Lily's life saving surgery

Hello!

My name is Lily, nice to meet you :)

I’ve recently been diagnosed with grade 3 bilateral lateral patellar luxation. My dads tell me that means my kneecaps can’t stay in place, but all I know is it means I can’t run and play anymore (which are my favourite things to do by the way). Before we get into that, here is a bit about me:

I was born somewhere in Northern Manitoba with my 7 siblings on April 19th, 2024. We spent some time in a house with a lot of other dogs, but then we were shipped all the way to the SPCA in Moncton, New Brunswick! This is where I met my dads. They said once they saw my picture, there was no way that they couldn’t bring me home.

On June 18th, I became the newest addition to the family. They took me on a long drive all the way back to Cornwall, PEI, where I met my two kitty siblings, Ellie and Marty. They didn’t like me very much at first, but I loved them from the start. Now, we are pretty much inseparable!

The first 4 months living with my family was the best! We would go on adventures all the time, play fetch, and go to the beach. My favourite place to go was the Upton Dog Park where I’ve made so many nice friends.

When we weren’t playing, I was working hard learning how to be a “therapy dog” (though it was just as fun for me, some even call me a ‘natural’). Both of my dads work in big houses with lots of people, I guess they are called “seniors homes” and “recovery homes”. There is nothing better than seeing all my friends there, and being able to give and get so much love. Sometimes these people may be sick or sad, but they always say my kisses help. I guess you could say I am basically a doctor! My dads told me that when I got a bit older, I would start going to school to get my certification so I could be the best therapy dog I could be and keep helping my friends.

I hope that I still get to do that someday, but it has even been getting too hard for me to go to the houses anymore because of my knees.

Now that you know some of my story, let's talk more about my condition. On October 31st 2024, my dad took me to the vet where they noticed I was having trouble standing up. The doctors at the Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC) decided to check this out. This is when they diagnosed me with grade 3 bilateral lateral patellar luxation. The doctors told my dads that I would need surgery, but since I am still a puppy, they should wait until I am a big, fully grown girl to fix my legs.

Ever since then, it has been getting harder and harder to move and it’s even hard to pee because my legs just do not work! Now, instead of running, swimming, playing, and helping my friends, my days consist of sleeping, eating, and playing some laying down games with my dads. I am still a pretty happy, 7 month old girl, but I am starting to get a little sad because I can’t do any of my favourite things anymore. I miss all my friends so much; I just want to play with Wally again (my next-door-neighbour), or go down to the dog park with everyone there, or go to the homes and help the people there.

The doctors said I can get the surgery now, but because of how advanced and rare my condition is, it will cost around $20 000 dollars to fix! I don’t know much about money (besides that it buys me treats), but I know we don’t have anywhere near this much because both of my dads are students at UPEI.

I have another appointment with a different vet in Moncton, NB on December 5th to get a second opinion because my dads heard this vet does these procedures at a much lower cost, but either way they say it is going to be thousands of dollars. They have been trying to save ever since we found out and are working nonstop, but we are all scared that we cannot make enough on our own. They even said maybe it's time for me to find a job!

According to the vets, I am basically going to need both my legs reconstructed, but once I am healed I can do all the things that make me so happy again! If I don’t get the surgery, I will lose the ability to do anything with my hindlegs and will develop more problems with my hips and back from having to put all my weight onto my front paws when I walk (it really is that uncomfortable for my knees to be moving around). Because of this, my dads are reaching out to everyone that they can for help in any way they are able!

Thank you for reading my story :)