December 2010 Update on Kody Grace

We have been very happy and so busy these last months. Kody Grace has visited the Outter Banks on her vacation this past summer. What a fun time we had until Hurricane Earl sent us packing for home due to a mandatory request by N.C.

We have been busy enjoying our therapy visiting to patients in hospitals, especially FCCC.

Kody loves everyone she meets. She is an EPI survivor too! Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency has not stopped her from enjoying life to the fullest. Kody Grace's story of survival has been published in Therapy Dogs Incorporated News Magazine, Fall/Winter 2010-2011 issue.

I am so proud of her!

She is awesome and I love being owned by her :-) ~DMD

Kody Grace - Update

It has been so long since I posted, but here goes... Kody just had her yearly check-up, titers, etc.

She weighs 89.9 lbs.!! Kody is doing great. She is healthy and such a good pup.

Kody always enjoys her Frisbee play and most of all going on Therapy visits ( FCCC especially ).

Kody is on Taste of the Wild, Salmon, grain-free. She can also tolerate grain-free treats on ocassion.

Kody also gets non-fat greek yogurt as a snack. Kody Grace will be 6 years in June.

It is such a joy each day having this wonderful pup in my life!

Update on Kody Grace and Frisbee Fun!

Kody Grace has been on enzyme replacements for a month now and she has a healthy looking glow about her. We are so happy that her poos are firm, brown and wrinkled - the goal of an EPI-er. Yes, we did the poo dance :-)~ and, she has gained 6 pounds since diagnosis- yay!

We have switched her kibble to Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance Sweet Potato & Fish, a grain-free allergy formula and Kody loves it. I love it because it is grain free and low in fiber and fats, a requirement necessary for the health of an EPI dog.

Kody's favorite toys: Kong Wubba's and Frisbees. Frisbee tosses are tops with Ko and the

most important part -exercise. This fun brings such contentment for her and a much needed

release of energy. Kody likes to catch the Frisbee in mid-air, hence her nickname "Air-Ko"...

and no matter how far you toss it, she is always there to catch it!

We are careful in timing her meals of at least 2 hours before or after exercise to avoid

dangerous bloat or torsion. More Later.

Diane & Kody Grace

Story from Kody's Mom

Kody entered my life in July 2004. She came at a time when I needed something to snap me out of

a sad and difficult time. I still was in mourning from the loss of my dear Mother. Also I was diagnosed with Grave's Disease. I also suffer from disk disease, so I was then unemployed.

My husband and family are the most important blessings in my life but still something was missing for me, especially with all my grown children out of the nest and hubby had his work.

Along came Kody Grace! She was/is such a joy each day. My "fur-angel" ;-)

I trained her with positive enforcement since she was 7 1/2 weeks old. She was a quick learner, perhaps a mind reader ;-) I knew she would be a great Therapy Dog. She passed the Canine Good Citizen test at 1 year old. Then, two years later, passed the test to become a Therapy Dog. This has been my dream since '99.

Our volunteering at facilities really brightened my life...and Kody's. This was meant to be!

It is so uplifting to be able to visit someone who is ill or down...and then see the light in their eyes when Kody visits them. It is SO rewarding and such a blessing to be able to do this.

Diane Kody's Mom :-)

Kody Grace's Story

I am a 5 year old female Black & Silver German Shepherd Dog (long hair). I was a healthy puppy but when I became sick this year with runny stools on-and-off and alittle vomiting, mom got scared and wondered if I have EPI like my littermate, Koda Boy who was diagnosed last year.

I had the cTLI test to see if I had EPI. The diagnosis was confirmed on May 28, 2009.

It is a specific test done by the vet and sent out to a lab.

My TLI score was 2.1. I had another TLI done two weeks later- after I fasted for 12 hours.

Vet needed to be sure before treating me with enzyme replacements. The second score was 1.4. A normal score is between 5-35.

Yes, I have EPI. -have lost 6 pounds - but I am now on my way to being healthy because

I am on new kibble...Grain free DVP's Natural Balance. This food is low in fiber -less than 4% and low in fat less than 12%.So important for EPI dogs. No grains means it is easier on my impaired GI tract.

I was diagnosed with SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) about 70% of EPI-ers

have SIBO too. I was given an antibiotic for 20 days and then a shot of Tylan. Sibo is gone

though it may recur at some point. My paws are crossed and Mom prays SIBO doesn't return

as it sometimes does.

My food is now prepared by soaking in warm water- wait 10 minutes. Then my enzymes are sprinkled on- stirring a few times during 30 minutes of incubation to give replacement porcine enzymes time to break down the food. Usual dose: 1 cup food per 1 teaspoon enzyme to start. Breaking it down into smaller meals at first is recommended. 1 1/2 to 2 cups kibble to 1 1/2 to a 3/4 tsp enzymes three times a day.

EPI - Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency - is a disease which prevents

the pancreas from producing enzymes essential for the digestion of food. It is potentially life- threatening, without treatment, death can occur. I am lucky I got tested right away.

I am on my way to being a "healthy EPI-er"-yep, that's me.

Oh, I am also a Therapy Dog :-)~ for 2 years. I love all people, especially those who are sick.

I love to work!

More on "me" later.

Licks & Wags,

Kody Grace