Help to remove a bullet from Rocky

We need help to cover costs of surgery to remove a gun bullet from Rocky’s neck. Our Family adopted Rocky from a rescue in Marana, AZ 6/29/18. Rocky initially was found wondering in the desert in Nogales, AZ and was brought into a shelter down there. A rescue group visiting the shelter took procession of Rocky early June as he was scheduled to be put down that evening. Rocky had his vaccines and was just neutered the day before we met him. They estimated he was four years old. He was the sweetest kind hearted dog. We signed papers that he had “no known medical problems” although a volunteer at the rescue said he had a cough when he first came in but was gone and we didn’t see any signs of a cough however just being neutered, he seemed really groggy. We brought him home and he adjusted amazingly with the kids and our cat. He is an indoor dog and very well taken care of. He ate and drank and used the bathroom on a regular basis. He loved going on walks. Our only thoughts were he didn’t have a lot of energy, and he slept a ton! I thought no way this dog is 4 years old he seems like such an old soul. Well after 35 days I took him into the veterinarian with a voucher the rescue gave me for a checkup and I left with them saying he needed $867.52 of bloodwork and x-rays. He had a lump on the side of his neck they thought was a swollen lymph node. After x-rays we’re done it showed there was a gun bullet in his neck and several fragments throughout his head. The veterinarian felt that it would be too invasive to remove and said that it doesn’t seem to be bothering him and the plan was to leave it and keep an eye on him. The blood work she said he needed was because she felt he was manifesting Valley Fever symptoms however he had been tested before we adopted him, and three times since we adopted him and every time it came back negative. December 28, 2018 it was negative. He did have some type of infection he was fighting and they gave him two different antibiotics to clear them up and over the end of summer early fall he had way more energy and slept less. In November I felt the lump on his neck where he had been shot and it felt larger. The vet had measured it previously and she felt it was grown as well. The rescue has been covering majority of the costs after they offered to help.  I, myself had a rough year of medical issues which escalated quickly in August and ended up with me barely being able to walk or work and I required Discectomy October 5th and am still in physical therapy. My husband is a Federal employee and somehow we have been able to keep up with medical bills however we have been on furlough with the government shutdown since Christmas. Our daughter broke her foot Thanksgiving weekend, she is doing fine now. While we have been doing okay financially and covering our own bills, while the government is shutdown, we have been told that Rocky’s surgery needs to be done by a specialists and could very well cost $5000 if they run into any complications. The bulletin is very close to his jugular vein. We are scheduled with Veterinary Specialty Center of Tucson January, 30th 2019. If I hadn’t already spent thousands on my medical needs  last year and then a couple hundred on our daughters broken foot, and the government wasn’t shutdown for this length of time we might be able to afford it. The shelter told me they cannot afford the surgery he needs either. I know there are a lot of animal lovers out there and if we can spread the word and with a lot of small donations adding up, we hope we can get Rocky the help he needs. We most likely will never know who or why he was shot but he really is the best dog I’ve ever owned and is just a big sweetheart and hope to give him a long life in a loving home.