#juniperbear

[flannelmoth]

I mended some of his dog toys last night. I'd put them up overnight so he wouldnt re-shred him, and put him in a wait while I put them down today... to see which toy he wanted. He picked the candy corn, but ultimately put it down in favor of the rainbow ball, which was his favorite before they were shredded too.

[flannelmoth]

Local dog says good morning!

[flannelmoth]

Hello! For those who don't already know him, this is my dog Juniper, also affectionately known as Juni or Junebug. He is a goldendoodle who is definitely not golden-colored, and he firmly believes that everyone is his friend, even if they disagree.

He is over a year old now (born November 2017) and we have been working with multiple vets to deal with his chronic gastrointestinal problems since he was just a few months old. The problems started minor, but escalated.

So far, based on the reciepts I kept once we were aware that it was a serious chronic issue, we have spent nearly $1400 trying to diagnose and treat him. We don't have an official diagnosis as of right now. We've run many tests, and our current vet has us considering several options which can be pretty pricey, including allergy tests, food trials, gastrointestinal specialists, specialist consults, or clinical trials.

I'm leaving out some specifics here for brevity, but the basics are that we can't afford to keep spending infinitely for a diagnosis, and we very very very much want to find a way to pay for further tests and treatment for Juniper. Any of the options we are looking at would be relatively pricey, but they need done.

(I do know about CareCredit, but given our current finances, my reality is that if I can't afford to pay for it now, I won't be able to pay for it plus interest later.)

And even past Juniper's veterinary costs, several other important life costs have come up: I have a bill from an eye doctor, I need a dental visit, my car needs an oil change, I need a re-check for an infection that does not appear to have gone away and probably more antibiotics, I most likely owe money for the first visit for that infection though I haven't recieved the bill yet, and it would be really nice to be able to look into my current health struggles so i can hopefully fix or manage whatever is causing it and be able to work more/deal with less pain and fatigue.

In short, I would really appreciate some help to deal with dog and life and health expenses if you appreciate my blog or my dog!

Note: While I can't tell you what to do, I would prefer if folks under 18 did not donate, and if folks who would be put in a tight financial spot by it didn't donate. I ask this just because I don't want to put anyone in a bad spot or take advantage of anyone.

My Ko-fi: ko-fi.com/flannelmoth

[flannelmoth]

Ko-fi: ko-fi.com/flannelmoth

Our dog, Juniper has been experiencing serious gastrointestinal flare-ups intermittently since he was about 4 months old. In May 2019, he will be a year and a half old. These flare-ups are a serious health problem, and we don’t have a diagnosis yet, despite us having spent over $1400 on tests, treatment, and special diets so far. We’re trying to raise money to help pay for veterinary care he desperately needs, and our own medical bills that have been put off to take care of our dog.

-

If you are able to donate, it means the world to us! If you can’t give, or if you’d like to help us out in other ways, please link people to this post, or share it with as many people as you can.

For those who don’t already know him, Juniper (also affectionately known as Juni or Junebug) is a goldendoodle who is definitely not golden-colored, and who is my ESA. He firmly believes that everyone is his friend, even if they disagree. He loves tennis balls, especially squeaky ones, and checking bushes for birds. He is incredibly intelligent, and does a myriad of tricks, including “animal impersonations.” He is a blessing to this world, and makes the world so much brighter for being in it. He deserves a life that doesn’t involve him being ill all of the time.

Note: While I can’t tell you what to do, I would prefer if folks under 18 did not donate, and that folks don’t put themselves in a bad financial spot by donating. It’s important to me that I don’t put anyone in a bad place, so please do take care of yourself as well.

—

UPDATE 4/5/19: We learned from the folks running the clinical trial that we were looking into that they sent their pamphlet to our vet in error. Their study is not accepting any more dogs. Unless they run an additional study in the summer, the clinical trial isn’t an available option to us anymore. We will have to find a way to fund any tests that Juniper needs.

-- UPDATE 4/10/19: Juniper had a vet appointment yesterday! The bill was $215. We did: - 3 vaccines - heartworm test - ran a CPLI blood panel, which tests his pancreas (waiting on results) - 3 day course of panacur (a dewormer) Next week, we will likely have to purchase: - new hydrolyzed prescription food - monthly preventative meds - more probiotics I'm estimating that those 3 together will be around $110 if we get a small bag of food. So far we have raised $165 ($225 if Facebook's fundraiser works, though we are having difficulties with it because they want bank numbers directly), which makes a big difference, but we can really use more help! Please keep sharing this post! -- UPDATE 4/12/19: The results for the CPLI test came back normal, which means it isnt pancreatitis or EPI causing Juni's health issues. We're starting a 3 day course of panacur today, and we'll see if it changes anything.

[flannelmoth]

This pup isn't feeling great. Now we just wait for a vet call.