Few showers with a 30% chance of rain HIGH LOW 64 51
Volleyball team wraps up road matches against Auburn and Georgia
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‘2012’ and Slayer’s new album in Tuesday Takes
Tuesday, November 17, 2009 Issue 61 I N D E P E N D E N T
Flora Theden Assistant Managing Editor The “Little Brown Dog” was in shock when she arrived at the John and Ann Tickle Animal Hospital at the UT College of Veterinary Medicine on Tuesday, Nov. 3. She had to be stabilized overnight before doctors could work on her wounds and has spent over a week in the Intensive Care Unit. The 17-pound terrier mix was in critical condition after being dragged behind a Knoxville man’s truck. Skin, tendons, ligaments and even bone were worn away from the • Photos courtesy of Sandra Harbison traumatic event. Although the Knoxville Little Brown Dog, wearing her watermelon bandages, rests in man, Jimmy Lovell, has been Dr. Patricia Sura’s arms. charged with one count of Aggravated Cruelty to Animals, which is a felony in Tennessee, the Little Brown Dog is still in the Intensive Care Unit in UT’s animal hospital, struggling to survive. Elise Jones, a fourth year veterinary student, said Little Brown Dog has been in the Intensive Care Unit since she arrived at the animal hospital and is in such bad condition that she requires hourly monitoring. Jones said that Little Brown Dog’s wounds took approximately five hours to clean when she was first brought in to the animal hospital. “Initially general anesthesia was needed for daily cleaning and bandaging of the wounds,” Jones said. “Currently they can be changed with heavy sedation in approximately one to two hours. She has extensive wounds on her hand and chest.” Everyone in at the animal hospital is hoping for Little Brown Dog’s speedy recovery, Jones said. “Myself, three senior veterinary students, a surgical technician, an intern and Dr. Patricia Sura, who is a board certified veterinary surgeon, have all been doing our part daily to care for Little Brown Dog’s wounds,” Jones said.
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They even try to make her recovery more pleasant by configuring new outfits each day with her external bandage material. “Our favorite so far is Wonder Woman,” Jones said. Photos of Little Brown Dog’s costumes can be seen on the UT College of Veterinary Medicine home page. Currently, Little Brown Dog continues to heal, but there is still a small amount of bone exposed on her hind leg, so infection remains a concern, Sandra Harbison, head of media relations for the UT College of Veterinary Medicine, said. “Hopefully she will be ready for a skin graft next week,” Harbison said. “She rolled over this morning to have her belly scratched.” The animal hospital has already received numerous offers for adoption, and people from all over the country have sent donations, cards and even calls to offer well-wishes. At this time, Little Brown Dog remains in the protective custody of the Animal Control Unit of the Knoxville Police Department. “The outpouring of compassion for Little Brown Dog has been overwhelming,” Harbison said. Jones said the main concern is that Little Brown Dog will have a large amount of scarring once her wounds heal. Until all of her skin wounds have healed, her orthopedic issues are not able to be fully evaluated, Jones said. “A problem that concerns us is a possible distrust of humans,” Jones said. “We have been doing all we can to make her time with us as pleasant as possible. Students are constantly stopping by ICU to check on her.” Jones said this kind of training will help her and the other students who are caring for Little Brown with their future careers. “I would have to say Dr. Sura has turned this unfortunate case into a wonderful learning experience for all of the students involved,” Jones said. Daily bandage changes allow students to see how wounds heal, what techniques facilitate healing, and the dedication involved to care for such serious injuries, Jones said. “Wound management, whether from an accident, surgery, or some other cause, is an everyday part of the job of a veterinarian,” Jones
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said. “It’s not all puppies and kittens.” Jones said her first reaction to this incident was shock but that she feels justice will be served. She said the outpour of compassion from the community gives her faith that most people find it inhumane to cause this kind of harm to an animal, especially one as cute as Little Brown Dog. Harbison said the Knoxville community is fortunate to have animal control officers who tirelessly fight to protect animals and a District Attorney’s office willing to protect creatures that often don’t have a voice. Although Little Brown Dog has been through a traumatic event, her situation has brought joy and hope to the UT community. “(Little Brown Dog) wags her tail and is quite a cutie who has stolen the hearts of everyone at the vet school,” Harbison said. “Witnessing so many people wanting to do so much good and try to make things right for one little brown dog who has been through so much fills my heart with hope.”
Donations can be sent to: The Small Brown Dog Fund UTCVM Development Office 2407 River Drive Knoxville, TN 37996-4550
UT to host H1N1 vaccine clinic Kyle Turner Staff Writer Just in time for exam season when many students are worried about being weathered down, UT will host its first clinic providing the H1N1 vaccine. Free nasal and injection vaccines will be available to UT students, faculty, staff and immediate family members Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the TRECS. All wishing to receive a vaccine are encouraged to come as early as possible. The vaccines are limited and will be given out first come, first served. Available medicine offered will include 250 nasal spray and 350 injection vaccines, with both having equal effectiveness. “They both offer equal protection but are composed differently, the nasal spray being a live virus, and the injections contain a dead strain of the virus,” Jim Boyle, Student Health Service administrator, said. Anyone wanting to get vaccinated should not currently be suffering from any flu-related symptoms. People currently suffering from a fever will not
be given either of the vaccines, Boyle said. “Just wait until you are not sick and instead are healthy before getting an H1N1 vaccine,” Boyle said. The nasal spray is not recommended for those with weak immune systems and chronic illnesses such as asthma, respiratory problems and diabetes. Also, people 50 years or older will have to receive the injection as opposed to the nasal spray. Attending staff will be available to answer questions at the clinic as to whether or not the vaccine is appropriate for everyone. Jim Boyle said there will be a small number of vaccines available Tuesday, but a large quantity has been ordered for the rest of the season. “The state is in charge of allocating the vaccine, and UTK is supposed to have priority in receiving the vaccines,” Boyle said. Due to the limited amount of vaccines, the clinic is expected to administer all 600 doses but will host future clinics upon the arrival of more vaccines. “I plan on receiving the vaccine tomorrow because I really
can’t afford to get sick between now and exam time,” Shelby Maxwell, sophomore in speech pathology, said. “With work and school, getting sick just isn’t an option right now.” Boyle hopes to be able to host another clinic in time for exams to offer protection for students when needed most. “The ideal situation would be to have another flu clinic before final exams, but it is all dependent on the amount of vaccines the university receives in the upcoming days,” he said. Those who become infected with H1N1 can expect the same symptoms as the seasonal flu: fever, cough, sore throat and body aches. People with the flu are encouraged not to seek medical attention because in most cases the flu tends to be relatively mild. According to the UT Health Services Web site, students are encouraged not to come to the health center for flu symptoms unless they are “pregnant, have a chronic illness or suffer complications, such as difficulty breathing, fever that does not come down with medicine, or the inability to keep liquids down.”
Governor prepares for budget cuts The Associated Press Jenna Cross • The Daily Beacon
University of Tennessee head coach Lane Kiffin announced Monday that freshmen wide receiver Nu’Keese Richardson and defensive back Mike Edwards have been permanently dismissed from the football team. “After extensive and thorough research of the situation over the last four days and considering various disciplinary options, I’ve decided it’s in the best interest of our program to remove Nu’Keese and Mike,” Kiffin said. “As I’ve said many times before, we hold our student-athletes to an extremely high standard on and off the field. Our student-athletes must be responsible members of society, and this type of conduct will not be tolerated. “We want a positive culture for our student-athletes that allows them to succeed in the classroom, on the field and in life after college. My hope is that these two young men will learn from their terrible decision. Clearly, their actions have no place in our program.” Janzen Jackson will continue to not be allowed to participate in team activities while Kiffin awaits additional information. —Information from UT Sports
NASHVILLE — Gov. Phil Bredesen kicked off budget hearings Monday for a state spending plan that the Democrat said he anticipates will be the toughest to assemble since he came into office in 2003. “This is not a couple weeks I’m looking forward to,” Bredesen said. “This next six months will be my most difficult time as governor.” While most agencies have been asked to present plans to cut 6 percent from their spending plans for the budget year that begins July 1, the
Bredesen administration has asked for them to prepare an additional 3 percent cut in case economic conditions persist. “That’s on top of an average of 12 percent they reduced in the current year,” state Finance Commissioner Dave Goetz said. “That’s the kind of magnitude of things we’re facing — it’s not simply trimming around the edges.” The Education Department was first to present its spending plan, though it’s in the unusual position among state agencies in that leaders of both parties want to spare school funding from the deep cuts that will be necessary in other
areas. Bredesen said he wants to cover the projected $82 million in inflation and growth costs for K-12 education costs, but warned that cuts remain possible even there. Republican Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey has said other areas where he’d like to avoid further cuts are in mental health and retardation services, where he said “we’ve cut about as much as we can cut.” “If there is a legitimate reason for government to exist, it’s to help those that can’t help themselves,” Ramsey, of Blountville, said. See BUDGET on Page 3