July 3, 2012: Maggie's Pancreatitis

I decided this morning that I needed to schedule an appointment for Maggie to see the vet, as she had been laying on the floor of the living room for 2 days, not wanting to move, go outside, eat, or drink. Poor thing looked so sad and I didn't know what I could do to take away her pain.

I left work and took Maggie to Clarke Animal Hospital.   The vet technician had a hard time getting Maggie out of her crate. She held on for dear life.   Maggie usually is not like that with people. She is usually excited to see everyone at the vet, so I knew something wasn't right.   The doctor did some blood work and found some elevated enzyme levels in the gall bladder, so she thought it might be that.   She recommended that Maggie get an ultrasound to give them a better idea.    They didn't have the ultrasound equipment there at the vet, so I had to go to the emergency vet, Michigan Veterinarian Specialists, in Grand Rapids on Michigan St.     

We got to Grand Rapids and brought Maggie into the vet.   Maggie had her ultrasound, which took about 2 hours.    Mom and I waited in the waiting room the whole time. There were alot of other dogs at the vet today, probably because of the holiday.

The doctor had me come in the exam room and said that the ultrasound showed nothing wrong with the kidney, liver, or gall bladder, but there was severe inflammation of the pancreas.   She was diagnosed with Pancreatitis, which is a painful gastrointestinal disease.   The vet recommended she be hospitalized for a couple of days.    She would get fed intravenously water and nutrients.  Plus, she would get a plasma transfusion, which is donated from another dog.     I was given the estimate on the cost of $2500 on the low end and $3500 on the high end.  I swear I almost had a heart attack.    I know my mom freaked out at the bill too and her first reaction was to put Maggie down, which is not what I wanted to do, as Maggie is only 8 years old.    We went back to see where Maggie would be staying and she looked so bright eyed which melted my heart. 

Maggie is my baby and I would like to keep her in my life as long as possible, but not put her in a bunch of pain.    It was hard to leave Maggie at the hospital, but I knew she would get good care there.  

Later on, we went to Barnes and Noble and I talked with the girls I sit with there which made me feel a little better. Many of my friends posted on facebook that they were praying for Maggie.   

On our way home, my mom said she felt bad thinking about putting Maggie down, but that she was stressed with not having the closing date on the condo and then me putting out all of this money on Maggie at the vets lately.  She said she would never forget Maggie's bright eyes looking at us at the vet.

I prayed that night before I went to sleep that Maggie would heal and make a full recovery.