11/28/12 - Cletus - The Schizencephaly Mascot

11/28/12 - Being that I have the only dog in the world reported to have open lipped schizencephaly, I do quite a bit of research into the subject.  Recently I have noticed a lot of interest in articles pertaining to looking for animal studies when it comes to schizencephaly and also a lot of visits to this site from inside and outside of the United States from neurologists and other physicians possibly seeking to understand more about Cletus.

I want to offer any support I can to interested parties in the advancement of the understanding or treatment of schizencephaly or other neurological conditions through this site, through my understanding in dealing with Cletus, or through Cletus himself.  Cletus is a very sweet and timid dog who does not mind being touched and tested, poked and prodded, we all know he has been through enough and that he is very used to it all, but it does need to be understood that I have a couple of rules:

1. I will not let Cletus be hurt in any way.
2. I will not fly Cletus anywhere for fear that the air pressure may cause an issue (such as a seizure).

I believe Cletus can contribute greatly to the understanding of this condition and the doctors at UF have told me that it could take anywhere from 6 months to 2 years for the paper(s) on him to get accepted and be published.  I also believe that many other animals suffer from schizencephaly but die due to misdiagnosis and vets not understanding what they are dealing with.  I hate that other animals continue to suffer when there could be so much we can learn from his condition so I will say again that Cletus and I are available now to interested parties to help in any reasonable way that we can. 

I honestly have been through so many ups and downs with Cletus that I am afriad that by the time the papers do come out about Cletus, he will not be around to help.  He is doing great now but I have a constant fear that the tide can turn at any moment.

We will continue to push to raise awareness of schizencephaly as much as we can but we do need your help. Please spread Cletus' story through any avenue you are able... facebook, twitter, the media, etc... have them contact me for an interview or for Cletus' story or pictures at dsilber27@hotmail.com... and of course, we could always use donations through Cletus' donation site http://igg.me/p/217159.

Love to all,

Doug and Cletus

NOTES:
We will continue to raise awareness of schizencephaly and get Cletus' story told to try to save other animals with this condition. We can't do this alone... we need your help...

The more exposure we can get for Cletus, the more likely it is that we can help other animals out there suffering from schizencephaly. Cletus can't be the only one with this condition. Animals must be getting misdiagnosed and dying from schizencephaly due to vets not understanding what they are dealing with. Help us get the word out about Cletus and schizencephaly.

WHAT IS OPEN LIPPED SCHIZENCEPHALY?:
Open lipped schizencephaly is a congenital cerebral malformation where spaces or clefts remain where the cerebral hemispheres would normally seal shut shortly after birth. Extremely rare in humans, this malformation has never before been known to be reported in a dog making Cletus very special to the doctors even though he has been special to me for a long time. There are great resources available online to learn more about schizencephaly or please contact your physician with questions pertaining to your specific case. It is my understanding that each individual with this condition has unique experiences in relation to the condition.

HELP US IN CLETUS' FIGHT THROUGH DONATION:
Cletus is special in so many ways... not only does his diagnosis make him unique and hopefully able to help find advances in the care and treatment of schizencephaly in both animals and humans, Cletus is honestly the smartest dog I have ever had... and he is missing half his brain! Cletus is AMAZING!!

I have 2 rules when it comes to Cletus' care...
Rule 1 - Cletus' pain level must be low...
Rule 2 - Cletus' quality of life must be high...

As long as these 2 rules are met, I will continue to do anything I can for him and will continue to spend whatever it takes to give him a chance for a "normal" and happy life. Sadly, Cletus' medications, treatments, acupuncture, physical therapy, etc costs over $1,000.00 each month. We are unable to cover any of the costs with pet insurance as insurance does not cover this condition, the University will not cover any associated costs being that they are a "teaching hospital run mainly through donation", and we have not been able to raise any money so far by any other means other than a grand total of $70 brought in through his last campaign which covered a couple of pills.

Basically... WE NEED YOUR HELP...

If you can, please donate to Cletus' campaign http://igg.me/p/217159

HELP US GET THE WORD OUT:
If you know of a source who can help us get Cletus' story into any magazines, articles, blogs, web pages, on TV, radio, etc, please let us know or contact those sources about Cletus. Cletus and I do not mind doing interviews or attending groups, educational workshops, etc to bring attention to schizencephaly in animals or humans. We want to do anything we can to teach and bring attention to the veterinary and medical communities about schizencephaly.

Please help us to get the word out about Cletus and schizencephaly. Contact your local news organization about Cletus or have your local news organization contact me directly at dsilber27@hotmail.com

ELLEN DEGENERES:
Please help us by contacting Ellen through FB and tweet through the avenue below...

Submit Cletus' story to Ellen for us to potentially be on her show: http://ellen.warnerbros.com/show/respond/?PlugID=432

http://www.ellentv.com/be-on-the-show/10/

http://www.ellentv.com/

Tweet her: http://twitter.com/TheEllenShow/

STATISTICS (As of April 2012):
As far as Cletus' doctors are aware, Cletus has the only known reported case of open lipped schizencephaly in a canine. The key word here is reported. Most vets are not aware that schizencephaly exists or they are not aware that this condition is possible in an animal. Cletus is living proof of this possibility.

According to the Humane Society of the United States, there are 78.2 million dogs in the U.S. (http://www.humanesociety.org/). Some sites state that schizencephaly affect 1.54 per 100,000 people. According to rightdiagnosis.com, schizencephaly affects 1 in 2719 people or 0.04% of the population (http://www.rightdiagnosis.com/lists/preval.htm). The fact is that no one is sure how many people schizencephaly truly affects. If we assume these same statistics in dogs, it equates to up to 31,280 dogs out there with schizencephaly in the U.S. alone.

THANKS:
Cletus and I want to thank the following Websites/Magazines/TV Stations/Etc for sharing Cletus' Story:
- ABC TV affiliate WCJB TV20
- Aplacetolovedogs.com
- Dawgbusiness.blogspot.com
- Experienceproject.com
- Fakeitfrugal.blogspot.com
- Houndgirl.com
- Jcagain.com
- Lovewhatsmissing.com
- Movementforhope.org
- News-pics-videos.com/schizencephaly-diagnosis
- Picturesofdogs.net
*** If I missed anyone, please let me know, thanks***

Thank you for your support,

Doug & Cletus
dsilber27@hotmail.com