Blondie girl

She's my 16-month Great Pyrenees. My baby girl has such a sweet way about her. She's playful, affectionate - and stubborn. Like most Pyrs she patrols her borders and (unfortunately) digs. She's a problem-solver so I have to keep ahead of her sometimes! We often play "Find" where I hide 6 biscuits around the living room and hall and she has to hunt them down.

And she's also very ill.

Blondie has masticatory muscle myositis. It's an autoimmune disorder where basically her body destroys these particular cells which are only found in her jaw muscles. It can get to the point where the jaw doesn't open at all and a feeding tube used.

Right now she has good jaw movement but she looks like she has a dent in her head.

I had to take away her rawhides and rubber chew toys. No more ice (well, they said I could give her crushed ice). I've started mixing her dry food with chicken broth and wet food. (and going to all wet food would be hard - she goes through a 15lb bag of dry a week!)

The doctor is putting her on corticosteroids (the only treatment for it). We're hoping it works, but the best I could get was a guarded prognosis. And the muscle she's lost won't come back. I was also told I may have to make some difficult decisions.

I'm so attached to her. When I got her at 8 weeks weeks was a 10lb ball of white fluff. Now she's a sleek pretty girl (who weighs 70lbs!). I don't know what I'd do without her.

I suppose a lot of people with animal companions feel the same...

My Blondie girl will be loved and spoiled whether she lives a year or - if I'm lucky - the 7-12 years Pyrs often live.