Being Grateful

Part of doing the Happiness Challenge for Megan, has made me think about all these things in my life that I am really grateful for. Shubi is one of them. In November of 2003 she became deathly ill. Honest to God, I have never seen an animal get that sick that fast. We were in our camper in Florida with Shubi and puppy, (4 month old) Fritz. We wound up driving from Punta Gorda Florida to Orlando to a specialist who told us quite honestly, “I’m not sure we can save her, but will do all we can.”

Shubi, with baby Greta during her chemo treatments last year.

Shubi a year later, doing well, her fur color has come back some, and she is healthy!!

They managed to get her stabilized and we raced back to New Hampshire and a Neurologist in Maine took over her care. Shubi was diagnosed with GME, (Granulomatous meningoencephalomyelitis is a sporadic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system) They also didn’t hold out much hope and we were told she probably wouldn’t survive through the spring of 2004. Meanwhile they asked if we wanted to try an experimental treatment of massive steroids and chemotherapy.
So yes, my little 20 pound Shubi used steroids! For a while she took 40 mgs. of Prednisone a day. More then most people.
Anyway, my heart ached every time I thought of life without a little dachsie baby in it. So, I started a search. I wrote to many people in Germany, including a woman I knew who bred and judged dachshunds there. She wrote back and arranged for me to get the pick of the little from the Vom Geestmoor Kennels. Hubby is fluent in German (I love this man!) and we called and made arrangements to fly over and pick up our girl (Greta) in May.
By November of 2004 Shubi’s liver could no longer handle the chemotherapy and we had to stop that. Once again, we were told, she probably would not do well. We all waited and expected the worst.
But by springtime of 2005 I saw that she was doing well. She was playing with Greta and Fritz and running around like a puppy herself. In May I made the decision to wean her off the steroids. Slowly I did and she was fine.
Her liver is still a problem, but we switched her to a Science Diet for Liver Diseased doggies and she is now fabulous.
No one can explain this. Everyone felt that she really ought to be a goner by now. But I have to tell you, I know why she is here. While I held her in my arms on that fateful trip to Orlando, I prayed so very hard and I told God, I simply could not stand it if she was taken from me. I know this is rather long winded, but sometimes the things we are the most grateful for are the things that take the most time to explain.
Of course the short version is: I am grateful for Shubi!!!