Jozie’s Story: Severe Paralysis & Loss of Bladder Control

First, I would like to personally thank you and Linda Arndt for your professional and friendly service. The phone calls and emails of concern for my dog, Jozie, really touched my heart as well as helping me through this ordeal. Secondly, I would like for others who are experiencing health problems with their pets to read about my experience. It’s lengthy, so get a cup of coffee, get comfy and read on…

A Little about Jozie

I would like to begin by telling you a little bit about my dog. Jozie is a 13.5 yr. old female Bichon Frise weighing 16.5 pounds. I’ve had her since she’s been 3 months old. Jozie is a person, and don’t tell her otherwise! She has a bed in every room of the house complete with pillows for her head to rest on. Jozie sleeps in bed with my husband and I, under the covers too. She even has clothes, which consist of a hat, red raincoat, doggie shoes, and t-shirts. Jozie is an indoor dog, except for when going outside for walks. Jozie loves the company of people; she’s a people dog, NOT a dog, dog!jozie_feature

Incontinence

Here is our story and I say ‘our’ because we truly went through this together. On May 13, Jozie had 2 urinary incontinent bouts, both on me. I also noticed signs that her reoccurring urinary problem had returned. So on May 14, I took Jozie to the veterinarian. Sure enough, the infection had returned. They gave her a shot of Amoxicillin and sent me home with Orbax (an antibiotic in pill form), which she had been on before and the Dr. said that the Orbax would also tighten the sphincter muscle thus controlling the involuntary urine flow.

Paralysis Begins

The next few days went by and all was OK with us. On May 18, (my 5 yr. Wedding anniversary) at around 6:30 pm, Jozie started walking funny. She was limping with her right hind leg. By 8:30 pm later that evening she was completely dragging the leg as it had lost all life. I tried to walk her but she would just collapse. My husband and I took Jozie to the local emergency animal hospital and they observed her and x-rayed her and said that she’s basically OK.

X-rays Inconclusive

The x-rays show nothing and she’s alert. They added that it could be a neurological problem but that they weren’t equipped for that and that if I wanted to pursue that I’d have to take Jozie to Rancho Santa Fe, CA to have her looked at, kept there while all sorts of tests get done to her as well as injecting a dye into her spine. They said that it’s very painful for the dog as well as costly and even then they might not know the cause of her sudden paralysis. Jozie got a shot of Prednisone (an anti-inflammatory) and sent me home with the same drug in pill form to be given to Jozie for 1 week in very small doses. Of course, the Prednisone works just the opposite of the Orbax in that Orbax heals the urinary incontinence where Prednisone causes incontinence. We were home by midnight and very drained.

May 19. Full Paralysis

At 8 am we all awoke and Jozie was completely paralyzed all 4 limbs. She could move but it was like crawling and her front paws were curved in, somewhat deformed like a person who has severe joint problems. My husband and I knew that Jozie was obviously getting worse and that we’d have no choice but to put her to sleep. We cried and cried, hugged and kissed our little one and then took her back to the emergency hospital. Once again they observed her and said that she’s doing quite well and to keep her on the Prednisone and to keep her quiet and calm. They mentioned nothing about a stroke and they didn’t feel it necessary to put her to sleep. They said that there’s not much information about canine paralysis that some dogs fully recover, some partially and some not at all.

So back home we went, very glad to have NOT put Jozie to sleep but unclear and confused as to what was going on in her body.

Loss of Bladder and Bowel Control

Jozie had lost all control of bladder and bowel movements. Since there was no way to walk Jozie we stayed inside 24-7. I had towels covering just about everything. I decided that I should massage her (doggie rehabilitation). Upon massaging her legs and body to stimulate the muscles and nerves in the paralyzed legs she would either urinate or poop. After the first accident, I started preparing myself as well as the floor for future accidents. At least she was eliminating fluids and solids even if it was with my help.

My husband and I felt as if we were all alone since even the Doctors didn’t know for certain what was causing Jozie her paralysis. So I decided to do a search online and typed in various conditions (canine paralysis, urinary incontinence, canine stroke, etc.)
And I came across the Nzymes.COM Site. Based on what I read and the other testimonials, I decided that I should order the product because, at this point, nothing could hurt my Jozie.

May 20. Nzymes Shipped out

I called N ZYMES® and a nice gentleman spoke with me about the condition of my dog. We had a very nice conversation and he sent out the product ASAP. I believe I received it the next day.

Getting Started

I gave Jozie the recommended amount of Nzymes® Antioxidant Treats and within 1 week Jozie started showing signs of improvement. They were little improvements. While ill, Jozie’s personality changed, she became very quiet when she’s normally a very vocal dog (she speaks her mind). After a few days on Nzymes®, Jozie became more alert and she would respond to my questions like, “Are you thirsty?” And I’d see her eyes light up. And when I’d give her water she would drink it. Every day or two there would be more improvement.

Making Progress

Two weeks after the start of this whole ordeal Jozie’s other 3 legs were almost back to normal. We started taking slow short walks. But in order for her 3 weak legs to walk, I had to hold her up. So I constructed a harness made out of 2 old belts. One was elasticized which went around her body and the other cloth, which attached to the buckle of the other belt enabling me to hold her body up so that her weight didn’t rest on her weak legs. Her right hind leg would still drag behind her. She dragged that leg through the rest of May and all of June. Then in July, she started using the right hind leg so I omitted the harness from our walks and now Jozie goes up and down the stairs all by herself, runs around the house and spins around in circles when it’s treat time, again she tells us when she’s due a treat.

Adding Ox-E-Drops, More

As per Linda’s emails, she suggested that I incorporate Nzymes® Ox-E-Drops into Jozie’s diet as well as Acidophilus and cranberry capsules. I also decided to limit the amount of processed food Jozie eats and choose to now incorporate more REAL food into her diet. Jozie now eats apples, applesauce, almonds, brown rice, soy nuts, peanut butter, carrots, chicken and tuna fish. These are all given to her in small amounts throughout the day.

So Much Better

As of today, Jozie is about 90% better. She may never gain that additional 10% but for us, she’s back to normal, we have our baby back and feel as though we’ve been given a second chance to love her and to continue our happy times together.

Jozie will forever be an Nzymes® dog, oops, I mean gal, ha! My husband and I are so very grateful to God, who answers all prayers, the Nzymes Company and Linda Arndt for their help in with my Jozie.

Sincerely,
Kelly Jo Sylk – Murrieta, CA


Products Used to Help Jozie with Health Challenges

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