We didn’t think we would ever have to do something like this, but Buster was diagnosed with IMHA a few weeks ago and we are asking for help to raise funds to help with his treatment.

Buster was off his food for a few weeks and we originally thought it was his teeth and were going to book him in for a dental clean as he would eat if we added gravy on top or give him wet food. He then became very tired, so we booked him in for bloods.

IMHA, (Immune-Mediated Hemolytic Anemia) is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition in dogs where the immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys the body's own red blood cells. This leads to anemia, where the dog doesn't have enough healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen throughout the body. A normal blood count is 35% or above and Busters dropped to 16%.

Buster was rushed to a specialist vets in Bristol and required a CT scan to see what caused the IMHA, but no cancers or internal bleeding showed on the scan. His levels then dropped to 11% and he required an emergency blood transfusion to save his life. His levels then increased to 31% and he was put on steroids and anti clotting medication, which he needs to take every day.

Buster needs repeat bloods to ensure that his levels are not dropping, and sadly his last bloods showed that not only is he still not producing any new cells himself, but he is now also destroying the ones he has. His levels dropped again to 13% when they were 20% on Monday, and he required another blood transfusion. As the steroids have not helped, they believe it could be in his bone marrow.

He wasn’t doing very well after the transfusion, and they think he might also have infection. He is now on steroids, an immunosuppressant, paracetamol, and antibiotics.

His levels would only increase to 21% after the transfusion, but the following morning they are now up to 23%. He is having bloods done again on 20th June to ensure they are not dropping again.

We have now exhausted our insurance, and IMHA is a very expensive disease, and sadly has a poor prognosis.

We believe Buster can fight this, and we want to give him every chance we can.

Each blood transfusion is £1.2K, medication for this disease is very expensive, and the vets bills are already over £8k.

We will update Buster’s journey, and we believe he can get through this.

We are so grateful for every donation, thank you so much.