**TL;DR** My dog Bo got emergency IVDD surgery on Thursday, and I opened a CareCredit card to cover the costs. The surgery cost $7,508. If you have the means to donate, it would mean the world. (Full story continued below)

 

Hey everyone,

 

My name is Monica Guardado, and I'm fundraising to help with the costs of my dog Bo's IVDD surgery. Bo is only four years old and is a wonderfully affectionate and playful girl. I adopted her three years ago from the San Francisco Bay Area - my life has never been the same since. She has made me a happier and healthier person. Even at my lowest points in struggling with my mental health, I never got as low as I did before I had her. Now it's my turn to be there for her.

 

A couple of weeks ago, Bo started wobbling on walks, trembling, and panting from pain. We took her to the ER immediately and were prescribed strict crate rest and pain medications. We followed that advice for two weeks, but despite all this, nothing seemed to touch her pain. We went to the vet three more times during that time to try and manage her pain and figure out what was going on. My partner and I weren't sleeping, her pain meds weren't working, and we were driven out of our minds with anxiety and helplessness. After a final trip to the ER, we were lucky enough to get Bo in for an MRI. The neurologist found a large disc herniation in her L1-L2 vertebrae and we were told her only respite would come from IVDD (intervertebral disk disease) surgery. If she didn't get the surgery soon, she could rapidly decline and ultimately lose her ability to walk.

 

We did the surgery. I took out a line of credit to immediately cover the costs. Bo was at the hospital for four long days and today is her first day home. Her pain has decreased dramatically! However, we still have a long road ahead before she fully recovers.

 

We love Bo so much and we were not ready to say goodbye to her, so there was no question about doing the surgery. But it's always difficult to face these significant and very unexpected financial burdens. It's not easy for me to ask for help, but if you could donate to help cover some of the cost of the surgery, it would mean the world. Anything raised above the $7500 cap we intend to donate to an animal charity. Thank you for reading.