Champion of My HeartA real-time memoir about life with a fearful border collie, by Roxanne Hawn

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Depending on where you live and work, my ideas for cutting household expenses to help pay for pet care may not work for you, but here are my Best Budget Squeezing Strategies for Desperate Dog Moms.

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As I begin budgeting for 2013, let’s look at just how much it has cost to keep Lilly alive following the onset of vaccine-induced meningoencephalomyelitis (inflammation of the brain, lining of the brain, and spinal cord).

To recap … My perfectly healthy, brilliant, strong border collie girl received a rabies vaccine January 23, 2012, and she hasn’t been the same since. It hasn’t been cheap trying to save her. Before her massive relapse in August 2012 (after our 4th attempt to wean her off steroids), Lilly’s prognosis was good. Afterwards, her true prognosis became unknown. We just don’t know how this is going to turn out or how long it may go on.

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Here is part five (of five) of frequently asked questions dog lovers have asked me since Lilly’s ill-fated response to a vaccine earlier this year. This series of questions / answers covers the COSTS of diagnosing and treating Lilly’s vaccine-induced meningoencephalomyelitis / meningoencephalitis (inflammation of the brain and lining of the brain and spinal cord), including how much the pet insurance company paid, how much Champion of My Heart fans donated, and whether or not the vaccine company responded to my request for financial help.

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Here is part four (of five) of frequently asked questions dog lovers have asked me since Lilly’s ill-fated response to a vaccine earlier this year. This series of questions / answers covers the treatment of Lilly’s vaccine-induced meningoencephalomyelitis / meningoencephalitis (inflammation of the brain and lining of the brain and spinal cord).

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Here is part three (of five) of frequently asked questions dog lovers have asked me since Lilly’s ill-fated response to a vaccine earlier this year. This series of questions / answers covers the symptoms, diagnosis, and Lilly’s prognosis of Lilly’s vaccine-induced meningoencephalomyelitis / meningoencephalitis (inflammation of the brain and lining of the brain and spinal cord).

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Here is part two (of five) of frequently asked questions dog lovers have asked me since Lilly’s ill-fated response to a vaccine earlier this year. This series of questions / answers covers the vaccine itself, factors that people think / assume may have led to the adverse vaccine reaction, and the incidence rate of vaccine-induced meningoencephalomyelitis / meningoencephalitis (inflammation of the brain and lining of the brain and spinal cord).

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Here is part one (of five) of frequently asked questions dog lovers have asked me since Lilly’s ill-fated response to a rabies vaccine earlier this year. Today, we cover Lilly’s health status and vaccine history.

While this 5-part Adverse Vaccine Reaction FAQ isn’t everything you need to know about adverse vaccine reactions in dogs, it’s my best attempt to cover the big issues and answers – as they pertain to Lily’s vaccine-induced meningoencephalomyelitis / meningoencephalitis (inflammation of the brain and lining of the brain and spinal cord).

Once all five FAQ posts have been published, we’ll add links to all 5 into each post, and we’ll copy everything into one static page for people who want all the adverse vaccine reaction info all at once.

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