Farewell, Sweet Jynxie...

On Thursday, January 23, 2013, our precious Jynxie passed away.  At this time, we are still waiting for her necropsy tissue and blood test results.  Preliminary necropsy report showed she had a small nodule on her left lung and a number of tan colored nodules in her liver; however, the cause of her death is still inconclusive and it may be a week or so before we learn the results of all the tests.

On Tuesday, January 15th, Jynxie started to go off her food, which in it self is not unusual, as Jynxie often skipped a meal during the week. On Wednesday, Jynxie enjoyed her bones, so we were confident that she was okay.  On Thursday, Jynxie skipped a meal, but ate her treats, but then on Friday, we noticed she had vomited   By Saturday, Jynxie had stopped eating and could not be enticed to eat anything, including her meaty treats, so Vicky gave her a shot to settle her stomach. Sunday night she refused her bone treats and when Vicky tried to obtain a blood sample from our feisty girl, she refused.  So on Monday, January 21st, Jynxie was sedated so a blood sample could be taken from her.  The vet checked her over and she was administered antibiotic shots.  

Later that evening, Vicky noticed that she was shivering, so an electric blanket was placed over our girl.  She seemed to be doing okay with the electric blanket and several comforters covering her body.  Our lead keeper, Mak got up every two hours during the night, to check on Jynxie to make sure she was warm and comfortable throughout the evening and early morning hours.

The next day, Jynxie was still lethargic and refused to move around.  Blood test revealed that Jynxie's white blood count was low, possibly from an infection, and her kidney levels were up (off the charts), so she was given another dose of penicillin, in the hopes of eliminating the infection.

At this point, Jynxie was kept hydrated with subcutaneous fluids every eight hours and she was given additional penicillin shots; unfortunately she was still wobbly on her legs. Mak continued to checked on Jynxie throughout the night, trying to get Jynxie to move around.

On Wednesday, January 23rd, Jynxie got up and went to lie down in her den.  While we were thrilled that Jynxie was moving around again, it did make it a little more challenging for the staff to administer fluids and her shots. Later that evening, Jynxie seemed more alert and she was drinking water on her own, giving Vicky a "stinky" face.

She appeared to look much better compared to Tuesday night; moving around outside her den.  She even "barked" at Vicky when she tried to administer her four shots and another round of fluids. Jynxie was kept bundled up because her body temperature dropped below normal of 101-102 degrees earlier in the week.  On Wednesday, her body temperature climbed to 97.7 and continued to improve.

Karin and Robert volunteered to stay overnight with Jynxie so Mak could sleep through the night with instructions to call her if Jynxie threw off her blankets or seemed to be in any distressed.  Vicky and Mak were called to Jynxie's side at around 3:00 a.m. when Karin and Robert noticed that Jynxie became unresponsive and her eyes looked cloudy.  Shortly thereafter, Jynxie had her first and second seizure.  While the vet was en route, Jynxie had her final seizure as she passed away about 4:30 a.m. just as Dr. Kerin arrived. We had all noticed noticed that Jynxie showed signs of having had a full-body hemorrhage, or she could have thrown a blood clot to the brain. 

Vicky, Karin, and Robert departed with Jynxie's body to Texas A&M Veterinary School that morning where a necropsy was performed and tissue and blood samples were taken in the hopes of learning why our precious lioness passed away. Not wanting to leave Jynxie behind, Vicky stayed overnight with our girl until Jynxie's body was released to Pet Memories so her body could be cremated.

On Saturday, January 26, 2013, a memorial service was held at Pet Memories at Rockwall, Texas.  Over 35 people with flowers attended her memorial service to say goodbye to our special lady and to share wonderful memories of fun times spent with our girl.  Some of the flowers were placed with Jynxie's body and some of the flowers were held back so they could be scattered into the lake from the bridge in her memory. Since we were not allowed to view her body, Robert and Karin had a large 16 x 20 poster made up of Jynxie which Vicky placed at the ceremony, so we could gaze upon her beautiful face.

Jinxie's ashes were placed in this beautiful urn and it was placed in between Malikai and his brother, Dinari's urns.  

Her physical body may be gone, but her loving spirit will live on at In-Sync Exotics.  As new volunteers arrive at our sanctuary, they will learn from Cheymn, how unique and beautiful Jynxie was to us all.       

In Memory of JynxieJune 12, 1998 - January 24, 2013

May you find peace and happiness with your brother Jambo, and your special lion companions, Dinari and Malikai, Jynxie!  You were loved by all and you will never be forgotten...

If you would like to make a donation in Jynxie's honor, you may do so by clicking HERE.  Thank you.

>^..^<

.