The bestest pup, Champ

Hi everyone! October 5th is my baby brother's 30th birthday. If you know Cody (or Pony boy as some of his friends call him) you know what a fun, hard working guy he is. He gives so much time and effort into the things in his life that he cares about.

After his family and his girlfriend, Alyssa, the two most important things in his life are his two dogs, Champ and Aspen. Champ and Aspen are both Australian cattle dogs. They are fun, energetic, and loyal. Cody and Alyssa got their first dog, Champ, almost 3 years ago as a puppy. They rescued him from a young couple who couldn't give him the time and attention he needed.

Champ is the absolute sweetest and most loving dog you've ever met. He is always friendly and excited to see whoever walks in the door. He gives sloppy kisses and soft cuddles. He loves to run and play fetch for as long as you keep throwing his toy.

That's why about 2 weeks ago, Cody and Alyssa noticed pretty quickly that he wasn't his normal, energetic, fun self. He wasn't eating much and he had blood in his stool. You could tell he was in a lot of pain. So Cody and Alyssa rushed Champ to the Purdue Veterinary Hospital to find out what was wrong with him. After several tests and rounds of blood work, they still weren't sure exactly what was wrong with him. He wouldn't eat or drink so they gave him fluids and food suppliments. He was losing weight but got really swollen and wouldn't move because he was in so much pain. They determined that he either had some sort of tick-borne illness or an autoimmune disease. Champ has has been at the animal hospital on and off for over a week.

On Sunday, Cody went to see Champ at the Hospital and the Vet said he was still in rough shape. At that point, Champ had a 50/50 chance of making it. If Champ showed signs of improvement over the next two days, he might be able to go home. If not, Cody and Alyssa would need to put him down on Wednesday, October 5th, Cody's birthday.

Cody got a call from the Vet on Monday and said Champ was doing a little better. He had gotten up on his own, stopped salivating (signs of vomiting) and seemed in better spirits. He even put his paws up on the doctor. They reran his blood work, which hadn't improved, but it also didn't get worse, which was a good sign. The Vet said he was cautiously optimistic. Things could switch back to bad quickly, but for now, there was a little hope.

Tuesday morning, Cody got a call from the doctor. Champ was eating a little bit, his numbers on labs had improved, and his swelling was down. His attitude was more snippy which meant he was feeling a bit better. He was off painkillers and doing okay with pain, so another good sign. And as long as he eats and improves like he did today, they could take him home tomorrow, on Cody's birthday.

So we are hoping and praying that Cody gets the best birthday present he could imagine and gets to bring his pup home.

As brothers, we don't usually get each other birthday presents. But this year, I wanted to do something for him. As you can imagine, the vet bills have started to climb rather quickly. Cody and Alyssa didn't hesitate and said they'd do whatever it took to get Champ better.

Cody and Alyssa are both extremely hard workers, and each work two different jobs. But even still, the veterinary bills are going to be substantial, and I was hoping you all might consider donating to this campaign to help offset the costs. If you aren't able to contribute, please share the campaign link with anyone you can. Please help me make this birthday one that Cody will never forget.