Long Live Wookey Jack

Those of you who know me know that I am not one to ask for help, nevermind asking for money. But at the urging of my friends I am putting away my pride and asking for your help.


My friend, my companion, my dog, Wookey Jack, has a year left to live. I have always said he has a huge heart, and come to find out, he literally does... and it is going to kill him. I've spent every penny I had available and maxed out all of my credit cards to get Wookey Jack into a stable condition. However, he will now be on a list of cardiac medications for the rest of his life, which is unfortunately only going to be about a year.

I adopted Wookey Jack around Christmas of 2012 in Palo Alto, California. He was rescued during a police raid of a methamphetamine lab where he was found chained to a tree out back, a female pitbull/boxer mix chained to a pole next to him. It appeared Wookey Jack had never been inside the house, properly fed, or even played with. He was left out there to mate with the other dog so that his tyrant of an owner could sell the puppies. Wookey Jack was placed in foster care, along with the female dog and a litter of their puppies. I found the ad for him on Petfinder, and went out to meet him the next day.

My other dog, Riley, and I drove out to Palo Alto in the morning an met Wookey Jack (his name was Bear at that point). I walked into the foster home to find him laying on the floor with his litter of puppies jumping on him and tugging at his floppy ears. He gave me a quick look and continued playing with his children. I would have adopted all of them at this point if I could have.

I knew Wookey Jack had a tough start to life, and I wanted to give him the best life I could. He was only four years old at this point, and the hard times weren't over. I moved back to New Hampshire and Wookey Jack easily adjusted to his new settings. But soon after, he developed a tumor above his rectum. The tumor grew at a rapid pace and it was soon evident it needed to be removed. Wookey Jack returned home stable, and pranced around the neighborhood in a pair of my boxer shorts and a elizabethan collar for the next week.


A few months later, Wookey Jack had another surgery to remove three of his molars that were seriously decaying as a result of the malnutrition and poor care he recieved from his original owners. During the surgery, Wookey Jack suffered a heart blockage. His blood pressure began to drop and narrow, and he became bradycardic. The vetrinarian brought him back with atropine and epinepherine, finished the dental surgery, and kept him for observation while he recovered.

I thought this was the end of his problems. He seemed healthy, and most importantly happy. I looked forward to the many years I would have taking Wookey Jack and Riley on hikes and adventures. 

Things were going great until a few months ago. I took the dogs out to Great Bay where they spent the day running off leash and playing in the ocean. Early the next morning, around 5 am, I was awakened by Wookey Jack having a coughing fit. This wasn't just a cold, his caughs were wet sounding and productive. His breathing was obviously labored and he was coughing up white frothy sputum. I knew exactly what this was, I had seen it a hundred times when I worked as an EMT... Wookey Jack had congestive heart failure (CHF).


The local vetrinarian confirmed it. Wookey Jack had pulmonary edema (fluid in the lungs), atrial fibrilation, and an enlarged heart. We saw a cardiologist a few days later and everything was confirmed. Wookey Jack was in A-fib and suffered from dilated cardiac myopathy. His heart was not adequately able to pump blood through his vascular system and as a result, fluid was backing up into his lungs. The worst news came next. There was nothing we could do to save him, there was no cure. Wookey Jack was given approximately a year to live, but I could make sure his quality of life was the best possible.


I love my dogs as if they were family. Who am I kidding, they are family. The cardiologist placed Wookey Jack on a series of medications and Jack underwent electrical cardioversion to shock his heart back into a normal rythym. Thankfully, the procedure was a success! Wookey Jack was enrolled in a clinical study out of OSU for dogs with his condition to study the effects of a drug called Ranolazine in combination with Amiodarone. One positive thing to come out of all this is the data he provides for the study will help countless other dogs in his condition in the future.

As you can imagine, emergency vet visits, doggy cardiologists, and cardiac medications are very expensive. At one point, I was spending $300 a week getting Wookey Jack the definitive care he needed. His medications cost me about $250 a month, more than the monthly payment for my truck, and all the healthcare I charged to my now maxed out credit cards means the bills will be due soon. 

I hate asking for help. I have always helped other dog oweners and rescue organizations when I could and am hoping that karma will return to me when I need it most, when my dog needs it most. I don't know how I am going to pay off these credit card bills in time, while affording Wookey Jacks daily medications. Wookey Jack is terminally ill, and if something happens in the near future I am afraid I will not have the money to afford another visit to the Vetrinary Emergency Clinic, additional medications, cardiologist visits, or live saving measures he will need.

I love my dog more than anything, and I just want him to have the best possible life with the time he has left. Every good dog deserves a good life, and this poor guy has had enough misfortune in his time.

I know times are tough for us all, and every penny counts. Thank You for hearing my story. Even if you can't afford to donate, I understand. But please consider sharing this page in the hopes that others that may be able to help Wookey Jack will see this page and donate to keep a loving, big hearted Australian Shepherd alive and well.