Tasha's Treatment

Tasha's Treatment

Hi friends, friends of friends, and dear animal lovers.
My appeal is for my husband's sister, Genevieve Haven, and her dog, Tasha. They have had a double dose of disaster during the Sonoma/Napa firestorm.

It was about 2:00 in the morning, after waking to the sound of nearby transformers and propane tanks exploding as well as the smell of thick smoke, the two of them had to emergency evacuate from Warm Springs Rd. in Glen Ellen—meaning they left with little more than the clothes and fur on their backs.

They came to our house. A couple of hours before sunrise, our electricity was cut. At sunset, after a day of packing and monitoring the fire's unabated progress, we all moved to my hair salon in downtown Sonoma, where we slept on the floor. The next day, when the fires continued to grow with zero containment and the air was almost un-breathable, we left for Bodega Bay, not knowing what we would have when we returned. We felt lucky for having gotten a vacation rental, right on the water's edge. Sight unseen, over the phone, we rented it for three nights. It was a lovely condo with a wall of windows facing the bay, but it was also less than five feet from Highway 1.

It was on the second morning at the condo that we experienced the horror that all pet owners fear; a car on Hwy 1 hit Tasha. Unfamiliar with the environment, by all appearances, we thought she was contained on a tiny beach were she could do her business. But dogs being dogs, she discovered a way up the vertical cliff without using the stairs from where Genevieve was sitting guard. I'll spare you the details of the actual incident except to say that in an instant, all of our fire fears vanished. All of our focus went to getting Tasha to a vet hospital, and that turned out to be an excruciating forty-five minute drive away.

Tasha's leg had to be amputated, which was obvious from the minute it happened. The good news is that she is still relatively young-at seven years old-and she is in excellent health. It's a miracle that she wasn't killed, and she didn't have any other internal organ injuries.

While Tasha was in the vet hospital, we humans relocated once again. Friends gifted us their weekend home on the Russian River for as long as we needed.

Here is a video of when Tasha came home to the Russian River house from the hospital:
 
Tasha returns home from the vet hospital:

As of this writing, it's been ten days since the fires started. Genevieve and Tasha's house in Glen Ellen is still standing, but they have yet to be allowed back in. They have a home with us for as long as they need it, but I'm sure they are eager to get back into their own. We are all traumatized by the events of the past several days, but to see Tasha, hurt and homeless, it's heartbreaking.

And now, the reason for this GoFundMe campaign is to help Genevieve pay for Tasha's medical expenses and post care. The surgery and three-day stay in the vet hospital, as well as all of the follow up needs are adding up to thousands of dollars, close to $10,000. Genevieve is single and works as a personal assistant/compassion care provider, but she too has health issues that prevent her from working full-time. There was never any question about caring for her precious companion, but now, if the financial burden of that care can be lightened, it would be endlessly appreciated.

As with all capital campaigns, even a donation of $5 is of heartwarming help.

And by the way, please feel free to share this (Tasha's treatment link) with as many of your friends as you'd like.

Thank you ever so much, Terry Sue Harms
                                                            Sonoma, CA