Update: We’re heartbroken to share that Toby passed away. He did undergo surgery and initially showed some improvement, but his health declined rapidly afterwards. The vets suspected ongoing internal complications and advised that a second surgery had a very low chance of success and would have put him through more suffering. We made the hardest decision to let him go peacefully.

Every donation went towards his surgery, hospitalisation, scans, medication, and ongoing care. Thank you to everyone who helped us give him a fighting chance and comfort in his final days.

Thank you for caring about Toby. He was deeply loved.

I never imagined I’d be asking for help like this, but today I’m trying to save my dog Toby’s life.

My name is Mihaela and Toby is not just our dog, he is part of our family.

We have had him since he was a tiny puppy, back when my children were still young. He grew up with us. He’s been there through years of life changes, laughter and hard moments, highs and lows. Our home has never known life without him.

Toby is a little character. He follows us everywhere, loves car rides, and the only place he truly relaxes is on our lap. When he wants to play, he goes to his toy basket, picks a toy, and throws it at our legs until we give him attention. Even at 10 years old, he is still a big baby with such a big personality. Our house feels empty without him here.

Last summer, Toby started getting sick. His blood tests didn’t show anything clear, and we were told to put him on a hepatic diet and monitor him. Over time, he would seem better and then suddenly worse again. We kept taking him back to the vet because we knew something wasn’t right.

Recently, after I went away for one weekend and left him with trusted friends, he suddenly became very unwell the night I came back. He started vomiting and rapidly deteriorating. It felt like he waited for me to come home before showing how sick he really was.

We rushed him to the vet on an emergency appointment and were sent home with medication for nausea and pain. Over the weekend, he worsened. He stopped eating, became very weak, and his skin turned yellow with jaundice. I took him straight back to the vet, and we were sent immediately to the hospital.

That is when the vets told us the truth:

Toby needed his gallbladder removed urgently, or he would not survive.

We were also told that if we couldn’t afford the surgery, the only option would be to take him home on pain medication so we could say goodbye before he would need to be put to sleep. There was no medication that could fix this. Hearing that broke us.

We made the decision to go ahead with the emergency surgery and fight for him.

Toby is still in hospital. The vets have found some liquid leaking into his stomach after the operation, which means there is a risk he may need a second surgery is case the liquid turns out to be bile. His bilirubin levels are improving and he has started eating a little on his own, which gives us some hope, but he is still in a very fragile condition.

The cost so far is around £10,000, and this does not include the cost of a possible second surgery.

We have already used our savings and borrowed money from close family and friends to raise around £7,000–£8,000.

I work as a cleaner, cleaning houses for a living. My daughter has just started her career and is still studying. This has put us in a very difficult financial position, but Toby is our family and we could not walk away from him while he is still fighting to live.

Every donation will go directly towards the emergency surgery, hospitalisation and medication.

Toby is still fighting. He still wants to live.

We are doing everything we can, but we can’t do this alone.

If you can help, even with a small amount, it truly means the world to us.

If you can’t donate, sharing this fundraiser could help save his life.

Thank you for reading Toby’s story and for giving him a chance.