Lacey has always been the picture of health, enjoying long bike rides in the South Downs where she frequently stops off to say ‘Hi! to her human and dog friends. Despite only being two years young, Lacey now has a battle to fight against an aggressive form of cancer, Lymphoma, and now has a life expectancy of a few months to a year. Unfortunately, her surgeries have already exceeded the £7,000 that Lacey is insured for, so we are asking for the community to please consider donating to support her ongoing care and chemotherapy to give her as long a life as possible. Lacey is beloved by her single dog mum, Heulwen (Hal) and it was preparing for Lacey’s arrival that inspired Hal to look into dog training courses and go on to launch her business, All In Dog Training. Chances are you have met Hal up at Pets Corner or bumped into them for a chat in Happy Valley; you just have to meet Hal and Lacey once to know how much they mean to one another.

Timeline

Friday 11th June - Lacey was taken to Coastway vets, Peacehaven, because she wasn’t eating her dinner and had lost too much weight. Lacey is normally a fussy eater, was still pestering to share pizza and was still keen to go on walks, running around with her dog friends so Hal wasn’t too worried but thought it was better to be safe than sorry. The initial exam revealed a large abdominal mass though Lacey showed no sign of pain or discomfort on examination. Lacey was referred on to New Priory Vets where they did an x-ray, an ultrasound and decided she needed surgery.

Saturday 12th June - The surgeons at New Priory opened her up with the intention to remove the mass. Removing the mass was more complicated than had been thought, entangled in important blood vessels, Lacey needed to be referred on to specialists. Lacey was taken to the Royal Veterinary College Equine Practice and Referral Hospital (RVC) on Saturday evening.

Sunday 13th June - The oncology team at the RVC carried out a CT which determined that the mass was most likely an aggressive form of Lymphoma, her lymph nodes were also enlarged meaning that the cancer has spread. Lacey was taken immediately into surgery which was carried out successfully.

Monday 14th June - Lacey is being cared for in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and is being carefully monitored for post operative complications. Lacey is currently stable but on strong pain relief, and is being supported by tube feeding and an IV.

Going forward

Hal cannot visit her due to Covid but if everything goes well, Hal should be able to bring her home at the end of the week. We have been advised her life expectancy is months to a year; Lacey will need ongoing chemotherapy to enable her to have as much time as possible.

Lacey is insured up to £7000, however her medical bills have already surpassed £10,000 and will continue to rise. We are asking you to please help in any way that you can, whether it be through a donation, by sharing Lacey’s story, or by taking a look at Hal’s dog training business. Hal will be continuing to offer training through her business as all of her income will be going to support Lacey, and is offering a free training session to anyone who donates over £35 (please contact us via http://allindogtraining.co.uk with your name to arrange this).

Hal is so greatly appreciative of everyone who has already sent a kind comment and for taking the time to hear Lacey’s story. Hal would also like to publicly thank the teams at Coastway, New Priory and the Royal Veterinary College for their hard work and dedication, enabling Lacey to get this far in her treatment. Thank you all for your love and support. Please follow Lacey’s Instagram for more updates, https://www.instagram.com/laceytheirish/?hl=en