Help and Health for Aria
Donation protected
Hi! Our names are Amanda & David, and we run our dog's Instagram account ayce.and.aria.
Many of you know Aria as our sweet Golden Retriever puppy from our training videos on our social media accounts. She has an adorable personality and has spread joy to everyone she has met in person and online. Through our videos, we hope we have helped and inspired other fur-friendly families and spread smiles all around the world.
Our family and Aria are now asking for your help.
On April 9th, 2023, Aria suddenly started experiencing diarrhea, stomach contractions, and severe pain. After rushing her to the emergency vet and being put through a bunch of different tests and scans, she was found to have pelvic bladder, a very rare condition where her bladder is displaced. This condition causes her to have difficulty relieving herself and experience a lot of discomfort. She continues to have frequent muscle contractions and abnormal bowel movements.
Sadly, there is no consensus on treatment for this condition due to how uncommon it is. She was initially recommended to have cystopexy, where the bladder is surgically corrected into the proper position. Many surgeons we contacted were not familiar with this condition and were uncomfortable managing it. The board-certified surgeon we eventually found deemed her too young to have this procedure and recommended waiting until she was fully grown to reconsider. She instead referred us to an Internal Medicine veterinarian to help ease her pain and discomfort while we wait for her candidacy for surgery. We are currently waiting to be seen by the internist.
Unfortunately, we are still in our waiting period for Aria's health insurance. Due to this, this health issue is now considered pre-existing and will not be covered by her health plan.
This journey has been a nightmare for us, but we are staying strong and trying out best for our little girl. As this has been very unexpected for us and we see many more vet appointments forthcoming, we are hoping to get assistance from Aria's family and friends to get the help that she needs and deserves. Any amount of contribution would be meaningful to us.
The estimated amount of funds is ~8,000, which will go towards all her current and future expected medical bills for this current issue, as well as the cystopexy once she is age-eligible. Due to the complexity of the issue, we hope to also get a second opinion as recommended by many of you. If there are any extra donations remaining, it will be donated to a non-profit animal organization (TBD, based off polls).
If you want to follow along with our story, I have made an Instagram story highlight "Stay Strong, Aria". Thank you so much for all the love and support from every one of you. Our family and little Aria truly appreciate it.
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Updated 4/13/23:
- We were able to get off the waitlist at the Oregon State University Vet hospital to see their Internal Medicine specialists today.
- The vets there agreed she has pelvic bladder but does not think it is the root cause of her other symptoms such as lethargy, constipation, and unresolved diarrhea.
- They are looking into the cause of other symptoms and think it is GI-related. They ordered CT scans and kept her overnight to be stable.
Organizer
Amanda Dieu
Organizer
Portland, OR