (On December 17, Drs. Lewis and 
Mehler successfully removed the third blade 
during Alice’s second surgery.)
Recovery
“She made it through amazingly well,” reports 
Dr. Lewis. “A couple of millimeters one way or 
another, and the dog would have been in much 
worse shape.” One of the lingering effects of the 
injury, however, is chronic nasal infections for 
the dog. Another is blindness in her right eye, 
although a bit of improvement indicates she 
might eventually regain some vision there.
How the dog got shot is still a mystery. 
Charlotte surmises that perhaps the dog was 
mistaken for a fox, with their similar coloring, 
and was struck by a bow hunter. Of course, the 
possibility exists that the actual cause might be 
more malicious. Charlotte has kept the arrow 
shaft and blades to have them examined—in an 
attempt to determine who is responsible.  ■
Ph
ot
o 
by
 S
ab
in
a 
Lo
ui
se
 P
ie
rc
e.
“…And her tail was 
 still wagging.”
Broken arrow held up to x-ray after being removed from Alice.
Alice, healed from her surgery.


https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2584&amp;context=bellwether

Alice the Wonder Dog: One Dog’s Recovery From an Unthinkable Injury

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