My Dog’s Vomiting Led to an Addison’s Disease Test

 Seven years have passed since Hawon and I first started our life together.

She has survived two poisoning episodes in the past, and since then, I’ve always been told that her endocrine system might be her weakest link.

Because of that, I tend to watch her condition more closely than most people would.

Even so, I know there are limits to what a guardian can do.

If you live with a dog long enough, you eventually accept that a health scare once a year is part of the journey.

This year, it just arrived a little earlier than expected.

Hawon loves the small attic on the second floor of my office.

It’s quiet, dark, and usually empty.

Sometimes I wonder if she needs that kind of solitude, the way people do.

But the attic is also partly a storage space.

There are corners I can’t see from below, and no cameras to watch over her.

Once she disappears up there, I can never fully know what she’s experiencing.

In early January 2026, after working through the night, I fell asleep at the office.

I woke up before dawn to a familiar, unsettling sound.

Hawon was coming down the stairs, vomiting as she descended.

It was yellow—the kind you usually see when the stomach is empty.

Since she does this occasionally, I didn’t think much of it at the time.

The next day, she seemed like her usual self.

Still, whenever this happens, I make sure she eats in the evening, even if I have to coax her a bit.

That night, though, something felt different.

The whites of her eyes looked swollen, and the vomiting returned.

I stayed awake with her for the rest of the night, watching her breathing in the dark.

The next morning, we went straight to the clinic.

She was given anti-nausea medication, and the vomiting stopped.

But her overall condition continued to decline.

She became noticeably lethargic.

She refused food.

She barely touched her water.

Even in a warm room, her small body trembled.

Treats didn’t interest her, and she showed no excitement for her usual walks.

After two days like that, the veterinarian suggested a test for Addison’s disease.

It felt like something I had always known might come

The test came back negative.

According to the results, it wasn’t Addison’s.

But what followed was unexpected.

Almost immediately after the test, Hawon’s condition began to improve.

The change was so rapid it hardly felt real.

The vet explained that the medication administered during the test may have stimulated her hormones, temporarily easing her symptoms.

He used the term atypical Addison’s.

Not a confirmed diagnosis, but not something we can dismiss either.

A state that requires long-term observation.

So for now, all I can do is watch her carefully.

I don’t need certainty as much as I need her to be comfortable and pain-free.

I’ll keep observing, for as long as it takes.

Hawon.

I love you, my girl.