Help our Hodu!

My name is Heidi, and I'm reaching out to you all about my best friend Sam's dog, Hodu.

Hodu the dachshund is a rescue dog from South Korea brought to Canada by Niagara Dog Rescue! Sam J Russell adopted him Feb 3 2019 & they've been inseparable since. Hodu is his shadow; his partner in crime. Hodu is the mascot of Sam's business too.

On Saturday Hodu was his normal, happy, active self & by his nightly walk Sam said he was moving slower than usual. We thought maybe a sore muscle & keep an eye on him Sunday. Sunday rolls around & Hodu is a little wobbly on his back legs but nothing else seems to bother him. Sam keeps an eye on him & by nightfall wobbly went to paralyzed very suddenly! Sam spent the night calling vets in Hamilton, Burlington, Mississ/Oakville, Guelph, & by 8:30am they were at their vet in Cambridge. By noon they were being referred to Ontario Veterinary College Companion Animal Hospital & by 1:30pm they were being admitted. Their neurological tests determined that Hodu no longer had deep pain sensation in his hind legs & that he needed surgery immediately! By not having deep pain sensation this means he has a 10-15% chance of developing Myelomalacia (the spinal cord deterioration) which is fatal. Surgery is his best & only chance at walking again. That chance is 50/50. CT scan showed a big disc prolapsed & was putting pressure on the spinal cord.

Surgery went smooth & they removed a lot of disc material & said the spinal cord looks healthy! This is fantastic news!

This was now Monday night. 24 hours have passed since he was paralyzed to having & out of surgery!

As of Tuesday he has regained deep pain sensation in his hind legs! His vitals are good. His spine reflexes are improving & he is on a different pain med & is more alert.

He is going to be in hospital a few more days.

Unfortunately emergency life saving surgery isn't cheap. Sam does have pet insurance but they only cover so much. The total cost of the surgery is estimated to be $9000. Sadly Sam's business was robbed just last week & he has gone through his savings getting his business back up & running this week. If there is anything you can do to help our Hodu pay his vet bill that would be greatly appreciated!