Fall 2012/Winter 2013 Aesculapian Magazine - University of ...

My wife was falling to pieces. His condition was not good
and we didn’t know what would happen to him.”
The next several days were a roller coaster of emotions,
filled with uncertainty, then optimism, then more
concerns.
“The miracle of Rascal was actually two-fold,” recalls
Mazzola. “The first miracle was surviving the first 24
hours and then a five-hour surgery. The second major
miracle came when E. coli bacteria set in a few days after
the accident. For the second time, we were told the next 24
hours would be critical. And again, he pulled through.”
Through all of Rascal’s peaks and valleys during his stay
at the hospital, John Mazzola was there almost every day.
Several nights he even stayed in a local hotel to ensure he
could visit early the next morning.
“The miracle of Rascal was actually
two-fold,” recalls Mazzola. “The
first miracle was surviving the first
24 hours and then a five-hour surgery.
The second major miracle
came when E. coli bacteria set in a
few days after the accident. For the
second time, we were told the next
24 hours would be critical. And
again, he pulled through.”
must have been painful, the hospital staff at UGA always
made sure Rascal was comfortable. I think he got better
care there than most people get in a human hospital. If
anything happens to me, take me to the veterinary
hospital!” says Mazzola.
Now, more than five months after the surgery, Rascal is
doing great.
“The fact that Rascal is alive today really is a miracle,”
asserts Mazzola. “Rascal is back to his old self. He jumps
on the sofa and wants to do everything he used to do. He
has gained some weight, too, and you can’t really tell where
his scars are.”
“You need to know that my local veterinarian did not
think that Rascal would live long enough to get from Gray
to Athens, but she did not realize that Rascal was in God’s
hands,” recalls Mazzola. “He got us there, and He knew
that your faculty and staff would do the rest.”
“Every morning started with an update of how Rascal
had done the night before, and what time I could see him
that day,” remembers Mazzola. “In the first 72 hours, I
must have gotten six phone calls with updates, plus my
visits. I thought that was really great to reassure me at such
a critical time.”
Mazzola really got to know the receptionists, the doctors,
the veterinary technicians, and the rest of the staff during
his frequent visits.
“After all that he went through, and knowing that it
Rascal
Photo courtesy of Carmen Studio Story
Aesculapian Fall 2012/Winter 2013 12