Dollars for Daisy: Make Daisy Mae's Last Moments Peaceful

Hello, my name is Catherine and I would like to take the opportunity to tell you about a dream come true. Three years ago, a good friend of mine had golden retriever puppies. It was not a decision I came to on a whim to get one of the puppies. I have always loved the breed and have had names picked out at 8 years old for my 2 golden retrievers. However, when these puppies were born I had just bought my first home in Charlotte, NC, I already had a fur baby, Riley, and it did not seem like a good time to get a new puppy. But my friend kept pushing and made me realize it would be good for Riley to have a companion and it would be a dream come true for 8-year-old me who was still waiting for the day she could have her golden bundle of joy.

So, at 8 weeks old, I brought home my beautiful golden retriever, Daisy Mae. At the time it was a lot. New condo, new puppy, and Riley took a little while to get used to the new fur ball hanging on her tail. But I wouldn’t trade those memories for anything in this world.

My dream come true has turned into a nightmare way too soon. In March, Daisy Mae developed a limp in her right front leg. I thought maybe her and Riley were playing too rough and she landed on it wrong. After a week of it not getting better, I took her to the vet and they thought it may be elbow dysplasia and put her on an anti-inflammatory and told me I had to rest her for 2 months. No long walks, no going to the dog park, just rest. So that is what we did. After a month, I went back to the vet to get her medication refilled. One of the vet technicians came out to the waiting room and told me the vet I originally saw was no longer working there and they had a different vet review Daisy’s chart and told me we needed to get X-rays…

And it went downhill from there. After the X-rays, the vet told me they could feel a lump on her shoulder blade. They threw out the word tumor, and my world stopped. How could my 3-year-old fur baby have a tumor? Over the coming weeks, we had a consultation with a veterinary specialist in South Carolina, we had to get a CT scan which was not cheap, and the CT scan confirmed the vet’s suspicion of a bone tumor. Daisy Mae was diagnosed with an Osteosarcoma (bone cancer) on her shoulder blade and the CT scan also revealed that the cancer had already spread to her lungs. Bone cancer in dogs is just as sudden and aggressive as it can be in humans. All I can say is CANCER SUCKS.

Due to the aggressiveness of the cancer and the fact that it has already spread to her lungs, her prognosis isn’t good. The specialist only gave her a couple more months to live. Amputation of the affected limb and chemotherapy are very expensive treatments that would not give her any more time. Money issues aside, if she only has a couple more months of life, I felt like making her go through a long extensive surgery that would leave her with only 3 legs would be unfair. By the time she recovered and figured out how to manage with her new disability, we would have wasted the time we had left for her to have a comfortable rest of her life.

So I have opted for conservative comfort treatment with medications and am doing all I can to make her comfortable and happy and loved for whatever time we have left.

With that said, I am asking for donations to help offset the cost of her veterinary bills and to help, when the time comes, pay for in-home euthanasia. Her CT scan alone was $1800, plus the cost of the vet appointments prior to that. In-home euthanasia will cost about $420, and cremation for a dog her size is going to be about $500. So I am looking to raise $3,000. As a pet parent, it’s hard to love an animal so much, as if they are your child and then to have to constantly stress about money when they are sick. Any donation is greatly appreciated.

Please help me make Daisy Mae’s time on this earth end in the comfort of her own home. So that she isn’t scared and anxious by having to go to a vet office and so that she can go peacefully and without pain.

Thank you.