Pennies for Penny

About Penny
Penny is my beautiful 9 year old miniature pinscher-shitzu mix. She is 7 pounds, has horribly bad breath, and the cutest little button nose. She'll bark sometimes, but most of the time she just wants to be friends. She loves chicken, shredded cheese, and peanut butter sandwiches. :)

Penny was born on November 10th, 2004. Her Mommy is my Mommy's dog, so I've literally loved her since the day she was born. In the middle of the night, I heard little peeps coming from my brother's bed. When I looked, I saw two small black puppies. I heard more noise, so I moved the blankets around and saw an adorable, tiny tan puppy with a white stripe on her head. She was the runt, and she was perfect. Her name was Penny. :)

Penny's Fight
Two nights ago, my sweet Penny came wobbling up the stairs, disoriented and confused. After loving on her and watching her slowly return to herself, I dismissed the episode and thought "I'll just keep an eye on her before I take her to the vet." It wasn't until later that night, it happened again. She urinated, started swaying, could not hold her head up, and seemed very confused. I decide it was time to take her to the vet.  I was hoping that I was just overreacting, you know, the way mothers do! I was hoping I would unnecessarily pay $200 to have the vet tell me I'm just paranoid. Unfortunately, that was not the case. Today, I took Penny to see her doctor. She immediately told me that Penny needed to be taken to an animal hospital across town, because they didn't have the hours or the manpower to give her the kind of care she needs. She told me Penny was severely anemic and wouldn't make it through the night without aggressive care. We took Penny to a 24-hour Emergency Vet facility, and they were all very friendly and sweet. A very nice doctor came in and discussed her thoughts with us. She thought that Penny had something called Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia. (IMHA)

IMHA is a disease where the body's own immune system actually attacks it's own red blood cells. Red blood cells are in charge of carrying oxygen to Penny's tissue. Without oxygen, she wont make it. In order to save my beautiful Penny, she needs around the clock care. She needs constant monitoring, constant IV fluids and medications, and possibly a blood transfusion depending on how she responds to the medication.

The total cost for tonight only was nearly $700 total. This is my baby. This is Penny, the best dog in the entire world. The dog that runs up to people wagging her cute little curly tail. The dog that sleeps at the foot of my bed. The dog I've had since I was sixteen and loved every single minute. She knows every member in her family... by name! Penny is loved by everyone who has ever met her. She deserves a chance, and I need help to give her that chance. She will need between $2000-$4000 in care and medication. I can't do it alone. Please, for Penny.