Support For Swarley's ICU Bills

Kyle Clothier is organizing this fundraiser.

Donation protected

Hello my name is Kyle and I recently had to make the toughest decision of my life for my best friend of five years, Swarley. He is a Retriever/Great Pyrenees mix that I adopted as a puppy from the North Texas Humane Society. He was the sweetest boy and was always by my side, and he loved every dog and person he met. His favorite things were butt pets, walks, treats, chasing squirrels, and french fries. My girlfriend, Summer, and I recently moved to the Portland area from Texas in October of this year with Swarley.

What will the funds be used for?

To cover emergency vet/ICU/and final vet charges incurred quickly over a three day period.

Timeline:

Tuesday, November 21: Swarley started dry heaving and coughing. We gave him lots of attention and love and made sure he was well hydrated.
Wednesday, November 22: Swarley showed no signs of improvement with a worsening of symptoms. I took him to a local vet nearby for observation. He was given the antibiotic, Doxycycline, and was diagnosed with an upper respiratory infection. X-Rays were taken showing enlarged lymph nodes. His temperature was elevated at 104.3. We were given instructions to take him to the ER if he was not showing signs of improvement within 24 hours or if his symptoms were worsening. We decided to post Swarley's story on the popular platform, Next Door, in order to inform our neighbors of a potential connection between the unknown virus that has recently struck our city and community very quickly, making dogs extremally ill with no favorable outcomes.
Thursday, November 23: Swarley's cough grew worse. He coughed the entire night averaging every 30 minutes. The future of Thanksgiving morning's would forever be changed. We rushed Swarley to the ER, Dove Lewis, a level 1 veterinarian trauma center, the only place open for the Holiday. Swarley was STAT triaged and taken into the ICU and placed in an isolation kennel requiring full PPE gear for the staff/visiting family. Swarley was hospitalized the entire day on oxygen, IV fluids, and IV antibiotics, and remained in the ICU for 24 hours. We were told, no news is good news. We waited. Nothing. We were hopeful.
Friday, November 24: We woke up early with no news. We decided to head straight to the ER and visit Swarley. We arrived and were taken back to the ICU where we saw a very different situation than the day before. He was panting aggressively, gasping for air, with oxygen. This was incredibly hard to watch. I got into his kennel with him and gave him lots of pets and love. He even accepted a few offerings of tiny Tillamook cheese bites. His condition changed so suddenly, I think even the ICU was shocked. He was too weak to continue testing or treatments. He was in noticeable pain and suffering. The doctor fully supported the decision for Euthanasia. At 3:30PM, Swarley was given the life ending medication and our hearts were completely broken. We received an outpouring of love from our community through Next Door and will forever be thankful for the kind words we received.

The cost breakdown:

Riverbend Vet & Medication: $450.50
Dove Lewis ER/ICU: $3,650.52

How can you help?

The financial cost for only a few days of treatment/diagnostics completely put us in a financial bind, as we pulled from all resources available. We do believe that other fur parents would have easily made the same choice to do all that they could financially afford, as we did. If you are able to make a small donation today, we will forever be grateful to you and your fur family.

Huge thanks to the entire staff and care team at Riverbend and Dove Lewis.

Important Links:

Dove Lewis

Riverbend