Donna would like to say "thank you" for her lovely green mitten!
Donna has not had an accident for several weeks, so we don't worry about it much anymore. In that regard, she is very much a normal dog now. However, we discovered that Donna is a snow-eater, and right now our yard is a smorgasbord! So we reduced her daily allowance of water a bit to compensate for the snow snacks. Also, on days that we are out-of-town for part of the day, it is not convenient to divide her water into 6 evenly spaced servings. On those days, she may get her water in 4 or 5 servings, and that works well, too. It may seem like a lot of extra work, but we're so used to the routine that it doesn't feel like an inconvenience at all.
Although Donna is perfectly content at home, she still gets a little nervous outside of her comfort zone. So to help her become more comfortable with all of the exotic sights, sounds and smells of Vermillion, I've started taking her running with me. As it turns out, Donna is an awesome running buddy! She is very energetic and quickly learned not to cross in front of me. At first, Donna was scared of cars, especially at night. But they don't seem to bother her very much anymore. However, she still gets a little nervous when we meet someone that she doesn't know. So I've started carrying mini dog biscuits for friends and neighbors to give her, and she usually overcomes her shyness for a yummy treat!

When Donna first came to live with us, we noticed that she drank a lot of water. Because of her excessive drinking, she also had to urinate frequently. After extensive testing, our veterinarian diagnosed Donna with psychogenic polydipsia. Dogs with psychogenic polydipsia have a compulsive urge to drink, even when they're not thirsty. We don't know why Donna drinks excessively, but it may be due to stress/anxiety. Our vet suspects that she has been doing this for years. A consequence of her drinking too much water for so long is that her urine is very dilute. It's almost as if her body forgot how to concentrate urine. And because her urine is so dilute, her bladder tends to fill up fast, which means frequent trips outside to go to the bathroom. To get Donna back to being healthy, we have to retrain her body to make urine. The process was started at the animal hospital, where Donna was given minimal water for a few days. When she was released, her urine concentration was much improved. We are now continuing the process at home by restricting her daily water intake to 1500 ml (about 1 1/2 quart) per day. So far, Donna is doing very well. Her urine output is significantly reduced, though not quite down to normal yet. Our vet will recheck her urine concentration in a couple of weeks.

Even though Donna has had to endure multiple vet visits with much testing, she remains a sweet and loving dog. Donna has settled nicely into the household routine, and we're starting to see more and more of her personality. She is very smart, sensitive, and eager to please. Someone in her past may have taught her basic commands because she seems to know "sit" and frequently offers her paw to "shake." Donna loves treats and should be very easy to train. But what Donna wants more that just about anything (except maybe water) is to be with her humans. I work at home and Donna spends most of her time happily snoozing under my desk, keeping my feet warm and hiding all of the Nylabones and stuffies under my footstool!. 

Donna and Brit 14-016

Gracie, Donna, and Katie 15-175