Zumba Needs Your Help!

Zumba needs your help! Zumba is an 8-year-old companion dog who started his life off as an assistance-dog-in-training. Unfortunately, Zumba didn’t make the final cut as a full-fledged assistance dog, but found his forever home with Brandt, and his wife Patricia, as a companion and helper. Brandt is a retiree living in Sooke, BC. At 10 months old, he contracted polio resulting in the loss of the use of his legs. He has spent his life on crutches but has never let that slow him down. An avid outdoorsman and gardener, you can usually find him enjoying the fresh air in the woods, on the beach or in his own backyard. In his youth he hiked up mountains and backpacked around the province, but as with all of us, age slows us down. And this is where Zumba comes in. Despite not passing assistance dog school, Zumba is very well trained to help in numerous ways. He acts as Brandt’s extra set of hands around the house and in the garden. He can carry things in his mouth or a backpack, open doors and pick up items on command. You can find them together just about anywhere they go and will often see them around Sooke running errands.

 

When they were out for a walk recently, Zumba began acting strangely. He was lethargic and uninterested in his usual activities. He seemed to be dragging his left hind leg, but a check of his body did not reveal any obvious injury. When he hadn’t improved after a couple of days, they took him to the vet. It turns out he had ruptured his cruciate ligament in his knee. The vet has said it will require surgery to repair the damage. Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time Zumba has required extensive vet care. A few years ago, he came down with a mysterious illness that nearly killed him. Ten days at the animal hospital, multiple tests, medications and $9000 later, he thankfully made a full recovery, but Brandt and Patricia’s bank account did not. This completely drained their savings and they have not been able to build it back up on their limited income, making this surgery an impossibility without financial assistance.

 

There is one other option. There is a local organization that will pay for the surgery, but with one caveat…Zumba doesn’t get to come home afterwards. They will adopt him out to help offset the cost of the assistance. This option would be devastating for both of them. Zumba and Brandt have been inseparable for 7 years and had planned on growing old together. Zumba is the reason Brandt is on the trails and the beaches everyday at seventy years old, keeping them both young!

 

Fiercely independent, Brandt has never been one to ask for help, so I'm asking now. We need your help to get Zumba this much needed surgery so they can continue their journey together. A decision must be made within the week as to what to do, so if you are able to give even a little bit, it will help. Thank you for listening to Brandt and Zumba’s story and considering donating