Nine years ago I met my soulmate, a Bernese Mountain Dog named Tiberius. I was 20 years old and had no idea where my life was going but I knew Tiberius would be in it. Bringing him home with me was the best decision I have ever made. He has shown me what love really means, he has protected me, he has made me a better person. He saved me.

If you know me you know how much he means to me. You know I would do anything for him. But this time I can’t do it alone. Tiberius has been diagnosed with Lymphoma. When the doctors told me that without treatment he would likely pass away within a month and that he would be in pain, I knew there was no other option but for me to find a way to get him the care that he needs. He has so much life left in him. Even after undergoing his first chemotherapy treatment he is bringing me his “moosey” (his favorite stuffed animal) and goofing around. He loves the snow, he loves belly rubs and peanut butter, he howls with joy when we pull up to Starbucks for a puppacino.

If chemotherapy sounds a bit extreme to you I understand, I thought so too at first because I didn’t want him to suffer. But chemotherapy for dogs looks very different than it does in humans. In Tiberius’s case the chemotherapy is not an attempt to cure him completely, its purpose is to put the lymphoma in remission and give him the best quality of life as possible for the time he has left in this world. It is to let him roll in the snow, enjoy the peanut butter and belly rubs, and pee on every tree we pass on our walks.

The doctors say if we continue treatment he will likely have a few more years of good days. He is already tolerating the chemotherapy well. Actually, if I didn’t know better I wouldn’t think he was sick at all. He is so full of playful joy.

I humbly ask for your help to give Tiberius a fraction of what he has given me. To have known a love like this has changed my life. All I want is to do right by him in his final years.

I cannot do it alone, treatment is expensive. I am three months away from graduating with my bachelors degree, I don’t yet have an income sufficient enough to pay for all of it. Anything you give will go directly towards Tiberius’s treatment; 16 chemotherapy sessions, testing throughout the process, and medications to keep him feeling his best. Anything helps, even one dollar ❤️