Help Give Atlas A Chance To Live!

Hello Aussie-Loving and dog-loving friends! I am the fundraising coordinator for Australian Shepherds Furever, a national non-profit rescue. One of our adopters, Mandy Ellison, needs financial help to save the 4-year-old Australian Shepherd her family adopted from us 12 months ago. Here is Atlas' story:

Atlas had kind of a rough start out in Oklahoma. When he was rescued by Australian Shepherds Furever (ASF), his luck changed. The Ellison family adopted him a year ago and brought him to their farm in Pennsylvania. Only 12 months later, this walk-obsessed, ice-cream-loving, laid-back, loving pup has fallen on hard times again. Atlas needs help if he’s to have a chance to live.

The Ellisons noticed a change in his behavior about a month ago and scheduled an appointment with their vet. They thought he was having vision problems, maybe going blind. They couldn’t get an appointment for three weeks, and Atlas continued to deteriorate during the wait.

When the family finally got him to the vet, they found Atlas’ problem is much more severe, even life-threatening. He’s suffering from swelling in his brain that is pressing on his optic nerve… causing pain, fear-aggression, and significant disorientation. The vet put Atlas immediately on steroids to decrease the swelling so they can diagnose what is causing the problem. And try to come up with a treatment plan, if possible, in time to save him. HOWEVER, the testing will cost $3500-5000 BEFORE the treatment can even start.

Atlas is running out of time. The family has already invested $1000 in his treatment. And they won’t be able to swing the costs of the needed diagnostics and the subsequent therapy without outside financial help. Look at the BEFORE photos of a young, bright-eyed, happy, playful, loving family companion from just several months ago. Then look at him now. Sad, depressed, confused, scared and in pain. It is heartbreaking for the Ellisons, their kids, their other dog, Laia… and all the ASF volunteers who know Atlas and worked to rescue him and give him the great future he deserved with the Ellisons.

Won’t you help the Ellisons try to save Atlas? They are willing to fight FOR him and WITH him. But the finances to do it aren’t there. Please keep Atlas in your thoughts and prayers that together, we can get him the treatment he needs to survive. Thank you!