Hi, I'm Neil and I'm fundraising for my friend Jessica and her puppy Basil, based in South Africa. Here's her story:

Have you ever heard the quote: “I didn’t rescue my dog. My dog rescued me"? To be honest, I was never much of a dog person before Basil came along so I never really understood what this meant. I didn’t get the big fuss people made about leaving their dogs at home for a few hours and rolled my eyes at photo feeds filled with endless, seemingly repetitive, pet pictures.

And then Basil found me.

And he really did find me. My (then) partner and I had no intention of adopting a puppy, but one day I came across a photo of 2 little 3-month old rescue pups who needed a home…and I was done for. Every day I came back to the photo (below), my partner excited at the idea, but also wondering if I was for real. I don’t know what it was about these two little guys, but it didn’t matter how many other puppies I came across, or even visited in the flesh, I couldn’t take my mind off them.

We eventually decided to visit and choose one of them to bring one home. The plan was very much to choose Basil’s brother: I was absolutely certain he was the one. But as it were, Basil came straight towards us and made himself at home in our laps. And so, our story began.

Looking back, I know Basil came into my life in this strange way to prepare and support me through the most difficult time of my life. My long-term partner and I split up, I had to move out of his house and find somewhere for me and Basil to live. And I had to try and support myself financially while still trying to get a business off the ground. I struggled with overwhelming anxiety and depression. Lockdown, ofcourse, didn’t help. But Basil certainly did.

If I look back on these past 16 months, it’s having Basil with me that’s got me through each day: the cuddles on the couch, the demands for tug-of-war, daily walks to the beach, laughing at him chasing monkeys and watching him get strangers to smile as he runs up to them for a “hi”. He’s managed to form a group of buddies at the beach, and with that, I’ve met new people too. I’ve started socialising again, running in a group, and going for tea-and-dog playdates. One of the dog owners used to tease us when we arrived on the beach and say: “Basil’s here. Now the party can begin.” That’s the kind of effect he has. Everybody loves Basil. In a completely unexpected way, he’s given me my life back. And now it’s time to do the same for him.

A few months ago, a friend mentioned to me that DNA testing for mixed breed dogs is a good idea because then you’re informed about preventative care. My reaction was a firm no. There was no way I wanted to know if there were any potential issues ahead of time as I would find it too hard to even consider him not living a long and happy life. I even got tearful at the thought. It wasn’t even 6 weeks later that I was at the vet to explore some changed behaviour in the form of an altered gait and on-off limp. From there, things seemed to deteriorate very quickly and within a few weeks, his appetite changed, he started dragging his back legs on to the couch, even hopping with his back paw off the ground.

After a few failed vet visits, I finally found a wonderful doctor (Dr Vergeer at Westville Veterinary Hospital, KZN, South Africa) who was able to figure out what was going on. The list of issues are too long to name, and to be honest, I don’t even fully understand each of them. The summary is that as a possibly over-mixed breed, he’s inherited arthritic conditions that have left him with painful bone growths and inflammation in his hips, knees, elbows, spine and wrists. The only joints that seem fine at this stage are his shoulders and ankles. Basil is only 2 years old so it’s unimaginable that a puppy so young and energetic is already in so much pain.

The biggest and most immediate issue is that the lack of joint stability in his left knee has caused ligament rupture. He needs surgery to reconstruct the knee and given his pain levels, it’s something that just can’t wait. The longer he does wait, the more likelihood of tearing his meniscus, and the higher the risk of further complications setting in. While I try and find the money to fund this (it’s going to cost in the region of $1750 on top of the $425 already spent on scans, diagnosis and medication), he can’t go to the beach and visit his pals and his movement is limited to short, structured walks and daily pain medication. The vet said I have until early January but it can’t really wait longer than that.

It’s a big deal for me to be asking for help, but I honestly don’t have any other options. Basil has saved my butt and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for him. If you can contribute even a small amount it would be so appreciated. Every single cent counts. Here's a video of Basil saying "THANK YOU!"

Jessica