Help Nacho Finish His Fight

In February, Marybeth found Nacho alone on the streets of Antigua.

He was gravely malnourished and severely emaciated. When they called out to him, Nacho tried to come to them—and collapsed in the street.

His body showed just how much he had already endured. He had deep wounds around his paws, a severe eye infection, and was in such poor condition that his rescuers knew that without intervention, he wasn't going to survive.

There were already more dogs needing help than there was room for at the sanctuary. But Nacho was one of those dogs they simply couldn't walk past.

So they didn't.

Dogs and Cats of Antigua took him in and gave him the chance that someone else had taken away from him.

His rescuers believe Nacho had previously been used as a bait/fighting dog before being discarded. Yet somehow, despite everything humans had done to him, he was still gentle. Still affectionate. Still willing to trust.

And little by little, Nacho started coming back to life.

He gained weight. His wounds began to heal. He made friends. He soaked up affection from the people who visited him. The desperately thin dog who had collapsed in the street started looking like a dog who finally understood that maybe he was safe.

But one injury followed him from the very beginning: his eye.

When Nacho was found, one of his eyes was already severely damaged and infected. Despite the care he received over the following months, ultimately it could not be saved.

In September, just before he was supposed to begin his journey to the United States, Nacho underwent an enucleation—the surgical removal of his eye.

Seeing him immediately after surgery is heartbreaking. But that scar doesn't make me think about what Nacho lost.

It reminds me of everything he survived.

Nacho woke up from surgery with one eye—but still completely Nacho. Still gentle. Still loving. Still ready for whatever came next.

We thought this might finally be the last major hurdle standing between him and his new beginning.

Then his pre-travel testing brought another blow.

Nacho tested positive for heartworm.

After everything this dog has already survived, he now has another fight ahead of him.

Nacho is scheduled to travel from Antigua to Illinois, where I will be fostering him and taking over his veterinary care. Once he arrives, he'll be evaluated by our local veterinarian and we'll begin the process of treating his heartworm disease and getting him healthy.

I'm starting this fundraiser to help cover Nacho's veterinary expenses here in the United States, including his heartworm evaluation and treatment, testing, medications, follow-up care, and other medically necessary expenses that may arise during his recovery.

I will share his veterinary estimates, treatment updates, and expenses along the way so that everyone who helps Nacho can follow his journey.

But I also want his story to help another dog.

If donations exceed Nacho's medical expenses, the remaining funds will be donated to Marybeth's Immiticide campaign to help provide lifesaving heartworm treatment for other dogs at Dogs and Cats of Antigua.

Because without Marybeth stopping for one emaciated dog lying in the street that day, Nacho might not be here.

And there are more Nachos waiting for someone to stop.

After starvation, wounds, a devastating eye injury, losing his eye, months of recovery, and now heartworm disease, Nacho has fought extraordinarily hard just for the opportunity to live an ordinary life.

That's all I want for him now.

A soft bed.

A full belly.

A ridiculous purple collar.

Dog brothers to show him the ropes.

People who adore him.

And the chance to finally learn what it means to just be somebody's dog.

He survived the street. Now we're going to help him finish his fight.

Whether you donate, share Nacho's story, or simply follow along and cheer him on, thank you for being part of the village that got this sweet boy this far.