Help Shaggy's Mom afford his life-saving surgery

Update - Shaggy came through his surgery well and is currently in rehab due to the care required for his surgical wound. His total vet and post-op care bills are upwards of $14k. Please watch this news story done by WMAR to get the full sense of Shaggy's importance to the community and his owner Pat.

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Shaggy is a kind, affectionate horse who puts even the most nervous people at ease. This is why he has been a crucial part of so many of GEC’s outreach missions, including our work with foster children, veterans, and people struggling with addiction and homelessness.

This morning we found Shaggy in terrible shape, suffering from something called colic, which in the horse world is a very scary thing. Colic is a generic term for intestinal distress; it can be caused by different things. In Shaggy's case, he had what is called a 'strangulating lipoma,' which happens when an otherwise harmless, fatty internal growth gets wrapped around his intestines, cutting off circulation and the ability to pass gas or manure, creating a tremendous amount of pain and pressure, and potentially killing tissue in the intestines. Untreated, this is absolutely fatal. Fortunately, the GEC community came together, as always, and got Shaggy on a trailer and up to New Bolton (the UPENN veterinary teaching hospital) for much-needed surgery.

Can you please help with Shaggy's bills? Even the smallest donation helps and will go directly to Pat so that she can apply them to Shaggy’s vet bill. Shaggy is an important part of the Graham family; let’s show him how much we appreciate his hard work.

Relationship and funding:

I am the Executive Director of the Graham Equestrian Center, where Pat boards Shaggy. Funds will be directly processed to Pat to pay for the bills incurred by Shaggy's surgery and post-operative care at New Bolton.