Hi everyone,

*** UPDATE as of June 26, 2025*****

On June 25, 2025, I brought Nigo in for his scheduled veterinary appointment. During the visit, the vet noticed that Nigo was showing more pronounced neurological symptoms than before, and we were advised to consult with a specialist again.

That same day, we were referred to the VCA Emergency Care Centre, where we met with Dr. Diaz. He carefully assessed Nigo and provided us with a clearer understanding of what’s been happening with our sweet boy. Nigo was kept overnight for monitoring and to receive medication for pain and inflammation. He was also seen by an ophthalmologist the following morning.

They have now diagnosed Nigo with vestibular disease caused by an inner ear infection. Due to the high costs of an MRI and surgery, we will be proceeding with a more affordable, long-term treatment plan. Dr. Diaz has prescribed antibiotics and other medication to help manage the infection.

As for Nigo’s eye, the ulcer is very deep, and he’s unable to blink due to damage to part of the facial nerve near a gland beside the ear. This nerve damage, caused by the infection, has led to neurogenic dry eye — meaning he can’t produce natural tears, making it impossible for the ulcer to heal.

We were presented with three options:

1. Continue with topical medications and apply tear gel regularly to see if there’s any natural improvement.

2. Surgery to graft a piece of his conjunctival flap over the ulcer to promote healing. Since he can’t produce tears, this would also require removing a portion of his salivary gland and redirecting it to the eye to provide moisture.

3. Remove the affected eye, which would relieve the pain and prevent further complications.

Sadly, the first two options have very limited chances of success. For Nigo’s comfort and long-term well-being, we’ve made the difficult decision to move forward with the removal of his affected eye. At this time, we were quoted at $3100 for the removal, but we are seeking more affordable options

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I’m reaching out with a heavy heart to ask for help for my sweet baby, Nigo. Over the past few weeks, he’s been through so much and despite multiple vet visits with family and specialists with VCA, medications, and all the love and hope in the world, we still don’t have any clear diagnosis.

We woke up on May 27th, and I knew things weren’t right. My normal healthy and happy dog completely changed in what seemed like a blink of an eye; Abnormal behavior and trouble breathing. The vet initially suspected neck pain and possible IVDD, or even meningitis. From there, things only got more complicated. Nigo was diagnosed with a severe ear infection, followed by an eye ulcer, and blocked sinuses due to the infection which is making it harder for him to breathe. All of these issues occurring on the same side of his face, and no amount of medication is helping clear it up.

The last few weeks have been full of multiple vet visits, and referred to neurologist/optomoligost with each visit brings concerns but no diagnosis… more and more medications, as we try everything we can to comfort him and get to the root of what’s really going on.

Nigo is on a 24/7 rehab with very little activity as instructed by the VCA neurologist team rather than doing the more invasive/costly MRI in case it shows nothing is what they had informed us.

Most recently, Nigo is showing signs of a painful condition called Masticatory Muscle Myositis — which affects the muscles in the head and jaw, making it difficult and painful for him to open his mouth or eat solid food. We’re now preparing for more tests and examinations to confirm a diagnosis and hopefully find a path forward to healing up our little man.

The medical bills are piling up every week, and it’s been overwhelming emotionally and financially to get through this on our own.

Anyone who knows Braden and me knows that Nigo is the center of our world. He’s our best friend, our comfort, our little shadow…and seeing him suffer has been heartbreaking. He going to be 8 this October, and I know he has so much more life left in him.

Nigo has been so strong through all of this, and we’re doing everything we can to help him heal and get to the happy, goofy little guy he’s always been.

Thanks for reading… and thank you in advance if you are able to help or even just share this story, it would mean the world.

Thank you so much for your kindness, support, and love during this incredibly difficult time.

Shelby, Braden, and Nigo