My name is Madelena Campbell and I have a 4 year old Native American Indian Dog named Takoda. I adopted him about 2 and a half years ago and he changed my life. He's been attached to my hip since the day he came home, he's taught me unconditional love and he has brought me so much happiness. I take him everywhere with me and we do everything together; I can't imagine not having him by my side.

Unfortunately, not having him by my side is the harsh reality right now. A few weeks ago I noticed his breathing didn't sound right. I brought him to his regular vet, he listened to his lungs for a few seconds and said he has just gained a few pounds and his heavy coat makes his breathing heavier like that. He said it's nothing to worry about.

My family and I have been using this vet for years, I wanted to trust him and his opinion. But a few days went by and I knew in my heart something was wrong. I took him to a new vet for a second opinion. They did blood work and some other tests, he tested positive for anaplasmosis which can cause labored breathing. He started doxycycline and we hoped to see improvements on it.

About a week went by and it wasn't improving. I took him back for more blood work. It showed some mild issues but didn't seem to answer the question of his breathing, so I opted to do x-rays because again...I knew something was wrong.

I wish I was wrong. I wish I had spent all this money on testing just for it to be nothing, but unfortunately I was not wrong.

I took him in for the x-rays May 22nd. The vet brought me to look at them and I could tell by the look on everyones faces, it wasn't good news. She told me she had been practicing veterinary science for 30 years and had never seen this before. She didn't know what she was looking at, but she knew it wasn't good.

She immediately got on the phone with emergency clinics and sent his x-rays to specialists to find an answer. I laid with him petting him telling him I would do absolutely anything I can in my power to save him. 

A specialist from Cornell veterinary sciences knew right away what it was: a spontaneous pneumothorax. A severe case that needed to be treated immediately. The vet said the emergency clinic nearby had a wait of a few days before they could see him, or I could drive 3 hours to Cornell who would see him right away. She also warned me that treatment would be a very long and expensive road to go down.

We immediately put him in the car and started the drive to Cornell. To be honest, I couldn't care less how far I have to drive or how much money I have to spend. That wasn't even a question in my mind.

The vet told me he could pass away during the car ride to Cornell. I looked back to make sure he was breathing probably every 10 seconds during that 3 hour car ride.

We made it to Cornell Veterinary Hospital, they took him in right away. Because of COVID-19 no one is allowed in the hospital, I walked him to the door and told him I love him. I told him they are going to fix him and he's going to be ok. I told him I wish more than anything I could go in with him. 

The doctor put in chest tubes right away to drain the air out from the space surrounding his lungs. They called me to tell me how he was doing and to collect payment for half of the estimate. I made the decision to just put the full estimate on a credit card. I told them to do whatever they needed to do to save his life and put him in the best position for a healthy recovery, regardless of how much it would cost. The full estimate was $8,000.

I was well aware that I do not have $8,000 to spare, I had already spent about $1,000 on the testing prior to this, and that I do not know how long it would take me to pay off this credit card. But when it comes down to it, all I care about is his health and recovery.

It has been a couple days since I dropped him off. The doctors have been providing with updated, but I am losing my mind being home without him. He is stable and still has the chest tubes in to continue to suction the air out. They have also been doing lung blood patches, but he will be going in for surgery in the next few days. It's an invasive and expensive surgery, but it will greatly reduce the chances of recurrence of another pneumothorax and give him the best chance of a healthy recovery.

I realize this is the worst time in the world to be asking for money from anyone, and if you aren't able to donate I completely understand. Just keeping him in your thoughts and prayers would be greatly appreciated. If you are able to donate, any amount would help. Every bit will be going toward paying off the $8,000 that I put on the credit card and any future treatment that I will be paying for.

No matter what happens, I am going to do anything I can to save him and continue to give him the best life I possibly can when he finally gets to come home. I appreciate any help and support more than I can put into words.