This is Molly, she came to us as an owner surrender at the age of 9.  We noticed that she was overweight and she didn’t like to be picked up as pressure on her tummy bothered her.  All of our animals get checked out by a veterinarian but we decided that Molly needed a more thorough diagnosis, we feared that she might have a tumor in her belly causing the discomfort. 

 

While we were glad the diagnosis did not come back as cancer, our Molly does have Cushing’s Syndrome. Cushing’s syndrome usually occurs as a result of a tumor - often benign – most commonly in the pituitary gland or sometimes in an adrenal gland. The result is the adrenal glands producing an excess of a hormone called Cortisol.  Left unchecked this can result in the symptoms we saw in Molly, excessive eating and drinking as well as deterioration of her fur.  Molly is on medication now that her Doctor expects will improve her condition.  In younger dogs, surgery might be an option but at 9 years old it is probably not a good idea for Molly.  That said we have no intention to give up on her and she isn’t giving up in the least. She is happy right now and still does a dance for her treats.  We think she has plenty of love left to give.

 

So where does that village come in?  Molly’s medication will run about $90 a month and she will need to be tested every 3 months or so to evaluate her progress.  The test is about $180.  Molly has found a long-term foster home which is really the place she needs to be to enjoy her life.  The financial burden is more than we could expect a foster to take on so we are setting up Molly’s fund and are looking for donors who would be willing either to make a one-time donation to Molly’s care or better yet to step up and make monthly donations.  Imagine if we had several people who could donate $5, $10 or more each month.  We think they are out there, could it be you?  We won’t give up on Molly but we need your help. If you are interested, please contact the shelter at 402-562-5683, pawsandclawsne@hotmail.com or donate right through Paypal  Thank you.