Meet Maddison Behnke, a junior at Pleasant Valley. Like most girls her age, Maddison loves dogs. Yet, she has a bit of a different story with her own Australian Shepard, Stella.
Behnke rescued Stella when she was only 15 years old. On a whim, she decided to get a puppy while her mom was out of town. This puppy soon became known as Stella. Behnke knew that the puppy was blind in one eye, but she had no idea what further complications would come from her new companion.
New puppies are always a lot of work but when Stella became sick, Behnke’s life took a turn. Her brother was the one who had first noticed Stella vomiting and not eating. Behnke took no chances and rushed the rescue to the Emergency Vet. The veterinarian had bad news: Stella had contracted Parvo, a contagious virus in dogs that affects the intestinal tract to the point where the dog can no longer absorb nutrients. Most unvaccinated dogs that get parvovirus end up dying. Since Stella had been a rescue, Behnke later found out that she had not received adequate vaccinations, in addition to being a part of an inbred family. The breeders who bred Stella had not done so correctly, and Stella was suffering the consequences. Behnke found out she was both fully blind and deaf, and now had the Parvovirus…an ill-fated combination for a puppy, less than one year old.
The Emergency Vet suggested hospitalizing Stella, which came with a $2400 bill. This was an infeasible amount for a 15 year old girl to take on. Thankfully, Maddison’s sister, Taylor (20) worked at a veterinarian’s office also. She was lucky enough to bring home an IV for the dog, which Stella needed to survive at this point. Usually, employees are not allowed to take any medication or materials home, but Taylor’s boss was understanding of the situation and wanted to save Stella’s life. Faced against the odds, Behnke nursed Stella back to health, and four months later the dog had pulled through. “I gave the dog the best life I could and tried to do everything I could to help her, I fought for her to live,” Behnke says. But now she had another problem; her faithful companion was still blind, deaf and recovering from the deadly Parvovirus. There would be no easy way to train her, and no trainer would to work with Behnke and her dog, due to the contagious nature of the Parvovirus. Luckily, Behnke found a trainer to work with them both. Today, Stella and Maddison are the best of friends. Behnke works with her daily to improve her skills. Stella knows the basic commands (sit, come, stay, and “sit pretty”) just like a normal dog. Stella is trained to go to Maddison’s hip on walks and during other situations where Stella may be hesitant. She has different body language from other dogs, but Behnke works around it. Stella is one year old today and still very energetic as a puppy. Behnke’s favorite thing to do with her is teaching her new tricks— the two are working on jumping right now.
Behnke has worked hard to ensure the health and security of her dog, and the two of them have grown into more than just owner and pet.
