Heidi's Story
Hi everyone, my name is Robin and I'm asking for your help and support. My 3 year old St Bernard named Heidi was diagnosed on January 23, 2007 with Addison’s disease which means her adrenal glands do not produce the proper level of hormones to maintain her weight and stay healthy. She has gone from an active 115 pound dog that loves to run around outside and play, to a very sick dog that is down to 83 pounds and can barely even move from the couch. Since receiving her first monthly injection of a drug called Percorten - V along with her daily dose of Prednisone, Reglan and Prilosec she has gained back 15 pounds in 2 weeks and is on her way back to a healthy happy life. Unfortunately the monthly injection and the other medications that she will need for the rest of her life to survive is very expensive and I can not afford her treatment on my own. Heidi is the most loyal and loving dog that I have ever had. Before I adopted Heidi a little over a year ago, I was morning the loss of my first dog Bingo who at the time had recently past away due to heart problems. Bingo was in my life for almost 12 years before waking up one morning to find that sometime during the night Bingo had died. I was devastated. At that time I thought to myself that I could never love another dog the way I loved Bingo. He was irreplaceable. Then a year and a half after Bingo had past a friend from work told me about Heidi and that her owner could no longer keep her due to extreme allergies. The first time I saw Heidi I just fell in love with her. She had such a strong, playful personality and at that point I just knew that her and I would become life long friends. She has brought so much love and joy in to my life. It was a big difference from having Bingo who was a very small dog to Heidi who normally weighs 115 - 120 pounds. To me it's just means there's more of her to love. Heidi is not just a dog to me, she has become like my fourth child. All of a sudden after having Heidi for about a year I started to notice that she was not acting like her normal self. It almost seamed like she was depressed. I knew something was wrong. She started vomiting after every time she ate and she was eating less and less and losing a lot of weight. She was very weak. I was so worried. I brought her to the vet where they did a lot of tests on her. At first they could not figure out what was wrong with her. They put her on some medication and sent her home. After a week she was getting worse. Still vomiting and losing more weight I took her back to the vet and at that point they figured out that she was suffering from something called Mega - Esophagus which is a condition that caused Heidi's throat to get twisted and infected. It made sense, that's was why she was losing so much weight, her throat was so twisted that every time she would try to eat the food was getting stuck in her throat causing it to come back up. It was like she was actually starving to death. After another a series of blood tests they found that her electrolytes were extremely low and her Adrenal glands were not producing the correct level of hormones which are all signs of Addison's disease. After many trips back and forth to the vet they finally diagnosed her with Addison's disease which is treatable with the proper medications but there is no cure. I love Heidi so much and cannot bare the thought of life without her. The vet said that with the right treatment Heidi will be able to live a normal happy and healthy life. That is why I need your help. Without the expensive treatment she will end up dying and I REFUSE to let that happen. Anyone who can donate anything, even if you can only afford to donate $1.00 every little bit counts and will help Heidi live the life that she deserves. If I cannot find help, I will have no choice but to give her up. I cannot stand to go through the pain of losing another animal especially when I know there is a way to save her. Some people might be asking why am I going through all this trouble for a dog, but to me she is my best friend and her life is just as important as anyone else's. I am dedicated to doing whatever I can to make sure Heidi gets the treatment she needs that is why I am asking for your help. I'm not proud to be asking anyone for help but this is my last hope and I am praying for your compassion and support. I will keep everyone up to date on how she is doing.
Thank you so much for your support. God Bless!
Love Robin & Heidi
There are 3 ways you can make a donation.
1. Make a donation online through Paypal by clicking the "Make A Donation" link below. NOTE that you DO NOT need a Paypal account to donate through Paypal. All you have to do is enter the amount you wish to donate and at the lower part of the page where it says "Dont have a Paypal account?" click continue and you can make a donation with a credit card. debt card or bank account.
2. Mail you're donation to us. If you would like to make a donation via mail send us a message requesting my mailing address and I will be happy to give it to you.
3. Make a donation directly to Heidi's vet's office. If you would like to make a donation this way just send us a message asking for Heidi's vets information.
