For Angel's Hypoglycemia

Hi friends, my sister, Christine and I have opened up this GoFundMe campaign for our dog Angel. 

Angel is 6 years old, turning 7 in May, and is a small Yorkshire Terrier. We first welcomed her into our family back in 2010 and she's been the baby of our family since. 


Angel has had a history of vomiting, diarrhea, and lack of appetite. We thought it was because she had very weak teeth and wasn't able to eat/digest properly. Our veterinarian recommended that our dogs have a dental cleaning done to remove/clean her weak teeth so three days ago, on Wednesday March 22nd, we brought them to the vet. After the procedure was finished, Angel seemed weak and "out of it", which we thought was because she had gotten most of her front teeth removed. She wasn't eating and was lethargic for the rest of the night. She refused to eat anything on Thursday morning and afternoon as well. After work, I took her to my bed because she was shivering so I tried to keep her warm. She slept for about two hours and then I noticed that instead of shivering, her whole body was twitching every few seconds and her eyes were open. She had shivered a lot before but I had never seen her twitch so I tried to call her name but she wouldn't look or respond to me, though her eyes were open. She started to make biting movements with her mouth uncontrollably and was foaming. On our way to the doctor (she was still seizuring), she started to have another stronger seizure within the first one. Her whole body was convulsing in my arms and her mouth was wide open, head tilted back, eyes rolled back and was making gagging noises. As she came out of both seizures, she just sat quietly and still in my arms and was breathing very slowly. I thought that she had died  because she was so still and my heart felt like it was being ripped apart, but then she looked up at me. We got to the clinic and the vet (different from our usual vet) requested an immediate transfer to a 24 hour hospital where she would be tested, monitored, and under seizure watch at all times. Later that night, she had another seizure when she arrived at the hospital but hasn't had another one since. 

Basically, after all the tests and monitoring and rest, we found out that she has hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia is when their blood sugar drops and becomes too low. Hypoglycemia causes seizures and can be life threatening. Hypoglycemia, however, is not a disease, it is a symptom of another underlying cause. During the past two days, Angel has been syringe fed and attached to an IV that injects dextrose (glucose) into her blood. Even with the fluids and dextrose, her blood sugar levels continue to drop below normal levels every few hours. She doesn't eat on her own at all, not even her favorite treats. She's had X-Rays done to see if there is any gas in her organs or abnormalities that might cause glucose to secrete out of her blood but her X Rays came out fine. Therefore, now they think that it could be an insulinoma. The pancreas regulates dog's sugar levels and insulinoma is a tumor in the pancreas that affects the sugar level regulation. If it is insulinoma, she will most likely have to have surgery to remove the tumor, and if it is not, then they are planning on referring us to an internal medicine specialist to have ultrasounds done to see what else it could possibly be. 

The doctors here are amazing and they really care about the animals and try to do what's best for them. However,   the first 24 hours alone cost $1,400 and every 24 hours after costs about $500. The X-Rays and blood test to identify the insulinoma cost another $1,000 and the results won't come out until Monday. If it is insulinoma, the surgery will cost about another $1,000 and if it isn't, the consultation / ultrasound with the internal medicine specialist alone will be about $800-$1,000 not including the 24 hour fees at either hospital. Angel doesn't have health insurance because she hasn't had any major health problems in the past and so all of this money has to come out of pocket. Because she needs to stay in the hospital with her IV's, syringe feeding, and blood sugar level monitoring, the 24 hour fees are starting to add up, especially more if we can't find the underlying cause of her hypoglycemia. Since we have no way of knowing how long exactly she'll be there for, we roughly estimated and are trying to raise about $5,000 (along with our paychecks and savings) so that we can keep her in the hospital for at least a week longer and afford all the tests and treatments. 

Many animal owners and animal lovers know that pets are more than just animals- my dogs really are part of our family and we find joy when we are with them and also grieve and mourn when they are hurt or lost. 


For me, personally, Angel is even more special because God has shown his goodness, faithfulness, and sovereignty to me through her before. As some of you may or may not know, Angel was missing for three days 3 years ago. During those three days, I was really wrestling with myself and with God because I didn't understand how or why God would try to "teach me a lesson" in that way. I was struggling with feeling bitter towards God but also wanting to be one who would wholeheartedly trust in Him and in His plans. Because I didn't know where she was, whether she was roaming outside, taken in by someone, at an adoption center, whether she was safe or not, whether she was alive or not, I was on the brink of going insane trying to figure out how to utilize every minute in the best way. Should I post up more flyers? Should I check the adoption centers? Should I just go physically looking for her around my neighborhood? Should I put her ad in the newspaper? Every day that passed, I lost more hope and on the third night before I went to bed, I was staring at my ceiling thinking about her.  For the first time, I let go and verbally spoke a prayer saying, "God, whether Angel is found or not, I'm going to praise you because I know you are still God, and I know you are still good, and I know you are still sovereign. And honestly, I don't know if my heart truly believes that, but I know there is power in declaration so I'm declaring it anyways." This prayer had been in the back of my mind all of those three days but I wasn't able to get myself to say it before because I was afraid that then I was really acknowledging the possibility that she might not be found. But as I nodded off to sleep, exactly 10 minutes after, two friends who had been walking around my neighborhood had found her and we brought her home.



She's been a testimony to me of God's relentlessness, and through that, has revealed to me His heart of always searching and never giving up on my own heart. She is a testimony of His goodness, provision, and sovereignty to me and so, seeing her like this is so so hard but I'm choosing to trust in God again, no matter the outcome. I believe that even though we may not understand, He only wants the best for us and gives us so much more than we could even ask for. Though it may not be in the way that I expect or want, I know He works for my good and can bring joy in any circumstance. 

To be completely honest, I personally have a hard time asking for even prayer requests or favors, so creating this campaign in itself and being vulnerable and in a place of need has made it really difficult to put this into action. But I felt like God was moving me to share a little bit of my testimony through this opportunity and to practice being vulnerable, knowing that we are surrounded by so many loving sisters and brothers.  

With that being said, here are some of our prayer requests: 
-That we can find the exact underlying cause of her hypoglycemia. 
-If it is insulinoma, that the tumor has not spread to other parts of her body.
-That we can provide financially for effective treatment for the underlying cause, whether it be surgery or other medical treatments. 
-That she would recover well and be healed completely. 
-For peace and joy over my family and for Angel through this time and at the end of it, whatever the outcome. 

So, my family and I, we are asking first and foremost for your prayers. And if you would like to donate, no matter how much (but you are definitely not obligated or expected to at all whatsoever) we are so so so utterly and beyond thankful for all of your prayerful support and financial support. 


With love,
Jenn & Christine