Hello everyone.
My name is Sharon Byrd
and my husband is John. I came to this group in July 1999
when my Bichon Luke was diagnosed. Luke was born on September 4, 1990,
and went to the bridge on March 23, 2007. Luke was sick and the first vet
that I took him to misdiagnosed and prescribed Prednisone. Three days later
my husband carried Luke into our present vet clinic where they diagnosed
diabetes in just a few minutes. Luke was so sick that he had to stay 4
days at the vet clinic, on an IV most of the time. When I heard the diagnosis
my heart sank thinking this was the end. I went home and got on the Internet
and thank God, I found this group. Luke holds the record at our vet's office
for living the longest as a diabetic and also was their oldest diabetic
pet. I know that most of my knowledge came from this group.
Luke is proof that diabetes is not a death sentence. One of our vets
said that Luke is proof that a diabetic dog can still live to old age if
they are regulated.
Vinney, Sharon holding Luke, Dusty
We have 3 children and 7 + grandchildren. Our daughter Deb and her children
Rob, Heather, and Ryan live in nearby West Lafayette, IN with her 2 cats
Gloria and Shadow. Our older son Dan, his wife Tanya and 3 children Andrew,
Alex, and Tatiana live in Lebanon, OH near Cincinnati.
Five years ago they adopted 3 siblings from Russia. The youngest just
turned 11 years old. Tanya is pregnant and the baby is due in August.
That is exactly what happens when people adopt. They have 2 mini schnauzers,
Indy &C arolina and 2 cats, Samantha and Max. Our younger son Dennis,
his wife Molly, and daughter Ashley live in Moody, AL near Birmingham.
They have a yellow lab Lizzy and a cat named Simon.
We got Missy about 8 years ago from the animal shelter. They
thought that she was about 4 years old. About the time that Luke
went to the bridge, Missy began loosing weight, was lethargic, drank lots
of water, and peed a lot. I was afraid that she was diabetic, but
she has a nodule on her thyroid. I treat it by applying Methimazole
gel to her inner ear flaps twice a day. She has no diet restrictions
and the schedule is not a rigid 12 hours like insulin. About a year
later she has gained her weight back, is more active, her coat is shiny
again, and she does not drink as much water.
Vinney. Six years ago our daughter in law, Molly, told me that
someone in the Battle Ground area had an ad in the paper for Bichon puppies.
We thought we would never find a breeder nearby. We called and they
had 1 male left. Our granddaughter, Ashley, went with us to check
him out. When we brought Vinney home, we put him on the floor and
Luke sniffed him and seemed to give his approval. Vinney respected
that Luke was Alpha dog until Luke's health declined and it was passed
on to Vinney.
Dusty. 3 1/2 years ago we found out that Vinney's litter mate
sister, Nanny, had 5 male puppies. My husband said we had to get
one. We took our granddaughter, Ashley, with us again. There
were 4 puppies left and John picked out Dusty. Dusty likes to follow his
"Uncle" Vinney around. Vinney and Dusty have trained Dad to take
them for a ride nearly every day in the van.
They also enjoy going to the nearby Battlefield and exploring the grounds.
People are always asking us if they are related and we always say yes,
they are uncle and nephew.
Diabetic Pet's Name: Luke
Breed: Bichon
Birth: 9/4/1990
When Diagnosed: July 1999
Age Diagnosed: 9 years
Weight: 20 1/2 lbs.
Kind of Insulin and Amount Per Injection: Novolin N
Food: Eukanuba Optimum Weight Control (formerly glucose
control)
Do you hometest? (blood, urine and/or observation) Urine
and observation
Other Health Problems? Skin allergies and the last year
or so Luke suffered aging.
Webpage of Pet:
Luke's rainbow page http://www.caninediabetes.org/rbluke.html
Luke's diabetic story http://www.caninediabetes.org/luke.html
Your Location: Battle Ground, Indiana USA
How did the diagnosis of diabetes in your pet change your life? When
we both worked, we had to make sure that one of us made it home in time
for the evening shot. We used to take Luke with us when we traveled.
The last couple of years we started traveling separately so one of us could
stay home with Luke.
From Left to Right, John holding Indy which is Dan & Tanya's dog.
Our son Dan & daughter-in-law Tanya .holding their dog Carolina,
(me, Sharon) holding Luke.
from a Christmas Card Exchange in 1999
Sharon sent this picture to me in a card ---- Judy
I thought I would share this memory with the group.
Sharon thank you for taking time to share your story in a who am I email.
Your story will give encouragement to those just starting down the
winding sometimes bumpy road named diabetes.
It will also show how lifelong friends are made in an email group like
this one. We are an internet family.
If you would like to participate in the Who am I? emails
then contact one of the moderators listed at the bottom of this email
write an introduction, send a picture of your pet
The moderator will send you the blank questions to fill in
Then the moderator will post your email for you....One will be going
out every Monday Morning....This way each pet is the star for a week.
Michael will take the email and turn it into a pdf file and upload
it to the yahoo groups files and I will turn it into an html file for the
website
Judy Dick
Email: queenie@mnsi.net
Karen Baldassarre
Email: kbal37@comcast.net
Michael Jay Smith
Email: smithmj@clearwire.net
Bonnie Iovine
Email: biovine@comcast.net
Josephine
Email: curaduk@aapt.net.au
Jane, Lee and Margo have a lot on their plates right now so the above
moderators are available to do the Who am I Email?
|
