UPDATE:

Hi Everyone,

Firstly, thank you so much to each and every person who has so kindly donated or shared our fundraiser. It truly means the world to us and helps get Alfie one step closer towards having a, hopefully, life-saving surgery for chylothorax. He is the light of our life.

We brought him home yesterday afternoon from the specialist veterinary hospital and he was tired but able to breathe much better because the vets managed to drain 2.5l of fluid from around his lungs. His breathing still isn't the best because there is some fluid that they were unable to extract.

He has sadly been diagnosed with a rare and serious condition called idiopathic chylothorax. This is where fatty lymph fluid (chyle) leaks from the thoracic duct into the chest cavity without a known, underlying cause. This fluid buildup compresses the lungs, causing severe breathing difficulties.

The fluid will build back up around Alfie's lungs and we do not know exactly how long this will take. It depends on the individual dog but can happen very quickly.

Surgery is unfortunately the only treatment that could potentially save Alfie's life and cures chylotohorax in approx 85% of cases. It is a very costly surgery which will need to be performed at a specialist veterinary hospital.

We have insurance in place but have already exceeded the policy limit and used our own money in the last few days to cover emergency investigations and diagnostic tests, as well as the draining of the fluid around Alfie's lungs and an overnight stay at the veterinary hospital.

The most common surgery involves tying off the thoracic duct (the main vessel that carries lymph fluid through the chest) to stop the leak, allowing the body to reroute the fluid through other vessels. Veterinarians often remove part of the pericardium (the thin sac around the heart) during the same surgery to reduce pressure in the chest and improve the chances of success.

This surgery costs approx. £9,000, which is why I unfortunately am having to increase our fundraiser goal significantly. The initial estimate from the vets was to cover more likely scenarios such as infection, but chylothorax is a rare condition that was not expected.

I know that £9,000 is a huge amount of money and I feel disheartened because we know that there is a surgery that could hopefully save our sweet Alfie's life, yet it feels like an unobtainable amount to reach. I have to at least try my hardest, because I so desperately want him to have a chance at living a long and healthy life. He is such a ray of sunshine and still so full of love for life.

Any donations are so gratefully received and if you are unable to, please simply share with friends/family or on social media. Every share helps us to reach more people.

We are expecting a call from the vets next week to discuss the diagnosis further and surgery options. I will continue to update on this page and Alfie’s instagram (@alfie.podenco).

Thank you for reading and thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for all of your support.

From Nicole and family x

Hi Everyone,

I'm so sorry to have to do this but we are desperate to try and help save our sweet Alfie, who is currently very unwell at a specialist veterinary hospital, struggling to breath due to lots of fluid on his lungs.

Today, the vets managed to drain 2.5L of fluid (there is still some left but it was too difficult to remove), and they also carried out x-rays, a CT scan and blood work. This will allow them to investigate into what type of fluid it is and probable causes, along with possible treatment options.

Our vet believes that it is likely 'chylous effusion' (Chylothorax) due to the appearance of the fluid (this needs more thorough analysis to be confirmed). This is the abnormal accumulation of milky, fat-rich lymphatic fluid (chyle) in the chest cavity, causing severe breathing difficulties. This can be caused by a number of underlying issues or can be idiopathic.

Alfie is still at the veterinary hospital at the moment, being monitored overnight, and further investigations will need to be carried out to confirm the type of fluid, possible causes and treatment options. We have been estimated a cost of approx. £8,000 to cover Alfie's emergency veterinary fees. We used all of his pet insurance cover today, so need to try and cover the remaining costs ourselves.

I understand that that the cost of living is high and don't do this lightly, but we feel desperate to try and help Alfie. He is a 7 year old rescue Podenco Ibicenco (Ibizan Hound), who we adopted in 2018 from Spain when he was about 5 months old. He was dumped as a newborn puppy at a 'kill shelter', before being rescued and hand-reared. He is the light of our life; a ray of sunshine and the sweetest, most clownish boy. He is my heart and soul.

We would be eternally grateful for any donations, no matter how small, or even sharing the link to spread the word.

Thank you.

From Nicole and my family x