Winston's Village

Hello! After much internal debate, I've decided to reach out for help.

Many of you know about my pup, Winston. If you don't, then you are missing out! He is one of the best dogs I could've ever hoped for to have in my life. I came across Winston by chance, and I am so happy that I did. My family and I adopted Winston in December 2022. We adopted him from Homeward Trails Rescue located in Fairfax, VA. Winston was found as a street dog in Kosovo. He had been hit by a car and suffered a shattered elbow and was flown to the US and taken in by an amazing foster mom who cared for him in his first initial months in the states. I'm sure it had to be quite the shock to the poor guy to come off of the streets, flown in an airplane (which we all know is unpleasant for companion animals), driven in a car, and brought inside with all kinds of strange new smells, sounds, just everything.

We adopted Winston about 6 months after he was flown to the states; about 2 months after his second birthday. Gavin was just barely 3 years old at the time, so I was hoping that Winston would be okay with him. We couldn't have been more happy with the way that he has just blended into our family so perfectly. It was like he was always meant to be with us. How a supposed "street dog" could just be as comfortable as he is and not even flinch at all the crazy noises coming from our toddler... lol I was shocked, but also incredibly happy.

Fast forward to today, and Winston has since had his damaged limb amputated and has recovered amazingly.. which I'm finding is just his style.. he's not phased by much. It has been almost a year since his limb amputation, and within the past month or two, we now have another medical problem we are trying to overcome. Long story short, Winston has now been diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis. Myasthenia Gravis is a disease in which there is a malfunction in the transmission of signals between the nerves and muscles. It is hard to say what exactly triggered this to happen. From what I've read, it can be triggered by a traumatic event and have a delayed response with symptoms. In his short life, he has had what can be considered multiple traumatic events, so I can't pinpoint what could've caused it. He didn't start showing symptoms that I could see until early in May. We are currently treating him for this, but it could be a long road ahead for him. We are hoping to be able to get him in to remission since that is a possibility, and my family and I will do everything we can to get him there as comfortably as possible.

Those of you that know me know that I have a very hard time asking for help. In order for us to really give Winston what he needs, we need the help. We are trying to get him a "Bailey" chair to help with his feedings (he needs to be fed in a special elevated way now), he is on a strictly soft food diet to help his esophagus heal, he'll need regular check ups, bloodwork, etc. We've also started him on a new medication that has to be specially made to treat his condition. He has already improved a lot since we first started noticing his symptoms, and I am very hopeful that within the next year or so he'll be back to his old peppy self.

I would appreciate anything anyone would be able/willing to offer. Every little bit helps and will go towards getting Winston taken care of. I'll be sure to post updates on his progress along the way. Thank you so much to everyone in advance. It means a lot to me and my family.