While visiting our daughters and grandchildren for Thanksgiving, Jon started feeling really run down, cold and over all miserable. He was seen thru telehealth and Urgent Care, told it was just a viral infection but would eventually get better. In early December, we trekked back to Virginia where the symptoms got worse, not better, with the medications. That next week he went to his PCM who decided to run a bunch of blood work to see what was happening internally. That's where they noticed that there were no platelets in his blood. We rushed to the ER and started our journey. Through a lot of scary incidents, specialists, hospitalizations, etc - he finally has a diagnosis. He has been diagnosed with ITP and what seems to be an extremely aggressive case of Lupus.

Since early December, Jon has had many ER trips, a few ICU stays, and a few weeks of being admitted into the hospital. Thankfully our insurance is phenomenal and all of these stays and medications aren't killing us out of pocket. However, those aren't the only costs that come with this journey. Zorro's kennel costs, gas going to and from the hospital (over 2 hours away each way), and cost of food and lodging gets spendy quickly. And that's just the beginning. Because of my own limitations due to medical conditions, Christy has had to come out to help out with both real life and the hospital life. Except she can't stay for an extended amount of time due to her own life and kids, which is having us looking at plane tickets back and forth from IL and VA. Also the cost of Uber from the airport to the hospital. That is also a huge expense that seems to be becoming necessary.

So with all of that, we are asking, if you are able, for any help you are able to give. Any money donated will go to making sure Zorro is loved and cared for at Cavalier Kennels, we are able to afford the back and forth trips to the hospitals, can eat and sleep while at the hospital, and when needed Christy can come out here to help. We are grateful for everyone who has been along for the journey with us from checking in, asking how they can help, gifted what they could. All support has been incredible and we appreciate every single one you.