Meet My Buddy Buttons

Our dog Buttons has been fighting with an illness that caught us all by surprise. He was hospitalized since Tuesday morning and we have not been able to get a diagnosis from the doctors. He was transfered from the Petsmart/Bansfield hospital, to the emergency room and now into a neurologist clinic in order to determine the source of his illness. Buttons is an amazing loving dog, very loyal, sweet and playful with kids and we cant wait to have him back in our home.

Buttons' brain is swollen but we do not yet know if it is due to encephalitis or meningitis. His behavior in the days before being hospitalized lead us to belief that he has steroid responsive meningitis which is an inflammation of the brain due to bacteria but we are still not certain of the actual problem. Doctors have been attacking this bacteria with steroids but he has not responded very well and they fear that this is now an auto immune meningitis or encephalitis but they are not sure. This means that his body thinks that there is an infection in the brain and it starts responding with fever and inflammation in order to kill the bacteria. The problem is that If the doctors decide to suppress his auto immune system in order to decrease the inflammation and instead he has a bacterial meningitis then he could die because his immune system would be shut off to fight the infection.

The doctor has seen worst cases and he told me that he has Buttons is under control but they need additional tests in order to start attacking the problem. He feels confident that if we proceed with the additional tests we will be able to identify the problem and attack it either by suppressing his immune system or with stronger medicine to kill the bacteria.


Please continue to pray for him so Buttons can have a fast recovery to have him back home soon. Your support for our buddy is very much appreciated and we look forward to celebrate his return to our home in a few days.