Hi friends,

I’m reaching out with a heavy heart. A year ago in October, I adopted my sweet Otis — an energetic and quirky dog who quickly became my constant companion and source of joy. In May, Otis became seriously ill. We thought it was pancreatitis and spent four days treating him for that, but he wasn’t improving. It turned out he also had a small bowel obstruction — his second one — and needed emergency surgery.

The surgeon discovered multiple adhesions from his previous operation, which made the surgery more complex. Otis rallied briefly, but then he stopped eating. We returned to the emergency vet and learned he had developed peritonitis and sepsis due to a rupture where his intestine had adhered to his liver and split open.

Facing the reality of his condition — the severity of the infection, his pain, and the low likelihood of meaningful recovery — I made the excruciating decision to have him euthanized during the second surgery.

I borrowed over $9,000 to try to save Otis’s life:

• $4,000 borrowed from my credit union

• Close to $5,650 on a Care Credit card, which will charge 32.99% retroactive interest if not paid off by December.

Despite the additional challenge of grieving Otis, I have been picking up as many extra shifts as I can, and I have eliminated most of my discretionary spending. I have paid down the Care Credit to about $4,700. Because the ICCU loan has a fixed interest rate, I am confident that I will be able to pay it off within its term. However, I simply cannot afford to take the financial burden of 32.99% interest applied retroactively on the Care Credit loan. If you’re able to contribute anything toward easing this debt, I would be deeply grateful. Every little bit helps more than you know.

Thank you for reading, for your compassion, and for honoring Otis with me.

With love,

Sondra