Lulu's medical fund
Almost two and a half years ago in January I walked through the doors of a temporary shelter for survivors of dog fighting. As I walked through the kennels for the first time I was overwhelmed by the sweet faces peering out at me from each kennel. Every single dog had their own story to tell, and there were SO many of them. I worked on B and C run that day and for the week that followed. I quickly fell for so many of those little survivors. There was one petite little girl, in the last kennel in C, who wiggle-wormed her way into my heart. She was a beautiful fawn color with light green eyes and the biggest bat ears I'd ever seen. She positively pranced at the kennel door everytime I walked past her. She was wearing a lime green collar (wich sits on my bedside table to this day) and on her kennel was her name "Lulu" and her ID number R3-05. I would return to that shelter to volunteer 3 day out of 7 for the next 8 months.
By April I knew, I needed to take that little bitty pitty home when she was ready. I put my name on her and just like that I was first in line to be her future momma. Everyone who volunteered there often knew. Lu was my dog, just one I could take home yet. That temporary shelter shut down in August after most of the dogs were released into the custody of HSUS. I helped 16 of these dogs find their way into loving homes through Alachua Humane where I was employed. I waited and waited but Lulu's previous owner never had his court date. The remaining dogs were moved into boarding up North, and on my last day in the shelter I sat with Lulu in her kennel and cried. I didn't know when or if my dream of taking her home would ever come true. First a month passed, then two, then six, and it seemed like I may never see her again. I got periodic updates from Daisy, letting me know she was doing well and that she had quickly become a favorite of the staff at the boarding facility.
In August of 2015, I got the call I had been waiting for. The last of the dogs had been released and it was time to bring her home. I met Daisy at a midway point, after a very long drive for both of us. When we arrived Lu's face lit up and so did mine. I was afraid she may have forgotten me, but she lit right up when she saw me! We started the long juorney home with her snoring in her crate in the back of my car. After a full month shut down, we started working on introducing her to my other dogs. She was awkward but learned so quickly. She settled right in, like she belonged there. She has weathered so much change since I brought her home, several moves and learning to co-exist with 5 other dogs in the house hasn't phased her a bit. She is incredible, always so energetic and demanding of affection.
Now comes the hard part. A little over a week ago, Lulu ate part of her collar. It was an inch and a half wide martingale of which about 8 inches was missing. I was keeping a close eye on her for constipation, inappetance, or vomiting. None of those symptoms appeared, instead she seemed to be inflating like a balloon day by day. We payed a visit to Dr. Green at the Community Animal Hospital to try to figure out what was going on. Dr. Green took radiographs that revealed a significant amount of fluid in her abdomen and chest. They were unable to investigate the possible blockage due to the amount of fluid. Dr. Green Referred me to North Florida Veterinary Specialists for a diagnostic ultrasound. Dr. Hopwood at NFVS was had a suspiscion that Lu has an intestinal abnormality leading to loss of protein and subsequently fluid in her abdomen. We are currently waiting for the results of the bloodwork to confirm this suspiscion before they decide a course of action. A few nights ago Lu had what sounded like an asthma attack, she was struggling to get a deep breath and seemed unsteady on her feet. We made a trip to AVES to make sure she was stable. By the time we got there, her breathing had returned to normal but the vet there took a look at her as well. He confirmed the suspiscions of Dr. Hopwood, and reminded me to get the bloodwork done to confirm. She spent the afternoon at the vet yesterday (making her fifth visit in 7 days) to have her blood drawn, a sample of the fluid taken and a urine sample collected. Once we have the results, she will hopefully be on the road to good health.
It has been a really tough week, I have been worried about her constantly and now have the added stress of the vet bills that have accumulated. I waited so long for this little girl and she has already been through so much in such a short life, I want to make sure I can do everything I need to for her to get better. I would appreciate any help that you are willing to give. I love my teeny beastie but I can't continue her treatment without your help. We should have a treatment plan next week, and in order to move forward with it I could really use the support of the #367family and the community that surrounds these little survivors.
Thank you, and know that every little bit counts.
Love Meg