HELP US GIVE REUBEN a LONG & HEALTHY LIFE!

My name is Cassandra O'Neal, and I am raising money for Reuben. This is his story in his own words:

Reuben says "I hope you will help to save my life. "

Three months ago, my sister, Star, died, left me, and crossed the Rainbow Bridge. Mom and Dad saw that I was very sad and lonely, so they found me a wonderful new playmate, Melrose, who needed a family.

I was happy again when she arrived in our home. Melrose played with me hours and hours every day.

Little did I know that my happiness was to be short-lived. I did not see the dark cloud on the horizon, swiftly moving in my direction.

On the day Mom took Melrose to our vet, Dr. Mary, for a ‘meet and greet’, she saw a bloody discharge coming out of my left nostril.

This was the first sign that something was very wrong. Dr. Mary ordered a CT Scan. Then, she broke the Bad News to my family and to me.

• The Bad News- The CT Scan showed Sinus cancer, a sneaky cancer that does not show itself until it is very progressed.

• My tumor is large - 6 cm long in my left sinus over my eye and was discovered 11/1/2021.

• Without treatment, I may live 2 months.

• The only treatment is radiation therapy.

• The cost of this life saving Stereotactic Radiation Therapy is $9,500, plus travel.

It took Mom and Dad three weeks to find a clinic that offers this precision treatment that will kill the tumor and save my life without damaging my eyes and my brain.

Mom will be taking me to The Upstate Vet Emergency and Specialty Care in Greenville, South Carolina, on December 13, 2021, for a week of treatment. Because my cancer tumor has grown, I will be getting another CT scan. The oncologist needs to know exactly the size and shape of my cancerous tumor so he can treat it with Stereotactic Radiation Therapy.

These are my two possibilities:

• Treatment, and living to a ripe old age

• Or Dying very soon, possibly before the end of the year.

My Time is running out.

Your help will give me a high quality, long life with my BFF, Melrose, and my Mom and Dad.

You must be wondering, just who is Reuben? Let me tell you a little about myself.

I am a dark sable German Shepherd who has beautiful feet. Just before my parents adopted me, a Vet tech saved my life. My previous owner did not want me because of my behavior. She took me to the vet to have me killed. I was terrified, and knew that something bad was going to happen to me. She did not know how to help me. I would spin and spin and chew my tail…I chewed it so badly that one of the people who kept me had my tail cut off!

No one could figure out the reason I did this. People thought I was pretty whacked out. This vet tech saw something in me that caused her to try to help me. She stopped the euthanasia, and sent me to Imminent Danger German Shepherd Rescue, which is where I adopted my human parents, John and Cassandra O’Neal, and where they adopted me. The vet tech lost her job because she saved my life.

When my Mom and Dad brought me home, they took me to Dr. Mary, who figured out that my hip cradle had been broken and fused together when I was a puppy. I was doing all that spinning because I was in pain. Dr Mary healed this in a few visits. I stopped the spinning, and began to heal from the hurtful first two years of my life.

We LOVE Dr. Mary! I saw the hurt in her eyes when she told my Mom and Dad about my sinus cancer. She will be helping me after the treatment is completed.

German Shepherds are working dogs. One of my jobs is to help Mom and Dad in their garden by planting rocks.

If you help me get this treatment, I will be able to plant rocks in their garden for years to come. I will be able to play with Melrose, my BFF, once again. (Right now, I don’t have much energy to play with her.) I will be able to move things, mostly shoes, all over my parent’s house so they can go Shoe Hunting! I will be living my best life ever once more.

Without your help, I will not be able to have this life-saving treatment.

So, please help to save my life. My time is running out.