08/31/2026
9/2/26 PM
Annie update ❤️
We finally got the call we’ve been waiting for, and Annie is awake, recovering well from anesthesia and already eating. ❤️
They were able to do the balloon dilation today. Once they were able to really look at her anatomy, they found that the narrowing is more extensive than we originally realized. It begins farther up in her re**um and continues down to her a**l opening. They were able to dilate the area from about 2 mm to 5 mm, so we’re really hopeful this will make it much easier for her to pass stool.
She may need another dilation as she grows or if the area narrows again, but we’ll cross that bridge if we get there.
Her ultrasound brought some good news too. Her liver and biliary system looked normal, which was a relief considering some of the abnormalities in her bloodwork. They did find a few small kidney stones, though, so tomorrow they’re going to check her ammonia level. There is still a possibility of a liver shunt that they simply can’t see well enough on ultrasound because Annie is so incredibly small. If they remain concerned about that, it may be something we investigate further with a CT when she’s bigger.
The one thing we still haven’t gotten under control is her blood sugar. Even though she’s eating well, she is still requiring IV dextrose to keep her glucose up. She’ll stay in the ICU tonight so they can continue monitoring her and hopefully we’ll see some improvement now that she can pass stool more easily and is eating consistently.
For tonight, though, I’m very relieved. She made it through anesthesia, the dilation was successful, she’s awake, eating and apparently charming the entire hospital because her doctor says everyone has been coming by to meet her. 😂❤️
Thank you again to everyone who has donated, shared Annie’s story, checked on her and sent us messages. The support for this ridiculously tiny girl has been incredible.
We’ll know more tomorrow. 🤞❤️
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9/2/26
Annie update ❤️
Annie had a good night at UF. She's still eating really well, she's bright and alert and apparently she p**ped A LOT overnight 😂 Never thought I'd be this excited to get a p**p report, but here we are.
Her blood sugar is still being stubborn. She's still on IV dextrose and they haven't been able to start backing that down yet, so that's still something they're watching really closely.
Today they're supposed to do her ultrasound and get a better look at her liver, gallbladder and everything else going on in that ridiculously tiny body. We're also hoping they'll be able to do the dilation today, but obviously that depends on what they find and how she's doing.
We're expecting a call pretty much any minute now, so I'm currently doing that thing where I check my phone every 30 seconds even though the volume is all the way up. 😂
Hopefully I'll have more news soon. 🤞❤️
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9/1/26 PM
Annie update ❤️
We got another call from UF and we finally have a little bit of good news today.. Annie is EATING. And not just one little bite. She's been eating several times today, which is huge considering she really hasn't wanted to eat at all for the last few days.
I'm not sure if it's the fluids, antibiotics, getting her blood sugar under control, or some combination of everything they're doing, but apparently something is making our girl feel a little better and I will absolutely take it.
As long as she continues doing well, they're planning to move forward tomorrow. They'll do an abdominal ultrasound and take a really thorough look at her anatomy, including her liver and gallbladder because of some abnormalities in her bloodwork. If everything checks out and they're comfortable proceeding, they're also planning to attempt the balloon dilation.
So we're still not at the finish line, but this afternoon feels a little better than this morning did.
For now, we go back to staring at our phones and waiting for UF to call. 🤞❤️
Thank you again to everyone following along, checking on her, sharing and helping with her care. It really does mean a lot.
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9/1/26 AM
Annie update ❤️
I heard from UF this morning. Annie is still stable in the ICU and she is eating a little bit on her own, which I'll happily take.
Her blood sugar is still giving them trouble though. She's needing quite a bit of IV dextrose to keep it where it needs to be, so today the goal is to get more actual nutrition into her and hopefully start backing down the dextrose. They're going to keep encouraging her to eat, but if she doesn't eat enough they'll place a feeding tube.
Some of her bloodwork also showed enough inflammation that they're concerned there could be an infection related to everything going on with her GI tract, so they've started antibiotics to cover her while they figure that out.
The plan for the procedure has changed a little too. Because this 12oz little gremlin is so small, they don't think the CT is going to give them the information they need. Instead they're planning an abdominal ultrasound, and if they can get her stable enough, they'll sedate her and hopefully do the balloon dilation tomorrow.
So today is basically a about getting Annie as stable and fed as possible.. Then we wait for the next phone call and see where we are.
Not quite the quick go to UF, fix tiny butt, come home plan I was hoping for.. but she's stable, she's being watched around the clock, and they're being extremely careful with her. I'll take that for today.
Thank you again to everybody checking on her, sharing her story and helping us with her care. ❤️
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Annie update ❤️
We made it to UF and Annie is staying the night.
Tomorrow they're going to put her under anesthesia and do a CT scan first. They want to see exactly what's going on internally before they do anything and make sure we're actually dealing with what we think we are.
If the CT confirms it, the plan is to hopefully go ahead with the balloon dilation while she's already under.
For tonight they're keeping her hydrated, watching her blood sugar and treating her as needed. Leaving her there was not my favorite thing in the world, but at least I know she's being watched closely tonight.
So tomorrow we wait for phone calls. 🤞 Hopefully we finally get a really clear picture of what's been causing all of this and they can fix it while she's there.
Also, I seriously can't thank everyone enough for the donations, shares and messages today. This whole thing changed direction very quickly this morning and the amount of support Annie has already gotten has been kind of incredible. ❤️
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I haven't really posted about Annie lately. Truthfully, I just haven't had the headspace for it.
Behind the scenes, we've been dealing with a lot with this tiny girl since June. She's struggled with eating, nausea, constipation and keeping her blood sugar stable, and we've spent a lot of time at the vet trying to figure out why.
We finally got an answer that made a lot of things fall into place. Annie was born with an anorectal abnormality that has made it extremely difficult for her to pass stool. She was supposed to have a balloon dilation procedure today to correct it.
We got as far as getting her there this morning, but after evaluating her, her veterinary team decided she's simply too tiny for them to safely proceed with the anesthesia and equipment they have available.
So we're currently making an unexpected 2½-hour drive to UF in Gainesville. Their emergency team is expecting her, and we're hoping they can safely do what needs to be done.
I've handled Annie's veterinary expenses up until now, but after months of care and now a referral to UF, I've reached the point where I could use some help.
I made a GoFundMe for her. I don't know what today's estimate will be yet, and I'll update it as soon as we know more. If you'd like to help Annie, whether by donating or simply sharing this, I would be incredibly grateful. ❤️
Mostly, I just want this little girl to finally get the chance to feel good, eat, grow and be a normal puppy.
https://gofund.me/e56641139
