Give Ali’i a Chance at a Happy Life

Aloha! We are Matt and Robyn Waddle and are not the type of people who are comfortable asking others for financial help, but we are in a desperate situation. After becoming empty nesters we had decided not to get another pet when our daughter and her dog moved out. However, in April this year, we met the most beautiful and sweetest Longhair Weimaraner mix puppy. God put love in my heart for her the moment I held her in my arms. She instantly melted against me and felt at home. We named her Ali’i, Hawaiian for nobility, and also the name of the beach park where my husband and both children were baptized in Hawaii, so it just felt right. This is the story of what has conspired over the past four months since she came into our lives…

When we picked her up the white fur on her bottom and back legs were stained yellow. At her first puppy appointment later that week tests revealed she had a UTI. We immediately started her on antibiotics to treat the UTI. After the first round of antibiotics, we were told by her first vet that there was nothing more they could do to help us. We quickly found another vet for a second opinion.

Her new vet is amazing and has taken the time to treat her as diligently as possible. After nearly three months and several vet visits trying to treat the issue, we had an ultrasound that determined she only has one functioning kidney, her second kidney is either microscopic or nonexistent (not detectable on the ultrasound). To exacerbate the situation the tube that runs from the functioning kidney (ureter) is not attached to the bladder and runs directly to her urethra. This causes her to leak urine constantly, which is contributing to the infection that will not clear up.

At this point, she needs to have surgery to transplant the ureter to flow directly into the bladder as it should. If we elect not to do the surgery and instead decide to continue to treat her with antibiotics, she will build up resistance. Eventually, her functioning kidney will fail due to the constant infection. We have already spent thousands of dollars trying to treat her. The cost of the surgery is more than we can handle, and the alternative feels cruel to make her go through. This is breaking our hearts, and we don’t know what to do.

We are desperately looking for ways to cover the cost of the surgery, so she can live a healthy and happy life with us. As I mentioned we are struggling to ask for help but are quickly running out of options. We want to say thank you in advance for any help we can get for this very difficult situation.

God bless!

Matt & Robyn