Help Lulu Get the Medical Care She Needs

Hi everyone. My name is Linda Puig, and my sweet little constant companion is a rescue dog named Lulu, a cattle dog-Corgi-terrier mix with permanent eyeliner.

Lulu spent the first year of her life in the northwestern deserts of Mexico and was one of 17 dogs rescued from a dump and sent to find her forever family (me!) through the organization Compassion Without Borders. The moment I saw her face, I knew she was mine.

It's the classic story of "mutual rescue," as I was super lonely as a solo entrepreneur working from home during the pandemic. She also got me out each day for a vigorous walk or two, and she became my road trip best buddy. We've been to 12 states together so far. And most recently, we drove up to spend 2.5 months with a friend on Vancouver Island.

We were just days away from leaving on July 4 for what I was calling "Linda & Lulu's Epic Road Trip"—driving through British Columbia, then through Idaho, Montana, South Dakota and on down to Texas—when I saw signs of a possible UTI. Understanding that those things can get out of hand fast, I took her to a vet who tested her and found no UTI. If only it had been that simple! Instead, she admitted that Lulu's case was kind of strange. No UTI, but a lot of protein in her urine, and yet no clear source for that. So she retested a few days later. The protein was worse.

Since we were leaving in just 2 days, the doctor gave me some medicine meant to tide her over til we could get to Texas and see a vet. But Lulu went downhill pretty fast. By our third day on the road, she was no longer able to walk for very long without stalling and wanting to go back. SO different from the girl who doesn't normally tucker out—even after 2 hours of walking! Our "epic" road trip became an effort to get to Texas as rapidly as possible, where we were to stay for 5 weeks.

Lulu is really sick. We've now been to 4 vets in the last 4 weeks and are still trying to discover the real problem. The vets are mystified because she's so young (4.5 years) and her kidney scores are only slightly irregular, but there's a huge amount of protein leaking into her urine. So maybe Chronic Kidney Disease, maybe early stage, maybe late stage, maybe not that at all.

She's also queasy and not eating much at all. She's lost almost 4 pounds since this all started, which is a lot for a tiny 22-pound muffin. And when she eats something one day, she's likely to turn her nose up at it the next day. (This is super-strange behavior for her normally very food-motivated self!) I can't tell you how many different types of food I have given her, only to have to throw them away when she won't eat them.

Anyway, the next step is an ultrasound, which is scheduled for Friday (Jul 26). I'm praying this will help clarify what's causing her issues and, hopefully, will indicate a route out of Lulu's problems. She's also got to see an internal medicine specialist, and then she's likely facing a lifetime of medication and testing. We've also been including a Chinese medicine component, supported by the vet we now consider her primary vet while we're here in Austin.

Needless to say, the costs so far have been pretty significant. I've paid $3,000+ in the past 3.5 weeks, and we haven't even hit the big stuff yet, plus the potentially lifetime of medication and testing. And I don't know yet if any surgery or hospitalization will be needed. Bottom line, it's going to be a TON of money.

AND the pet insurance I got for her back at the beginning of April calls what she's going through now a pre-existing condition and won't cover any of it.

I'm not really comfortable asking for donations to Lulu's care, but having just started a new business this year, it's necessary. If you've known and loved Lulu's spunky personality, if you've seen her adorable face on Zoom—or even if you just appreciate the special lives (and sometimes needs) of rescue dogs—I'd so appreciate your contribution.

And if you can't chip in (totally understand), I'd greatly appreciate it if you would share this page.

Those of you who know me know what Lulu means to me. She's so special, and all I can do now is pray that the doctors can discover and treat whatever is causing her issues and making her feel so crappy. I want to have many more years of road trips and long walks. It's all I can ask for.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, contribute or share with your community. It means so much to me.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you!