My name is Carol and I haven't been here in years because honestly my dog Thor's EPI has been very well controlled for so long. Thank you Diane! I'm sure many people have come and gone in those years but some may still be here and I would like to thank them. and maybe my Thor's story will give those just starting their pets' journey a little hope.
Thor(aka Thorry, Thorsy boy, the best boy, pupper) was first brought to this board's attention by his first owner when he was a puppy. He was diagnosed with EPI very young and due to job loss, her family couldn't afford his enzymes. Her post here certainly read as a last effort to save her beloved dog from euthanasia. Her post was read by a woman in Canada who agreed to adopt him and Olesia and the amazing people here agreed to fund his flight from Arizona to Canada. It still stuns me today that these wonderful people did this for a dog they didn't even know! By all accounts, he was happy with his second owner who worked in a pet shop until she also lost her job. Thor had to be given to a rescue in Welland Ontario.
This is where I come into the story.
My family already had a german shepherd plus 3 little kids and I was not seriously looking for another when I saw his picture on a dog rescue site. I fell in love with his face. We were going to be near the rescue on a mini vacation so I convinced my husband to go see the dog and of course, he came home with us as that is what happens when you go "see" a dog. I was aware he had EPI but I knew nothing about it and when I headed to the internet, I found this site and Thor's story unfolded like a gift. Call it kismet, fate, fortuitous coincidence, I don't know, but I will forever be grateful that this dog came into our lives and this website played a large role in it as well as saving his life at least twice probably more when I think about those early days of managing his EPI.Thor is now 13. He has had a great life. We joke that no one has told him he's a german shepherd and he thinks he's a lab. His personality is best described as happy to be here. It doesn't matter where he is, who he's with, or what he's doing, he has lived every day of his prime with happiness, a lot of goofiness, and some scatterbrain too! However, we lost our other shepherd to bone cancer about a year and half ago and Thor never fully recovered from her loss. He developed Pannus, which we have under control, and he has arthritis in his back legs and spine. It has progressed to the point where is too painful to ask him to continue on. My once happy dog is just too sad and sore and not living his best life anymore. So tomorrow it is time to say goodbye.
Because of so many wonderful people on here, Thor got to live a full life. He went camping, swimming, hiking, had a favourite tree, chased squirrels, ate some bunnies(don't ask: he was fine wiith out enzymes! barely burped), ate my garden clean of tomatoes every darn year, fell in love with the dog next door, took long walks, swims in the lake and felt the love of a family every single day. He did all this while maintaining a weight of around 80 pounds. EPI became something in the background for him, not a death sentence but something very livable. I hope that gives hope to others as he is certainly a success story.
So from the bottom of mine and my family's heart thank you for giving us Thor. Words aren't adequate to express how much we love him. It's easy to think that a forum post is just tha,t but these posts sometimes save lives. Between here and Diane's Enzymes I'm sure there are countless dogs that have had lives just like Thor. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.
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