Update 8/10/26

Fiona has been a UYR girlie for 3.5 weeks now and WHAT A TRANSFORMATION she has undergone! No longer is her tiny little body riddled with multiple infections (eye, ear, skin, urine, mouth) and intestinal parasites (tape worms, hook worms). Her skin no longer bears the dark, thick coating of untreated fungus and her hair regrowth is now in full swing. We had a couple of concerns that needed to be addressed before she could proceed with scheduling her spay and dental procedures. One was an echocardiogram and we learned that Fiona has a grade 2/3 heart murmur but the specialist did not feel that she needs medication at this time but did recommend annual echocardiograms for her going forward. Secondly, in addition to anemia Fionas cortisol levels were very low so her vet had suspicions that she might have Addisons disease so she had an ACTH uptake test which came back negative: HOORAY! Fiona is now clear for anesthesia and her dental is scheduled for August 8th and her spay for September 3rd. We anticipate she will be ready for adoption in late September if all goes well. Additionally, Fiona has been diagnosed with chronic dry eye syndrome and will need to be on prescription eye drops twice daily for life. It will take MONTHS for her hair to grow back but we are confident it will resume all of its former glory in time.

Lets talk about Fionas personality! She is feisty and playful and loves to play tug-o-war with her 14 lb Yorkie brother who weighs almost 3 times what she does. And she wins! Fiona may be small but in her little mind she is a BIG DOG and she likes to act LARGE AND IN CHARGE! If she is with foster mom and others approach she will let them know they are NOT INVITED with a warning growl. We are working on learning to share attention, affection and toys. It is a work in progress. Fiona is a very IN-DOOR-SY girl. She dislikes going outside to go potty or anything that involves her feet getting wet and much prefers using a potty pad. She is not completely house-trained but will use a potty pad MOST of the time. She will also go where she isnt supposed to but is improving daily. Fiona LOVES her food. She will eat hers and also try to eat her foster siblings if not supervised. She is a great little traveler and does well in the car. She also likes being toted around in her little pouch that foster mom uses. She HATES baths which is problematic since she still needs her medicated baths every three days. That wont last too much longer and Fiona will be glad! At present bathing Fiona is like trying to hold onto a vibrating greased potato with legs that is wiggling and squirming at about 20,000 RPMs. She loves sleeping in bed with her humans and getting TONS OF ATTENTION. Fionas forever home wish list includes

-No small children

-Humans who are home more than not

-Doggy steps to access furniture and beds

-Constant supervision and attendance when she is outside and off leash. She is like a mouse that can squeeze through ANY FENCE that isnt solid and buried at the bottom.

-Another small dog to play with and teach her how to share

-Someone who will be diligent in keeping her on her twice daily eye drop regimen and can afford annual echocardiograms to monitor her heart murmur

-A plus if you are an experienced tiny dog pawrent

Fiona will still be with us another 8-10 weeks but we can see light at the end of her tunnel and the future is looking VERY BRIGHT! Fiona is SO GRATEFUL for the outpouring of love and support from so many of you! Getting her to a healthy, adoptable condition is taking lots of time and resources so a giant THANK YOU to everyone out there on TEAM FIONA! SHE WOOFS YOU ALL! Please continue to like, share and donate.

Bio Update 7/20/26

Fiona has been a UYR girlie for a whopping 10 days now. FYI, Fiona wont be ready for adoption for several weeks to months. A week ago today she had her very first Vet visit. It lasted two whole hours. And since she has never seen a vet ever we had a lot of catching up to do. Her abdomen was noted to be larger than her chest. Since she came from a former breeder, anything including pregnancy was possible so we had an abdominal ultrasound which was thankfully negative for puppies. A stool sample revealed the culprits; hook worms and tape worms that were literally draining her little body of blood. Fiona is anemic and the intestinal parasites are believed to be the source. Her Hematocrit should be over 40. It was 28. Her skin was full of fungal overgrowth leaving her essentially bald from the shoulders down. But the anti-fungal baths, medicated wipes and oral antifungal meds are helping along with low dose prednisone and Cytopoint to keep her from scratching. Her ears are pretty bad, they are bilaterally infected so she gets oral antibiotics, ear flush and antibiotic ear drops twice daily. Her little eyes were also infected and crusty with corneal ulcerations in her left eye noted. She gets antibiotic eye ointment and lubricating gel twice daily. Last week the general Vet felt Fiona had a grade 2 heart murmur. At her recheck today the internal medicine Vet listened and felt like its closer to a grade 4 and said she really needs a cardiology consult before we think about a dental or a spay to make sure Fionas heart is able to safely undergo anesthesia. Her echocardiogram is set for tomorrow. Her mouth is in need of attention as she has really bad breath and multiple decaying teeth. She also has multiple retained deciduous teeth that are causing overcrowding so that will be addressed in the future. Fiona is not spayed, she has likely been a Momma in the past but never again so once her anemia resolves and her skin has is healthy enough to heal a surgical incision she will be spayed. Fiona had never been vaccinated so last week she began with a rabies vaccine which is required by law here. We are starting slow and spacing these out due to her small size and compromised immunity. One vaccination every two weeks is the plan until she is up to date.

For all of Fionas challenges, she is still full of spunk and now that shes starting to feel a little bit better it is GAME ON! The first few days she mostly slept but about day 4 her ACTIVATE button got pushed and has been on ever since. She loves to play toy tug-o-war with her fur brother who weighs three times as much as her and she WINS! She is also a night owl and she likes to go into party mode each night around 9:30 PM. All present must participate. She will get right up in anyones grill if they are not in the mood. Its hard not to laugh. After shes tired of playing she LOVES to snuggle up in her LOLA blanket and drift off to sleep. She is not a fan of going outside to go potty but shes getting pretty good about using a potty pad. She is also quite vocal and she loves to bark at nothing and make sure her presence is known! In short; Fiona is a HOT MESS medically but so stinking adorable that none of that matters! Fiona wants to express her love and gratitude to United Yorkie Rescue and ALL OF YOU HER ADORING FAN BASE for saving her and making all her boo-boos feel better.

Initial Bio 7/10/26

Meet Fiona Skye, a tiny 5-pound Yorkshire Terrier who will soon celebrate her 4th birthday. Fiona is being fostered in Lexington, Kentucky, after being lovingly welcomed into United Yorkie Rescue as an owner surrender.

Its hard to imagine now, but Fiona was once a beautiful parti-colored Yorkie with a stunning tri-colored coat. Sadly, untreated skin disease has stolen both her comfort and her confidence. Most of her coat is gone, she scratches constantly, and her little body is covered with painful sores and hot spots. She is uncomfortable, exhausted, and clearly hasnt received the veterinary care she desperately needed.

On Monday morning, Fiona begins the first step of her journey to a better life. Shell receive a comprehensive veterinary exam, blood work, a full skin evaluation, and treatment to finally bring her some much-needed relief. Once her skin is healthy enough, shell need to be spayed. Despite being only four years old, her teeth are already in terrible condition, so a dental procedure with likely extractions is also ahead.

Fionas transformation wont happen overnight. It will take months of specialized veterinary care, medications, patience, and lots of love before shes ready to find the forever home she deserves.

The good news? Fiona is finally safe. Shell never have to suffer alone again.

Now she needs a team of compassionate people to stand beside her. Every donationlarge or smallhelps provide the medical care, medications, diagnostics, and surgeries that will give Fiona the healthy, happy life every dog deserves.

Together, we can help this sweet little girl grow her beautiful coat back, heal her broken skin, and remind her what it feels like to be loved. Thank you for being part of Fionas journey.