Ellie Mae Lhasa Apso Louisville, KY

“DIABETES DOES NOT DEFINE ME”

NAME: Ellie Mae
BREED: Lhasa Apso
AGE: 5 Years Old
WEIGHT: 16 Pounds
Another companion canine friend or equal size or smaller is a must.
Fenced in yard above ground.
Requires insulin shots twice daily.
Recently had cataract surgery.
Funny, sweet, delightful and cuddly.
Needs someone who is home a great deal.
Older children or no children home.
Adoption Fee - $225.00 plus 6% sales tax.

RESCUE THROUGH MY EYES

Hi. My name is Ellie Mae and I am a five-year-old Lhasa Apso. I would like to share with you a little bit about myself and my backstory.

I woke up one morning and was not feeling very well. After a few weeks I noticed I was losing weight and getting weak. I continued to feel bad for the next couple of months. Then something happened and I heard that I was going to live in a new place. I was scared, sick, and did not know what would happen next. I heard the word “foster” and I did not know what that word meant. When I met my foster mom, Patti, she scooped me up in her arms and I felt like everything would be OK. She took me straight to her house, telling me the whole way that she was going to take good care of me.

My new foster mom was worried because I was very thin and stumbled a lot and knew that I needed immediate veterinary care. She contacted the Shamrock Foundation, and guess what! They immediately wanted to help. Shamrock quickly got the ball rolling and soon I had an appointment with Elk Creek Animal Hospital. I was so excited to find out why I was feeling so bad. Before my appointment something very bad happened. I woke up one morning and everything was dark, even though I had my eyes opened. My foster mom took me outside to go to the bathroom, but I could not see her, the grass, or anything else. I could hear her voice but could not see her. My foster mom also noticed something was wrong and helped me inside. She told me, “I know you are scared but you are loved and we will get through this.” My appointment with Elk Creek Animal Hospital was finally here and I was examined by a very nice lady named Dr. Joni Lindquist. She was very thorough checking me out from head to paw, even testing my blood. Dr. Lindquist came back in the room, and from her voice I knew it was bad. I heard the words “diabetic” and “totally blind.” I also heard words like “insulin,” “needles” and “eye drops,” all of which I had no idea what that meant or what would happen next. I did know that all of this made my foster mom very upset.

So here is where my real battle begins. To keep me alive and my diabetes under control, I began getting daily insulin shots and had to eat special food (yuck). This was very hard on both me and my foster mom, but we did it. I had to make several trips to Elk Creek to check my blood sugar and weight. After two months I noticed I was feeling much better and that was because my diabetes was finally under control. Soon I was healthy enough to begin the best part of my journey, which started with a visit to an excellent eye specialist, Dr. Jason Clark at Metropolitan Animal Veterinary. I really liked him because he was really nice and talked a lot with my foster mom about my care. He examined my eyes and did some special tests, then told my foster mom I was a great candidate for cataract eye surgery. I could not believe that it may be possible for me to see again! When they scheduled my surgery I was very happy, but the best was yet to come. When I woke up from surgery and saw Dr. Clark and his assistants. That was the happiest day of my life! When my foster mom picked me up I could see her crying; not because she was sad, but because she was so happy. When I got home and went outside it was so nice to once again see the grass and the birds. I have to wear this silly cone for one more week, but I feel like the luckiest dog in the world to have my foster mom and the great people of the Shamrock Foundation.

Also I want to thank everyone who donated to the Shamrock Animal Foundation on my behalf. Because of all the wonderful people who cared about me, I have the precious gift of my sight.

Love, Ellie Mae

cc: 04/09/2020