Joanie Update

QUOTE OF THE DAY: (Gussie courtesy of DROH)

"A door is what a dog is always on the wrong side of."

-- Ogden Nash

Hi dear friends,

There has been another update on Joanie but it isn't good. Some of you may have read about what is happening on Raising Addie's blog but for those of you who haven't here is the update from October 15.

http://www.atdr.org/info/display?PageID=6597










October 15, 2009 - For all you wonderful people out there who have been keeping up with, contributing to, and praying for Joanie's recovery, we have an update for you. We wish with all our hearts it could be a more positive update, but it simply isn't. Joanie is going to need all the contributions, healing rays and prayers you can possibly send her way. She is now in an even more dire fight for her life, but Fighting She Is.





Within days of our last update Joanie started waking up in the middle of the night barking. Her foster mom would find her standing in a corner staring at the wall. She seemed a bit disoriented but she knew who her Mom was when she picked her up and returned her to her bed. Our first thought was she had a touch of dementia or maybe her little eyes were beginning to fail. Some nights she would stay in her bed and bark until her foster mom would go to her so she then began to think that maybe she was creating a monster of sorts. This week Joanie got into a corner between the computer desk and the wall - it is maybe 8 inches wide - and must have panicked. She may have been trying to claw her way out or trying to get turned around; she scratched herself up quite a bit and was completely undone and exhausted when her foster mom found her. Joanie had quite an emotional setback over this incident and she even refused to eat! The following day she appeared even more disoriented and her mom began syringing electrolytes down her every few hours and got some of the recovery canned food down her in the same fashion. Joanie slept a great deal and would make no attempt whatsoever to mobilize herself. The following morning her foster mom took her to our vet, Dr. Powell.





She weighed in at 7 lbs, had blood work done and her electrolytes were checked. Electrolytes were normal. All the important blood levels where significantly lower than they had been in mid August at A&M. We discussed her episode from a few days prior and the possibility of her developing dementia. It is Dr. Powell's opinion that what we were seeing, and probably have been seeing over the past few weeks, is the brain's reaction to the body's inability to absorb the necessary nutrients to function normally.





His observation was as follows: The intestinal wall is thickened due to the cellular constitution and the only way to diagnose the condition further is to do a biopsy. The procedure requires anesthesia and Joanie would probably not do well or survive the process. This would only enable us to put a label on the problem, but the risks are just too high to even attempt this. Dr. Powell's recommended course of action is to give Joanie whatever she wants to eat, WHENEVER she wants to eat it! So, we are trying different foods to find out what is most palatable for Joanie. The last few days, she is loving hamburger patties, and that is encouraging.

We know so many of you are with us when we say this breaks our hearts. Our Joanie has fought so hard to live. We must be heartened though by the fact that in the last few months she has known more wonderful care, more soft beds, more great food, and more love and prayers than most of us get in a lifetime. So if you will, please continue sending positive thoughts and prayers Joanie's way until it's time for her to end her struggles. Joanie is doing everything in her power to continue her fight for life, the least we can do is whatever we can to assist her. Again, thank all of you who have kept her in your thoughts, made donations to her care, and cared about such a deserving spirit.

We don't know what to say. Poor, sweet Joanie has been through so much and now this. Mommy is broken hearted. Angel Samantha and all the other doggies we have all loved and lost will take good care of her when her time comes but we don't want her to go. Please keep the prayers coming. Joanie we love you so much and may our Lord and savior keep you in the palm of his hand!!

This is not a very happy post, so since Mommy was able to load a video, maybe it will make you laugh a little.

Love, kisses and {{{huggies}}} to all.....Mona