Mervin's Medical Fund

We adopted Mervin from the ASPCA in 2014. He was brought to the shelter as an emaciated stray and while there had to have both back legs repaired and all of his teeth removed from really bad dental disease. When I first saw Mervin in his kennel he was just a pile of blankets, barking at nobody and nothing in particular. We brought him home as a foster and before the end of the first night we knew that he would be staying with us forever.

Fast forward two years and Mervin has gone from stray to star, bringing joy to thousands of people everyday through his social media accounts. Mervin loves the hustle and bustle of New York City and has the biggest personality for a tiny 4.5 lb dog. Mervin has 4 rescue dog siblings and together we make up the perfect family of misfits.

On Friday morning I woke up to walk our three little boys together as usual. While on the walk I noticed Mervin was walking funny, crossing his back legs and he just seemed unsteady. The other two dogs did all of their business (1 & 2) but Mervin still hadn't done anything and suddenly threw up. I brought them all back inside quickly and took Mervin immediately to the ASPCA Animal Hospital.

The veterinarians at the hospital thought he might have a urinary blockage based on the fact that he was straining and couldn't pee, but weren't sure because they couldn't see any stones on his Xrays. Plus it's not very common for a male dog to get a blockage (it's usually a cat thing). An orthopedic surgeon took a look at him to rule out any orthopedic issues from when he had his knee surgeries and an Internal Medicine doctor also took a look at him but unfortunately his bladder ruptured, making his neurological symptoms much worse. It was the most heartbreaking thing to see - his little head, limp to the right and him not being able to stand or walk. We decided to bring him to the Animal Medical Center right away to admit him in case he was having an severe neurological issues, since they have a neurologist on staff.

At Animal Medical Center they sedated him and placed a catheter to help him urinate and they found resistence, which was in line with the diagnosis of the blockage. They were able to clear the blockage and he spent the night there, needless to say we didn't sleep a wink.

This morning I got the call from AMC that he was doing so much better, acting normal and able to pass urine with the catheter. They believe that his neurological signs were all caused by the blockage. They ran some more tests (which we are still awaiting results for) to find the cause of the blockage, but they believe it can be managed and maintained with a change in his diet.  He still has some sediment in his bladder and needs to have the catheter and hospitalization for a few more days so we decided to bring him back to the ASPCA Animal Hospital where he is closer to home and we are able to visit him more. 

We are so thankful for the outpouring of support from all of the people around the world who love Mervin. All of the prayers, thoughts, well wishes and good vibes have meant the world to us and have done Mervin well since it now seems he is on the mend - though we aren't in the clear yet. We are hoping to be able to bring him home in a few days.

Unfortunately, the past 24 hours has already cost us several thousand dollars and he still needs another 3 days of hospitalization at least. Some of the people who love Mervin have reached out asking how they can help, so we thought we would set up this account for anyone who was interested in helping with Mervin's medical bills. In January of this year Mervin's kitty sister Lily went into early renal failure and passed away after several days of hospitalization. We are still recuperating financially from those medical bills so any amount donated towards Mervin's bills would be greatly appreciated, and if you can't donate please share to spread the word.

Mervin is a special little guy who brings the world a lot of joy and we want to keep him with us to keep spreading that joy for as long as he can. Any extra money that is raised will be donated to other animals in need.

Thank you,
Joey & Michael
(Mervin's dads)