Hi, my name is Jo and I’m trying to raise funds to pay for vet bills after our family pet, our cockapoo Charlie, was attacked by an aggressive Alsatian which lives near us.

Our dog Charlie, is the softest, gentlest dog; he’s 3 years old, is in training to be a therapy dog in schools (I’m a local primary school teacher) and is known locally for being playful and very friendly to other dogs.

My husband was walking him this week when they came face-to-face with the other dog which pulled its owner over and spun him around to then lunge at Charlie, throwing into the air, biting and ripping into him. His entire side was ripped open and my husband had to watch this and listen to our dog screaming. He rushed Charlie to the vet who helped as best they could before referring him to a specialist animal hospital 40 minutes away. The vets were all amazed that he survived - he was so lucky to have not had any internal damage. Now we are faced with an enormous bill. Charlie is ensured but for £3000 - our bill so far is £6838.03 plus £700 for being referred. Plus £300 to the other vets for the initial work they did to save his life. There will be more costs too with stitches needing to be taken out and possible unpaid leave from work. My husband has been deeply affected by this, our 8 year old animal lover son has been in bits, waiting for good news from the vet. And our dog is a bit of a nervous wreck.

We have been incredibly touched by our local community who have sent messages of support and love. Now we have these costs to pay and several people suggested setting up a page to help fund the treatment for our dog. We are very grateful for any help we can get. Thank you for reading this.