Coco, a 1.5-year-old Shih Tzu mix, was attacked by two off-leash dogs while on a walk with her owner, Andrea. Both Coco and Andrea suffered painful injuries during the attack, but Coco's severe bite wounds require extensive hospitalization, ongoing wound treatment, and frequent sedated bandage changes. Despite the severity of her wounds and the trauma she endured, Coco is a fighter. With prolonged wound care, her prognosis is excellent. However, the cost of her treatments has become more than Andrea can afford on her own, and she is depleting her retirement fund while waiting for the owner of the dogs who attacked Coco to take financial responsibility. The specialty hospital treating Coco is doing its best to keep costs down while providing her with the expert care she needs from board-certified surgeons and specialists.

From Andrea-

I am a 60-year-old widow nearing retirement, and Coco is my only baby. I have withdrawn $15,000 from my retirement and received $2,500 from my elderly parents to support Coco's treatment, but I have exhausted the resources I have.

Any support would be greatly appreciated in this journey to help Andrea and Coco. Together, we can save Coco's life and get her back home to Andrea, where she belongs.

9/28/26 UPDATE: Coco is still requiring frequent bandage changes, but her medical team hopes to begin performing them every other day instead of daily. Each bandage change requires sedation and pain medication. The goal is to continue cleaning the wound to help Coco's body heal herself with the intention of eventually putting her back under anesthesia so that the wound can be closed completely. She's slowly regaining her appetite. The most significant complication she is experiencing is that she is struggling to keep her albumin and protein levels up due to the ongoing losses she is experiencing through her large wound. Worst case scenario, she would need a plasma transfusion. These are very safe and beneficial to healing, but can be expensive. We are trying to provide Coco with the tools she needs so that she'll maintain her appetite and hopefully replenish her protein on her own. The best news of all is that last night, she was able to go home with Andrea for continued care, and now only needs to return to the hospital for bandage changes if we can raise her protein levels. She is fighting so hard to heal, and she's making progress!