I was 100% permanently disabled just over 8 years ago when my flower delivery van was struck by 2 wheels that broke loose from a tractor-trailer. It took 34 operations over a 2 & 1/2 year period to save my leg. I will always need a cane in order to walk, & will also always have severe chronic pain. Besides my physical injuries, I suffer from Post traumatic stress disorder, which causes me to suffer from depression & I also have nightmares & flashbacks about the wheels coming toward me. I was 30 years old at the time of the accident, & it changed
life as I knew it forever. I became severely depressed about my
injuries, constant pain, physical limitations & scars, & thinking that I did not want to live like this. My nightmares & flashbacks were constant.
About 6 weeks after my accident, my husband suggested getting a dog, thinking that it might take my mind off of my problems. I agreed, & we decided on a Boston Terrier. We found a breeder who had some pups, & we picked out a little female & named her Ollie (Olivia). My life changed that day. Ollie took my mind off of my problems, pain, etc. & my nightmares, flashbacks & depression were greatly reduced. My Ollie gave me a reason to want to fight & go on despite all of my problems. She gave me a reason to look forward to each new day.
In February of this year we took Ollie to the vet for her routine physical & yearly shots & heartworm test. The test came back negative, & the vet told us that other than being a few pounds overweight, that Ollie was in great shape.
6 days later, we had to rush Ollie to the vet because her breathing was severely labored. They admitted her & took x-rays, an EKG, did blood tests, gave her medications, etc. The diagnosis was congestive heart failure. We were told that dogs can be given medicine, & live for years with this.She got better, but had several acute episodes of labored breathing over the next few months. During these few months, Ollie had
all of the above mentioned tests repeated several times, & had an ultrasound done. We paid hundreds & hundreds of dollars in vet bills, & we still owed a couple of hundred dollars.
In June, her ultrasound was repeated, & she had not gotten any worse, & had remained pretty stable. Until about 3 weeks ago. One night she had another episode of severe labored breathing, needed medications to pull her through it, had all tests repeated, etc.
{I forgot to mention this above--when Ollie was diagnosed, she was put on 3 different medications, plus prescription dog food (canine heart diet) this all osts about $125 per month.}
She had her ultrasound repeated on the 16th of this month, & the results were not good at all. Her heart looked much worse than it had looked on the ultrasound that was done in June. Since Ollie got worse a few weeks ago, the vets have had to double the doseage of her "lasix" the drug that reduces the buildup of fluid around her heart & lungs, & have had to keep her on the high doseage in order to keep her comfortable. Remaining on the high doseage is not good, because lasix is the drug that the vets rely on to help her if she has an cute breathing episode, but if we try to reduce it, she has trouble breathing.
Another drug that she is on is "digoxin". She has to have a blood test done this week to check her "digoxin level" so that the vets can tell if it is safe to increase the doseage of digoxin to try to help her. After that is done the vet told us that there is not much else that canbe done "medically" to help her. We were told to give her enough lasix to "keep her comfortable".
Ollie needs to see a cardiologist SOON! The balance of her vet bill is now over $500, & increasing constantly. The bloodtests that she has to have done this week cost$57 for 1, & $47 for another. It is costing us about $125 per month for her medicine & prescription food, & it will cost between $250 & $280 for her to be seen & tested by a cardiologist at Cornell University--an excellent veterinary school about 60 miles from our home.
I only get $121.59 per week (based on my wages at the time of my accident--8 years ago) from workmans compensation. My husband is an unemployed disabled veteran, & he only gets $440 per month. We have fallen behind in the rent because of trying to keep up with the bills & buy medicine, & our landlord is threatening to evict us. I am down to 85 pounds from skipping meals & stress, & we need help to save Ollie's life, & my own. Because without my Ollie, there is not much in my life right now that would be worth living for.
There is a web site called Bostons in Common where boston terrier owners post messages, pray for sick animals, etc. This great bunch of people are sending checks to Ollie's vet to help with her bills, sending calling cards to me so that I can make long distance calls to vets, & a couple of them have promised to send small checks to me so that I can save up & take Ollie to Cornell. I call these great people "Ollie's Angels" on earth, & I even have an e-mail address for them.
OlliesAngels@webtv.net
The address to Ollies vet is---
Vestal Veterinary Hospital P.C.
2316 Vestal Parkway East
Vestal, New York 13850-1990
Donations sent there should be marked-- for Client 90136--David & Tami
Brown