Arlo’s Go Fund Me

Hi, I am Diana, or Ana for the friends who I met in the different stages of life. You may know Rance Pritchard. We have been together for 8 years and adopted our dog 2.5 years ago. He is about to be 6-year-old Lab Hound mix sad boy named Arlo Nibbler. We adopted him in 2020 and we moved to Cincinnati at the end of 2019 to find new jobs and for one of us to go back to school full time. He has been our beacon of light and joy to get through the pandemic, sadness, and transition of our lives.

On Monday June 26 I got back to the apartment and Arlo isn’t at the door. He was doing a slow crawl towards me. He was wagging his tail, but I noticed he wasn’t using his back legs. I tried to see if he would stand and walk a little. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, but he wasn’t using his legs. He was dragging them and even curling his toes trying. The way my heart sank so deep into my chest; I was freaking out. I made a video and send it to Rance. He called me worried and confirmed what I knew. We were going to the vet. I called my stepsister Voun . Her dog had a scuffle with a large dog recently and went to the emergency vet. We ended up going to a vet close by because Arlo hates being in a car.

My brother Monikae joined us which is perfect because I cannot lift a 70lb dog. I was sitting in the back trying to calm Arlo since he was panting and shaking. Monikae carried him into the emergency vet. They had us in a room for a bit until someone came to take Arlo to the back to be examined. It looked like it might be his spine since he couldn’t use either back leg. They asked me if they could administer a pain shot because his muscles were spasming around the spot that was bothering him. I said of course and she leaves the room so quickly I didn’t get to ask anything.

She returned to tell me it could be a few different things, but I wouldn’t know until an MRI was done. He needed to see a neurologist. She warned me I was looking at 6 grand for the MRI alone. They do not have a neurologist and had to send me to another Emergency hospital with one. The place is so sweet. They called two places in mind beforehand to make sure they had room for him. We went to Weymouth, MA for A 24/7 emergency vet hospital. We got there at 8. There are only two people Infront of me. They are short staffed. The place has a wagon for Arlo to sit in for the dogs who cannot get around. The waiting room was full of other teary-eyed humans confused furry boys and girls.

The Vet looked at Arlo. They did some tests and he still had feeling in his hind legs which was a good sign. It could be a few things, but they wouldn’t know until they could do the MRI and if it involved surgery, it will be easily between $10-$13,000 depending on the course we must take.

The neurologist called me the next morning. He gave me a run-down of what it could be, but the MRI was the next step to really see what is going on to decide his course of care. He said his associate will call to take the 75% down payment for estimated care. When he called me back to tell me what he saw it was bad…3 discs had ruptured. He said Arlo was doing well under anesthesia and since he was put under for the MRI he should proceed with the surgery. I said yes of course go ahead.

When the Neurosurgeon called back, he informed me the results that it was even worse than the MRI showed. He described his discs and cleaning all around it like getting floss out between teeth. He lost a lot of blood but is waking up well from the anesthesia. He is currently on fentanyl drip of pain medicine and will go to pills for tomorrow. He wants to see Arlo in two weeks and again in 6 weeks. I asked if something I did or arthritis? He said he is the age where it’s beginning but it won’t be a problem till, he is much older. He will have lots of crate rest, so he moves as little as possible. He will have to be careful with stairs and should lose a few pounds. The few pounds will take pressure off his spine for the future.

For the friends that don’t know, I am in Rhode Island for the summer for an internship. I am worried about when I am in back in Cincinnati and we need to pay this down yes of course but also should we move from our 3rd floor apartment?!? I do love our apartment, but it is the 3rd floor and 4th floor so I worry about Arlo for his future. The surgeon said one disc looked degenerative vs. the other’s didn’t look bad at all. He said it could happen again but if we keep his weight down, less big jumps, and potentially bounding up and down stairs we should be good. We are debating if we should move to a first floor and one with a yard, could be so magical, but honestly one problem at a time. The funds are for his surgery debt and potentially moving for him. I am here in Rhode Island till the end of this internship with Arlo. I have my family here for support is what we decided when I took Arlo with me for the summer.

I have one class left after this summer semester. I am excited to be achieving what we sent out for on our crazy adventure to Cincinnati: receiving my associate degree! I would love to do my Bachelors, but I might have to put that on hold while I find a job that will reimburse me. I would love to do a co-op in Cincinnati in Fall or one fully remote to keep an eye on Arlo so if you have leads there let me know! I know times are hard for everyone right now, so any amount helps. I get it if you can’t donate sharing is wonderful too! For those who contribute I will happily send you a pawprint autograph by your truly best boy Arlo and if you desire, I can make it an ornament. (Please text me or Rance your address but these orders may be late due Arlo needing to recover before doing autographs)

For the Friends I couldn’t update as it was happening. You know it’s my first pet ever and Rance’s first adult pet in a non-family way. He deteriorated so fast from not eating Sunday into Monday. It was honestly quite shocking watching him go from his happy-go-lucky self to not being able to use his hind legs in a matter of hours. Any time I would tell anyone I couldn’t help but melt into a puddle of tears. It’s hard not to cry even writing this. It’s something I never thought I’d have to write. Anything and everything helps! From supportive messages, to a visit to us sad piles during recovery, funds, a lead on fall internships, and/or sharing.

Arlo, Rance, and I truly appreciate all of the love and support! This has been one of the most difficult times of our lives watching our good boy (and the best boy in the world, in our not so humble opinion ) go through this.

 

Please also have a listen to the sad playlist created by my super thoughtful and talented friend Jasmine Souza. She created it as a way to help us all through these sad days. https://spotify.link/4l27ySSEYAb

Many Thanks,

diANA Oumkham and Rance Pritchard