Everyone, meet Mischka & Roxie. 


Mischka & Roxie are two of the sweetest, most fun-loving, goodest puppy girls in the whole wide world.  (I know, who doesn't say that about their dogs?)! These two pups bring so much joy to our lives, and serve as a daily reminder for how blessed we are to have such loving furry companions. 

This is Roxie:
(Roxie AKA Roxie Roo AKA Rock AKA Rossy AKA Trashy Monstah AKA Roxxx AKA Baby Dirl.)


Roxie is the oldest of the pups, & was first to join the family. Roxie was rescued from Antioch Animal Services on January 14, 2015. Unfortunately, circumstances weren't the best for this sweet girl before her forever home. Because of previous abuse, it took plenty of patience, a whole lot of love, & some time for Roxie to start to show her personality, but baby, was it all incredibly worth it!

On top of having the most adorable underbite /snaggle teeth and the most gentle demeanor, Roxie is an all-around all-star & "goodest girl". She loves going for walks, chasing gophers in the field (all in fun, of course), and having her brother Tomas over for visits in her house. 
(Tomas thinks he's so cool. He's is cool, but also, he's fat.)


Roxie also very much enjoys talkin' to you about snacks (hers goes "rooo rooo"), dressing up (she loves a good hat or sweater best), and tap dancin' on the hardwood floors; some of her best tap-dancing is done right before eating breakfast or dinner.

But her all-time favorite past-time is shoppin' in the trash!

(New hat, who dis? With that smile, you'd find it impossible to get upset with her too, no matter how much of a mess she'd left behind.)


Roxie is also a licensed professional when it comes to snackin' & reraxin' (relaxin), as documented here:

(Maxin')
(And re'raxin'.)


Roxie was enjoying life, as all goodest gurls & bois should, but  hers always knew life would be even better with a sister...


And then came Mischka! (AKA Stinks AKA Tinky AKA Stinky AKA Knucklehead AKA Nukkoohedd)

(Mischka's first day home, inside Mama's sweatshirt during her first trip to the store.)


Mischka (pronounced "Mee-Sha") joined the family on March 10th 2017 at 8 weeks old - and "the girls" have been inseparable ever since.  

(Look how small hers was! ... and dang, that grass was green!)
(Thing 1 & Thing 2, always ready for a snack.)


Mischka came into Roxie's life like a little Tazmanian Devil, full to the brim with energy, excitement, & always ready to play rough.

ALWAYS lol. 

(Don't let the sweet smile fool ya - 2 minutes before this picture, Mischka was using Roxie as a jungle gym.)


While Mischka was still small, the girls enjoyed endless hours of running around the yard, wrestling & tumbling, playing tug of war, and going for walks at the park. Roxie was always super patient with Mishcka, the classic "younger sibling", constantly biting at Roxie's ears, nipping at her feet, always taking her toys, and even having the nerve to try "walking" her on her leash. 

(Mischka "walking" Roxie... like she's in charge lol.)

The girls happily spend their days playing around the back yard, chasing squirrels up the fence, and hanging out with their cat siblings.
(#GangGang.)


Life is golden; plenty of snuggles, all of the toys they can handle, & a safe home, filled to the brim with love.

The girls really have it made in the shade. 

(Roxie in her new sweater, approximately 4 minutes before Mischka ripped it off of her smh. Poor thing can't have no nice sweaters.)


It didn't take long for Mischka to fully outgrow Roxie, and with her getting bigger came an increase in her energy level - and the need to get her wiggles out regularly. After trying a few different techniques to help Mishcka release her pent up nervous energy, we found the Chuck-It ball - and Mischka was hooked, instantly!

She made it very clear, very quickly, that her preference was toward Chuck-It balls only, and any regular-shmegular ball toy (tennis, squishy, bouncy, etc), won't do. 

(The "Glow-in-the-Dark" Chuck-It ball - an all-time fan favorite.)


Mischka's motivation to chase the ball non-stop quickly led to her learning to play fetch by bringing the ball back every time it was thrown. She's a super smart girl, so with the motivation of the ball, learning to play fetch was a cool breeze.  

(Mischka's submitted photo with her request for a lifetime Chuck-It Ball sponsorship. Unfortunately, the request went unanswered.)


Playing fetch with her Chuck-It ball in the field is absolutely Mischka's favorite thing to do in the entire world - if she could, she'd play non-stop forever & ever.

Any time she's playing ball, she's the happiest she can be.

Trips to the field became a regular part of Mischka and Roxie's routine - at least 3 or 4 times a week we'd go to the park - Roxie chasing gophers to her heart's content and Mischka having all the space she needs to break wide and run hard after her ball & us getting the blood pumping. 

(Ultra tender photo taken during one of many joy-filled park experiences, a few months back.)


Roxie, having come so much out of her previous shyness, has become a major cuddle bug. She loves nothing more than having her belly rubbed or tap dancing up to you until you pet her - she just can't get enough lovins, and we couldn't give her too many lovins if we tried!

About two months ago, during some intense snuggling, we noticed the first lump on Roxie's back, near her spine. Not even a couple months passed before another lump became palpable under her arm pit, and with urgency, Roxie was taken to the vet, where she was diagnosed with Mast Cell Tumors.  A mast cell tumor (MCT) is a type of tumor consisting of mast cells. Mast cell tumors most commonly form nodules or masses in the skin; they can also affect other areas of the body, including the spleen, liver, intestine, and bone marrow. Most dogs with MCT (60-70%) only develop one tumor, but Roxie's already got a few, which the doctor highly recommends getting removed. A couple weeks after the vet visit, a third lump started to form on the lower left of Roxie's neck, another tumor needing removal. 

The estimate to get all Roxie's tumors removed is $2800. 

With all the stress due to all the changes, needing to quarantine & feeling isolated during the pandemic, and now the stress of Roxie's diagnosis, taking the girls to the park became therapeutic. So, visits to the park - where Mischka played hard games of fetch, Roxie chased gophers, & we got much needed fresh air & blood pumping - became even more frequent, sometimes even twice a day.


It wasn't more than 2 weeks after Roxie's diagnosis, after several trips to the park, that Mischka started to considerably favor her back right leg. She's always been a rough player, and has injured herself before from running so hard - it's part of her being so athletic & playing fetch with such fervor - but this injury wasn't healing like the others had. Weeks went by without any improvement, even after putting a pause on the fetch games & hard playing, so an appointment was made for Mischka to get her checked out by the awesome team at East Hills Veterinary Clinic. 

During her examination, it was determined that Mischka had torn her right CCL (cranial cruciate ligament) and would need TOPL surgery to repair it.

TPLO stands for Tibial Plateau Levelling Osteotomy, a surgical procedure used to treat cranial (or anterior) cruciate ligament rupture in the knee joints of dogs. A dog’s CCL, which is similar to a person’s anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in their knee, can degenerate or weaken over time for various reasons, but especially if the dog is larger & hyperactive - like Mischka. CCL rupture is the leading cause of hind limb lameness in dogs and can cause instability in the stifle (knee) joint. TPLO is often recommended for medium- to large-breed dogs, as well as canine athletes, as it restores them closer to normal function. Since TOPL isn't performed regularly by East Hills VC, it took some research to find a reputable organization capable of performing the surgery Mischka needs. With persistence & Universal favor, Oakdale Veterinary Group was found. The clinic isn't too far from home & specializes in TOPL surgery in large dogs - and Mischka's a big girl, still pretty young, only 4, which heightens her need for the procedure even more.

The estimate for Mischka's TOPL surgery was $4500 (everything included). 

(Mischka @ 92lbs. That's an Olsen Twin. *gulp*)


In less than two months, unexpected health challenges in the girls racked up $7300 in necessary veterinary procedures.

Being a single home owner (even with a loving partner who's helping) makes paying such a large amount - even though it's really critical - dang near impossible. Under current circumstances, baring that financial burden would be devastating, which led to starting the GoFundMe for the girls. 

(Dad, Roxie & Mischka. One of many, many walks - and many, many more to come. Photo by Mom.)


With times being so hard for so many people right now, especially during the pandemic, please know that asking for help of this sort is truly a last resort. Any financial help for the girls  is greatly appreciated, and we thank you for taking the time to read their story.

If you can't donate money at the moment, we understand, but please consider sharing the story and donation link with a friend who might be able to - your help & support means so much to us all.