Please help Mr. Gibbs

Hi, my name is Jan and I am fundraising for our beloved English Mastiff, Gibbs.

Last year, at the age of 3, Gibbs tore both ACL’s. First his right, then his left three weeks later (thanks to icy weather). His team of doctors determined which leg was in worse shape and they operated on that one first. The surgery took place on June 13th and the first few weeks post op went well. Gibbs was not a fan of using a sling but he was a trooper!

Within 48 hours of finishing antibiotics, Gibbs developed a cough, with shortness of breath and redness in his groin, abdomen and heading down the surgical leg. After 5 visits to the vet by July 9th and back again on the 10th, they diagnosed him with irritated skin, said he had no infection in the leg and stated the cough was due to him being immobile. He had been placed on antibiotics for the cough after the second visit where we questioned if he had pneumonia (no X-ray was taken). We went back to the vet on July 11th, 12th and 13th. Gibbs was gravely ill. He was admitted to the ICU for IV antibiotics, IV fluids and a 3rd antibiotic. His surgical area was oozing a yellowish/bloody fluid, yet the vet never sent it out for testing.

On July 20th, they finally diagnosed Gibbs with pneumonia and confirmed he had an infection in his surgical leg that was between the bone and the plates/screws. At this rate he had lost 30lbs and was placed on a 4th antibiotic.

By late August, the vet said the pneumonia cleared up and the infection was better but we expressed concerns because his skin was still extremely irritated with constant oozing. He still had a chronic cough and his respiratory rate was high along with his heart rate. A chest X-ray was done and reviewed by a radiologist and surgeon. Both confirmed the chest X-ray looked good. They then followed up with a knee X-ray and said it looked good as well and he could start physical water therapy. We were told to follow up with them after six weeks of the physical therapy.

However, we a received a phone call that same night that Gibbs needed to come back in the following day to have another X-ray with no explanation despite my questions. That office visit alone was $780. When asked if there would be an additional charge for the other X-ray I was told yes, $280, still no explanation. Because of my husband’s work schedule we were unable to go down. At this rate we had spent over $15,000 for his care. When we questioned them what he needed X-ray and why. A few hours later we received a phone call from the hospital director stating we were discharged from their hospital.

We then followed up with Gibbs primary care vet. She viewed the X-rays over the phone and confirmed he still had pneumonia and needed to be seen by a specialist immediately.

On September 5th, we took him to another emergency hospital because he was still in respiratory distress. They immediately did a CT scan of his lungs with aspiration of the fluid. They confirmed he did still have pneumonia. They sent the fluids out for testing and two weeks later, they discovered he grew out a rare bacterial infection. We finally got him on the right medication and after 16 days, Gibbs started to improve greatly. He was able to stand, to eat and drink, his breathing was better, no more crackling in his lungs and we thought he was on the road to recovery.

Unfortunately, Gibbs has started to develop muscle wasting to his head, as well as chronic bacterial ear infections. In January we saw an orthopedic surgeon who informed us that with this type of bone infection, he needs to have all of the hardware and screws taken out in order to completely heal. The surgeon stated the bacterial ear infections and muscle wasting was a result of his immune system fighting severe infections not only in his lungs, but in his legs.

We have now spent over $24,000 on our Gibbs. The surgeon stated with this infected hardware gone, Gibbs should make a quick recovery; his surgical leg won’t be so painful and the blood/fluid oozing will stop. The surgeon recommends we have the surgery as soon as possible but we are totally out of money. It will take us months to come up with the funds to cover this but I’m afraid at that point, it may be too late. The projected surgery costs is anywhere between $4,900-$6,000 but there will be additional post-op costs with specialists for his autoimmune condition, bloodwork, X-rays and antibiotics. Any donation would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so incredibly much.

Jan and family and Gibbs