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Rescued Stray Dog Survives 100 Africanized Bee Stings

by Melanie

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 11.9.13 - Dog Survives Africanized Bee Stings1

A stray Florida dog being called Bumblebee is in stable condition after being stung by a swarm of Africanized honey bees, which are more aggressive and deadlier than other bees. Medical staff believe she will make a full recovery from the stings, and will be ready for adoption soon.

Bumblebee and another stray dog, called Boss by the neighbors, wandered too near a St. Petersburg home where over 80,000 Africanized bees had made a hive on the litter-strewn property. They were each stung over 100 times. Sadly, Boss did not survive. But miraculously, the female pit bull did.

She is now being treated with Benedryl and steroid injections, and veterinarians believe she will fully recover from the stings.

Definitely making improvement from yesterday,” said Dr. Tamara Berlin of VCA Noah’s Place Animal Medical Center. “She’s able to get up and move around a little bit — versus yesterday, when she just could not stand at all.”

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Her battle with the stings will soon be over, but Bumblebee faces another life-threatening condition: heartworm.

She is heartworm-positive,” Berlin said. “That creates its own issues for her with the side effects on the body that heartworm disease will have.”

Without monthly preventative treatment, one bite from a carrier mosquito was enough to begin heartworm infestation. Doctors are not yet sure how far along the disease has progressed, but they are optimistic it was caught before turning fatal. Whatever the prognosis, Berlin is hopeful that a family will adopt her and give her a home for the rest of her life.

She’s an absolute sweetheart. So she’s not a stray dog that’s been running loose with no care. She’s had a bond with a person, so we want to get her into an environment where she can still have that bond and that human companionship” she said.

If you would like to donate toward her care, or are interested in more information on Bumblebee, please click here, or call hospital manager Yolanda Maqsoud at 727-522-6640.