Hey everyone, as some of you may know my brothers dog Duke was in a boating accident on Friday 6/7/2019. Tyler, his friends and Duke were riding on Santa Fe Lake and Duke slipped on the deck of the boat. When he slipped he fell forward , they immediately stopped, but were very worried when he didn't come back up. That is when Tyler dove into the water to save Duke. When he came back up Tyler knew something was wrong and rushed him to UF Veterinary Hospital.
    Upon arrival he was taken to the ICU where he had X-rays, CT and MRI and treated by a neurosurgeon and several ER veterinarians. During Dukes impact with the water he ruptured a lung, fractured a vertebrae and received a large bruise on his spinal cord. The Doctors believe the large bruise on his spinal cord is more than likely causing him to lose movement in his back legs.  Since the accident he has been moved from the ICU into inpatient therapy. He also has done acupuncture, aqua treadmill therapy (video above), acupuncture with electric stimulation, and laser therapy. As soon as his punctured lung is healed they are going to try putting him in a hyperbaric chamber to heal his spinal cord. He has feeling in his legs but still no movement or awareness of his hind legs.
   Duke is one of the sweetest, well-mannered, and adventurous dogs and best friend a person could have. Duke has a long road ahead of him including at least three more days in the hospital, therapy as an outpatient and possibly a wheelchair.  With that being said, the costs are adding up for Tyler and he could really use some help with the costs. Duke is a healthy and strong 18 month old dog so whether you are an animal lover or someone who loves Tyler, every Dollar counts, and if you can't donate, even a share would help as well!
Thank you, Taylor, Tiffany, Tyler and Duke Mott