Bella had another bad episode this morning after breakfast. I gave her Benadryl for what seemed like an hour without any improvement in her symptoms. I was scared that, if I left her, I would come back to find her dead so I had to call and reschedule the interview. Then I sucked it up and asked my grandmother for the money to take her to the vet. I had to leave her so they could do x-rays and bloodwork. It took them all day to do so, which means I was a bundle of nerves and pretty much useless all day long.
Four hundred dollars later, this is the prognosis so far:
- Bella has an enlarged heart that is pressing on her windpipe and affecting her breathing.
- Her bronchial tubes are so stopped up, it's like she has bronchitis or asthma. Like the enlarged heart, they are affecting her breathing. The vet said she should be coughing all the time from the two things. She's not, which actually worries me.
- She has a yeast infection all over her body and in her ears...again.
- She's fat and needs to loose weight pronto.
Also surprising, despite the $400 bill, they still don't think any of those problems are causing the crazy spells she's having after eating. I was advised to try to catch the next episode on video and bring it in.
In other words, my pet stress is far from over. It could still be allergies or something else causing the two hour freakouts. Meanwhile, I get to worry that Bella could keel over and die from the enlarged heart at any moment. Isn't that what happens to all those athletes that have never had the first health problem and just fall down and die on the field one day?
I have a feeling I won't sleep tonight. I probably just spend most of the night holding up a compact to Bella's nose to see if she's still breathing.
I guess sleep is overrated anyway.
