Hi there, this is my baby girl Shylene and she just turned 5 in May. She’s been a part of our family since 8 weeks old , and has always been the best girl who never fails to remind us to take her to the park and go for daily walkies by scratching the door. She loves hiding her favourite treats in her beds, doing zoomies at night, cuddling with everyone and playing with my rescue kitten. She means so much to my family and I.

A few days ago, Shy and I were playing tug and she was just being her most normal self. But little did we know  that the next day, our world was going to fall apart. She started vomiting, showing lethargy and she had no appetite. She was taken to the vet quickly, who then advised her to be rushed to the animal emergency and ICU immediately. 

After a range of check-ups, pathology tests, ultrasounds and X-ray scans at the emergency, the doctor diagnosed Shylene with an extremely rare fatal disease called ‘Primary Evans Syndrome’, which only happens to 2% of the dog population.

“Evan’s syndrome is caused by an abnormal immune response in which the patient’s body targets both red blood cells and platelets for destruction. Primary Evan’s syndrome has no known cause, meaning the immune system was not triggered to attack the red cells or platelets for any identifiable reason” - Vet Specialty Centre

Shylene is now battling in the ICU with frequent life-sustaining blood transfusions as her PCV is currently at 13% , when it should be above 35% for normal dogs. With the blood transfusions, we’re aiming to buy her time until the medication kicks in (which usually takes 3-6 days). She’s needing around 1-2 bags per day.

The medical team’s plan now is to help her make it through these few critical nights in the ICU , then get transferred to the internal medicine ward ASAP. It is hopeful that a successful transition and treatment will be able to return her back into her normal quality of life, controlled by follow up medication. However, in order to continue with such life-saving treatment, the hospital estimates that an enormous bill of around $17 000-$20 000 is needed for her stay (of around 5 nights at ICU and 3 nights at internal med). This cost also excludes the ongoing medication and treatment which she will require when she will be discharged.

This cost covers:

$1500 ICU including medication per night (the vet advised she’ll be staying there for at least 5 nights)

$1000 red blood cells transfusion per bag

$1200 whole blood transfusion per bag

(She’s needing around 1-2 bags per day.)

$600-900 internal med per night, and she’ll need at least 3 nights.

Absolutely 100% of donations will go directly towards her medical bill.

Due to Covid and all the lockdowns, my income has been significantly impacted. Hence, our family is hoping to afford half of the expenses, with a goal of raising $9000 to cover the rest of the cost. Shylene means so much to us. It’ll be very much appreciated if you could please donate or share, each penny will contribute to this life-saving treatment for my baby girl. All we’re praying for now is that she can return home healthily and continue to live a quality life like any other normal puppy.

Thank you for your time,
Renee