March 2005:
I am a one-year-old spunky little fellow, although I kinda hit a brick wall for my early years. You see, I was just recently in the hospital and they told me I have this Addison’s disease. I was bummed to say the least, but at that time, at least I was being taken care of by some really wonderful folks at Pet Pavilion emergency in Olympia Washington.
It all started when I was only 8 months old. Up until that time I was growing like a weed, eating everything in sight and having a grand old time exploring the world from my puppy point of view. I started to get more tired every day and just didn’t feel like my old puppy self. I didn’t want to play with my good pal- a twelve-year-old Scottie named Emma- she had actually been my mom as I was growing up. I just didn’t understand- especially when I started not feeling hungry, then I started vomiting even though I hadn’t eaten anything. Plus I started shaking like I was cold and getting very wobbly on my puppy legs. Not at all like my old self.
My then mom and family took me into my Doc, who said he couldn’t find anything wrong and sent me home again. Well about a week later the same thing happened although this time it was worse- I was not eating at all and shaking and sleeping a whole lot. I didn’t even feel like playing at all.
At the end of February- things got really bad, I just couldn’t make it anymore- my tremors had gotten really bad, I was not eating anything so I had lost almost half my weight and I was a really sick fellow. My then family decided I had to go to the emergency room. Boy, I was glad they took me in, ’cause the Docs took one look at me and threw me on some IV Fluids. I was in shock and my heart was not functioning properly. I was so weak I couldn’t even stand anymore, and I couldn’t stop shaking.
Those nice folks kept me alive with the fluids and started giving me all these tests. They were smart Docs- they figured out right away that I probably had something they kept calling “Addison’s” I wasn’t sure what they were talking about since I was sleeping a whole bunch and felt really, really horrible. The Docs at the emergency room told my then family I was really sick and would need care for the rest of my doggie life. They were really upset. My then family really loved me but had a new baby, a new house, and lots of expenses so they would have a hard time affording my medicines and care. The emergency room bills were a lot anyway, plus having to give me medications.
But they were really upset and wanted to find me a good forever home, so they called the Westie rescue foundation to see if there was anybody who could take me instead of having to put me to sleep. I was sleeping a lot, but that kind of sleep was different. The Westie rescue folks knew of this nice lady named Anne who had been looking for another Westie to adopt to be a companion to her then “big brother” Westie Macduff, who is two years old. She got a call at 9:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 26th, the lady at Westie Rescue of Missouri and Illinois who told her my story and asked her if she wanted to adopt me.
Well, my new forever mom is a Vet Tech, so she knew right away how serious my condition was and what kind of care I would need. But she was not afraid of my being sick, so she called the hospital and my family right away to make arrangements to come and pick me up and adopt me. She knew I would need to be closely monitored because my family had to take me out of the emergency care facility sooner than I should have because they couldn’t afford it. My new forever mom knew I was still a pretty sick boy. She arranged to drive an hour and a half down to Tacoma from her home in Carnation to pick me up on Sunday the 27th of February. I met her on Sunday and immediately crawled into her lap; I knew she was a good forever mom right away.
I didn’t meet my new big brother MacDuff until I got to my new home. My new home is on a beautiful lake that faces these big mountains. We have a big yard that goes down to the water, which I love to play in.
My new forever mom kept me really quiet and let me rest in my Crate for the first few days. I had my first Doc appointment after she got the final results from the ACTH tests done at the emergency clinic. They knew then that I had this Addison’s thing. Well, my new forever mom knows about all that stuff, so she made appointments with her Vets and took me in right away to get me started on my maintenance meds. I am now on those, I take Flurocortisone Acetate tablets and Prednisone. Big names for such a little guy! I am eating like a horse, my mom is trying to put my weight back on so she is giving me roasted chicken meat with my dinner every night and boy do I go crazy for that!
I know I look kinda scrawny here- but I have gained four pounds since the above picture was taken!
I get to go for a hike every day and now that I can run again, it feels so good to have a big brother to chase and show me the ropes! I was an indoor dog before, so the woods are new and there is all kind of smells which are new to me.
My new forever mom had a time of it through the first two weeks. The meds made me go outside every half an hour for the first week. I had a lot of accidents. But mom was patient with me because she knew I couldn’t control it until my muscles got stronger again. Then it slowed down to every hour-even at night, so we didn’t get much rest. But now I can sleep through the night, and I quit shaking finally so my legs are getting stronger every day.
My new forever mom is really strict about making me take my medicine on time every day, but I know it is making me feel better, so I do it for her. She is letting me sleep on the bed now with big Brother MacDuff and I feel really, really lucky to have found this new forever home and be getting my strength back!
I am still not out of the woods yet though and my forever mom thinks I may have something wrong with my left back leg,,,,,,but she tells me just to take one day at a time and we’ll get there!
I know it will still take a few months before I feel completely like my old self- but I trust my new forever mom, she really knows how to take care of me! And my new Big Brother is so nice and patient with me- even when I steal his food or toys. Here’s a picture of me with my Big brother MacDuff on the left- he is letting me share his favorite chair with him!
So thanks WestieMed for finding me my new forever Mom and big brother! I am one lucky Westie dog!
Shelby
Update May 2005:
Well hello all you Westie lovers!
Shelby’s my name and getting’ healthy is my game!
I have been living with my new family, Mom, older brother Mac Duff and a really BIG cat named Comet (who I like to hassle a lot) for about four months now! I was rescued and kept alive from certain mortality at the beginning of February 2005, after I was in the hospital and diagnosed with life-threatening Addison’s disease. Since then my Mom and my great Doc, Dr. Longley have been taking really great care of me and monitoring my electrolyte balance, and increasing my meds three times! My Ratio of Sodium to Potassium is now at about thirty, which is a really HUGE improvement! And WestieMed is helping my mom out with my treatments!
My life is so great now- I get to go out and run and hike every day. Now I can even out-run my older brother Mac Duff and boy, does that make me feel good! My muscles are really starting to come in and fill out. And my hair is growing back thick and healthy. When I was really sick before I was rescued, my muscles had atrophied so badly I could hardly stand, and my hair was falling out all over the place! And you know what- since I am getting calcium in my body now- my bones have grown and I have gotten bigger! Mom has also been feeding me cooked chicken as a diet supplement and BOY do I LOVE chicken!
Here are some updated pics so you can see how handsome I am and how well I am doing.
Pretty soon I will he hairier and bigger than Mac Duff! I am happy ’cause I am really starting to enjoy life, and not being sick all the time is really, really great! Here’s a picture of me and big bother Duff. I’m the guy on the right. I think I am starting to look more like a Westie–right?
And here’s one of me smellin’ the chicken dinner cooking! See the hair re-growing in on my legs–and LOOK how big my paws are! What more could a Westie want–right!
Thanks again WestieMed- it is so great to feel healthy again!
Shelby
Update November 15, 2019:
It is with a very sad heart I am writing this final chapter to Shelby’s story. He sadly left me and went over the Rainbow Bridge last Friday, November 8th, 2019.
Shelby not only survived and lived well his whole life with his Addison’s disease, but he also BEAT cancer! He has diagnosed in 2015 with Stage five Lymphoma, went through Chemo, and was also given the new monoclonal antibody treatments for lymphoma. He was still in remission when he passed away.
He was a force to be reckoned with.
He had such a “Joi de Vivre”! He was a wonderful, happy go lucky fellow who LOVED to chase chipmunks with his big brother Duff, who sadly preceded him.
But he just couldn’t beat the Monster KIDNEY failure. He gave it his all, was such a joy in my life and he will always be loved and missed every day of my life.
Thank you WestieMed for bringing this loving, wonderful boy into our lives and for all the help and wonderful years you all made possible for us to enjoy together.