Help Maple Get Life-Saving Surgery

UPDATE, August 31st: Maple is home and so far so good!!! The future is still uncertain, but I am beyond grateful that the surgery was a success. Thank you all so much!

Surgery is needed for my 6 month old puppy, Maple, to fix a liver shunt. What is a liver shunt? I didn't know either! A liver shunt, also known as a portosystemic shunt (PSS), is a birth defect or acquired condition in dogs that causes blood to bypass the liver instead of following its normal pathway. Only 1% of dogs are born with a liver shunt. Without performing the surgery, my beautiful doxie Maple only has a life expectancy of 6 months to 2 years. The good news is, 80–90% of dogs have a good to excellent survival rate after surgery. Maple will be staying at the University of Penn from August 27th, with the surgery scheduled for August 29th.

Now I'd like to tell the story of how Maple came into my life. I adopted Maple from a rescue on June 20th, but after 3 days I knew she was very sick. I took her to my Veterinarian, Dr. McBee of Winslow Animal Hosptial, who diagnosed her with a liver shunt. She immediately sent me to the University of Penn where Maple stayed for 3 nights. They ran test after test and put her on the necessary IVs to keep her stable. We honestly didn't know if she was going to live. With each phone call from the vet, we prayed that she would respond well as they took her off of the IVs and administered the medicine orally.

When I picked Maple up from the hospital on June 27th, I was ecstatic, to say the least! She was a totally different dog, and acting just like a puppy should act. She's been on a special diet and medications 3 times a day. She was checked again at the University of Penn on July 25th and is currently doing so well. I am praying she will stay well now and through the surgery.

The animal rescue has been so amazing in supporting me through this entire journey. I feel so fortunate that the rescue did not give up on Maple and we were brought together. Maple is a strong, amazing, one of a kind pup. When we heard the heartbreaking news of her disease, I just knew that despite the cost of what was needed for her care, I just had to do all I could to save her and give her a chance at a full life. She is part of our family and we love her so much.

With your help, we can save my little girl. Thank you all for your continued prayers and support. I appreciate every single one of you <3