Molly Update

Thank you so much for all your prayers! We had one answered last week and we were able to go see the doggie ophthalmologist. She was very knowledgeable and was able to see Molly as an emergency patient. Unfortunately, what she found out isn't very good news. Molly has retina deterioration in both eyes that is not fixable. She has one of two diseases, either PRA or SARDS (if you want more info on those, I can refer you to some websites), which can happen in cocker spaniels around middle age (Molly is part cocker and 6 years old). She will eventually be completely blind, if she isn't already. It is happening very quickly and she and I are both having to adjust, but we'll be fine. The doctors and nurses were very encouraging that dogs adapt to being blind very easily because they use their other senses so much. She'll probably be way more well adjusted sooner than I will be. They suggested a book for me to read to give me some more tips on living with a blind dog. So far, Molly is still bumping into things, but she's doing ok. She's getting there! Keep praying that her sense of smell gets better. Right now, her nose still doesn't work very well!

10 Miles, 4th of July, and Molly Update

This weekend, we ran 10 miles. For some reason, 10 miles hurt a lot more than 9 miles last week. We all did it, but we all seem to be under attack of the enemy to keep us from being able to continue training. Whether it be sickness, soreness, injury, finances, time, stress or something else, we're all determined to keep going and not get beaten down. We have 7 weeks and God willing, we'll make it!

I spent part of 4th of July in Goleta with my college friend Jon, his wife Katy, new baby Caden, and Jon's family. Unfortunately, the nearby fires made for a smoky day, but the BBQ was good and Caden was adorable. I even came home in time to see some fireworks.

Now for the Molly update. As some of you know, my doggie Molly was run through a bunch of tests yesterday to determine why she is losing her eyesight. She's only 6 1/2, so it seems pretty early for it to be happening. I don't know if she has progressively been losing her sight, but it's become very obvious in the past week that she can no longer see very well. She has trouble with stairs, bumps into things, and clings to me to figure out where she is. So far, my vet determined that she does not have glaucoma, makes tears fine, has no external abrasions on her eyes, but does have some irregularity behind her right eye. He does not think she sees out of her right eye at all and sees minimally out of her left. The irregularity could be caused by a tumor behind the eye, but that's just a guess. My vet made an emergency appointment with a dog opthalmologist, and the first prayer of an appointment for this week for her was answered. We're able to see the opthalmologist tomorrow. In the meantime, I'm learning not to leave stuff on the floor that she can trip over or run into and I'm learning to be more patient and take it easy with her as she feels her way around. Please pray that it's a simple problem and easily treated. I am trusting God to work in her life.