The Karma Fund

 On November 25th, 2024, three days before Thanksgiving, we met Karma. Little did we know how thankful Karma would be to meet us, and how lucky we were to meet her.

We first met Karma when she came to Jewell Animal Hospital as a new patient. Her owner said that Karma was dealing with a lot of pain, slowing down, had a urinary tract infection, and was rapidly losing weight. Because she was having issues with accidents, she was living in the basement with little attention or socialization. She had only seen a veterinarian once in her life and needed help immediately.

When Karma came to her appointment, she only weighed 28 pounds when her healthy weight would have been around 45 pounds. You could count her ribs without even touching her. She walked like a dog in serious pain, hanging her head and not wanting to move unless absolutely necessary. On examination, it was clear that she was either blind or severely visually impaired. Despite all of the pain and medical issues going on with Karma, she was incredibly sweet, leaning into our pets and allowing us to draw blood with no protest. We ran bloodwork and a urinalysis, which confirmed that she did have a urinary tract infection. Karma was prescribed pain medication and antibiotics for her UTI, and given an injection for osteoarthritis pain. Dr. Smith discussed the prognosis and future care with Karma’s owners, and we continued to follow up with them after the appointment to check in and see how Karma was doing. Unfortunately, we didn’t hear back from them despite emails, texts, and phone calls.

A couple of weeks later, Karma’s owners reached out because they did not believe they could care for her any longer. They had contacted other animal shelters and said that they were told that Karma would likely be immediately euthanized due to her medical condition. They wanted Karma to have a chance so they asked Judy’s Forgotten Jewells to take care of her. We immediately agreed and asked them to bring her in as soon as possible.

On December 13th, Karma was surrendered. Sadly, her condition had not improved. She reeked of urine so we quickly got her into a warm bath, set up a heated cage with cozy blankets, and then started IV fluids to keep her hydrated. We started more medications, including additional pain meds and antibiotics, and daily laser therapy. A staff member donated some doggie diapers to help her stay clean overnight. We tried multiple different foods to help stimulate her appetite and added peanut butter to everything because this girl loved peanut butter. We weren’t sure if Karma would improve enough to find a new family but we were happy to be her family if that’s what she needed.

Sadly, while Karma was happier and more comfortable, she didn’t improve much despite our best efforts. She had some great days when she would walk around the hospital to spend time with her favorite staff members or go outside to the front yard to enjoy the sunshine and fresh air. She got tons of peanut butter. She then started having seizures. It seemed like her body had been through too much and was simply exhausted. 

On January 2nd, our whole team discussed what was best for Karma and tearfully decided to let her go. She passed peacefully surrounded by people who only knew her for a few weeks but loved her deeply as if we had known her for years. Our time with Karma was tragically short but so very important. She died warm and cared for, with a full belly and with dignity. She did not die cold and confused, alone in a basement. Animal rescue does not always have happy endings but sometimes saying goodbye is the kindest thing we can do.

In Karma’s honor, we have established The Karma Fund, which will be used for dogs and cats with severe and emergent medical needs. We are grateful that we were able to help Karma immediately when she needed us, and The Karma Fund will make sure that we are always ready when another animal in need comes through our front door.