Help Ham See Again

Hi, We are Hamish's parents Scott and Kate.

 

On August 23rd, 2021, we had noticed that Hamish, our 18 month old German Shorthaired Pointer, was behaving unusually while out playing ball and seemed like he was unable to see properly. Ham could not see where we threw the ball, and was searching for us outside as if he could not tell where we were. Being concerned, we visited our local veterinarian, who notified us that Ham's eyes were not dilating and constricting as normal and that Ham may have juvenile cataracts and uveitis. We were referred to the Alta Vista Animal Hopsital in Ottawa, Ontario for further investigation.

 

During this time we waited scared and anxiously until our appointment at the end of October, administering Ham steroid eye drops and metacam to help reduce inflammation and manage discomfort until their appointment.

 

On October 20th, 2021, we attended the Alta-Vista Animal Hospital in Ottawa, Ontario, and were notified that Hamish was diagnosed with juvenile genetic induced cataracts, his right eye being a hypermature cataract, and his left being a mature cataract. Additionally, Ham is diagnosed with lens induced uveitis, which means that his lenses have small tears that are leaking protein fluid, causing inflammation and swelling around his eye.

 

The veterinarian ophthalmologist recommended surgery and notified us that without surgery, Ham's eyes will continue to degenerate and he will become fully blind.

 

The rate of success for the surgery is 90%+, and the ophthalmologist performs the surgery routinely. They are confident that Ham is a good candidate for surgery as he is very young, and putting off the surgery will cause complications and reduce the success rate.

 

Unfortunately, specialist surgery is expensive, and our quotes were totaled to be $7700 on the lower end, and $9,100 on the high end. This quote does not include any post-operative medications, or transportation to and from Ottawa. In total, we will travel to Ottawa approximately 8-11 times over the course of preoperative appointments, surgery, and postoperative care.

 

Ham is scheduled to attend the pre-surgical appointment January 10th, and undergo surgery January 25th, 2021, should there be no complications.

 

We are asking friends, family, and anyone who is willing to support us in funding even a portion of his surgery. Please understand that we do not take this lightly, and are only asking for support because we genuinely need it. Ham has done so much for us and fulfilled our lives more than we could ever describe, and I can speak for us both when I say that this is the least we can do to repay Ham for all the love and positivity he has brought to our lives.

 

We understand how difficult it is to ask for monetary support during the pandemic, and understand if you can not help us at this time. This year has been challenging for many of us to say the least, and we both can understand how hard it is to ask people to donate at this time.

 

Can you be one of the people who help us cover Ham's surgery and give him back the gift of sight?

 

Just a BUCK could change Ham's luck.

 

No donation is to small.

 

We have all been in the position where we can not contribute financially and we understand if you are unable to donate at this time. Alternatively, we would love if you could share Ham's message and get the word out to others.

 

*We have attached Hamish's surgery quotes and diagnosis information on this page to provide transparency, as well as cute photos. Please see the link below*

 

Link to Hamish's Bill and Photos