Today was a very rainy and miserable day here at the farm, so the dog’s time out to play was limited.  In lieu of today’s edition of “The Sunday Funnies”, I thought it would be a good time to explain Chance’s condition a little further.  I will include a picture or two from our vet which shows what had to be removed.  Originally, we thought it was the Aorta wrapped around the esophagus.  The term “Persistent Right Aortic Arch” led us down that path.  However, we learned that it was a ligament that was wrapped around it.  Apparently, all puppies are born with this ligament.  It is a very natural thing.  As the puppy grows older, the ligament dissolves away.  In Chance’s case, it didn’t.  It is not what I would call common, but it’s not that rare either.  The ligament never dissolved away, and constricted Chance’s esophagus.  And, as explained before, he simply could not eat.  He survived on mother’s milk, but couldn’t go further.  In the photo below, at the very center you can see a tiny white line at the tip of the instrument.  This is the ligament.  It was acting like a tiny rubber band, and was removed. 

As of today, Chance is doing great.  He needs to eat every hour or two, and is still very limited on what and how much he can have.  But we are very gradually able to increase the amount daily.  It will take some time, but he should fully recover and lead a healthy life.  Thanks to all for the well wishes and prayers for Chance!