I've deleted and rewrote just this opening line probably for the last hour as I am unsure what to do.

I do not have many friends, and I have difficulty connecting with people. However, animals have always affected me a different way. 7 years ago I tried to take my life. I got so close that I had to stay in a hospital with grippy socks for about a month afterwards. Don't worry, that's not really what this is about, but it was after this I adopted my first dog Tara.

Tara was my OWN first dog. Not my families dog, or a dog my parents helped with, my dog. I love her more than anything. Tara saved me from the lowest part of my life. She's coming up on being 7 years old. Some of you might be saying, but Sui, Ive seen Tara, those pictures are not the fat corgi I know of.

A year ago I wanted to get my baby a friend. I wanted to adopt a dog as a puppy to grow up with Tara. I was dead set on getting another corgi, but on 12/24/2024 I went to Best Buy to try and find something last minute for my Dad for Christmas. There's a PetsMart right next to it and I saw they had puppy adoptions. My mom was with me and wanted to go.

I held a few puppies, I almost cried just holding them. There were 2 brothers that were abandoned in a dumpster. I was convinced I was adopting the first when I held him. Then my mom said "I know you like him, but I think when you hold his brother it will be difficult". I'm not sure what I felt. Maybe it's what parents feel when they hold their baby. I can't claim to know what that feels like at all, but I knew at that moment I was going home with a puppy.

My second dog. My OWN second dog. Milo. Tara was a short chubby welsh pembroke corgi, and Milo.. we didn't know. He was only 4 weeks old when I adopted him. We ended up getting a DNA test and turns out he was 20% Pitbull Terrier, 20% Australian Cattle Dog, 20%ish Husky and the remaining was a mix of German Shephard and.. pug. A super mutt, but he was perfect. He is everything that Tara needed in a little brother. Tara has never played like a normal dog. The first time Milo got her to play as you would expect 2 dogs to play made me feel amazing..

Alright Sui, what is this novel even about at this point? It is 11:16PM on 12/17/2025. Almost a year since I adopted Milo, and I just got home from my local pet ER. I went in because he wasn't eating, and came out being told a biopsy needs to be done on his leg ASAP, and more xrays done.. tomorrow. I don't know if it's shock from just the unexpected, but there is a mass on his leg that is not looking good. At 1 year old.

I have a decent job, but I have high medical costs and I take care of my parents. Just in one 24 hour period of Milo needing emergency services I blew through my savings. I dont even know what to do at this point. He isn't better, I don't know what the mass on his leg is because it needs to be biopsied.

I'm trying to avoid charging off all the rest of my cards to get the biopsy and follow up work tomorrow/friday. I'm asking for help just to make it to next week. Not even to pay for anything in the future Milo may or may not need, just to make it until next week and I can figure out what to do.

I don't know. I'm sorry. I'm ashamed of asking anyoen for help in a situation like this. I love my dogs, because they are the only things in my life that just.. loved me.