Service dog in need: torn ACL
July 11th 2017 3:55 pm est:
In-case any are unaware, you can follow Sadie's healing process on her blog in the link below!
June 4th, 2017 5:30 pm est:
WE DID IT!!! WE MADE IT TO 4000!!!
IM SO HAPPY, I COULD CRY
THANK YOU EVERYONE SO MUCH FOR YOUR GENEROSITY
I will have more updates on June 21st when she is seen for her pre-surgery bloodwork and x-rays!
I will keep everyone posted on both the campaign and here on tumblr
thank you everyone so much, just THANK YOU!
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My dog needs me and I need you.
I'm Elisabeth N, and I'm a disabled freelance artist. To help with my disability, I have been blessed with the worlds best service dog; Sadie.
It took two years to fully train Sadie to do the work she does, and she's been active for almost two years now.
I went from not leaving my house for three years due to my disability to being able to go out daily with the support for my canine friend.
Sadie plays a huge role in my health, and now I need to play a huge role in hers.
While playing one night, Sadie had a misstep in a hole and wound up torquing her knee. What I thought was a sprain, turned out to be a torn ACL.
An ACL is a Anterior Cruciate Ligament in the knee. The ACL is tissue that connects the thighbone to the shinbone, at the knee. This can tear when moving the knee sideways or rotating it- unfortunately ACL tears are extremely common in Labrador Retrievers.
Sadie will undergo a procedure called Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy or better known as TPLO.
"In a TPLO procedure, the tibial plateau, the portion of the tibia adjoining the stifle, is cut and rotated so that its slope changes to approximately 5 degrees from the horizontal plane. This prevents the femur from sliding down the slope of the tibial plateau when the dog puts weight on its knee. Thus surgery generally results in faster recovery times compared to other procedures to stabilize the knee".
Due to her needs and age, this option is the recommended procedure for her.
Sadie is due to go to the vet once again on June 15th where they will do pre-surgery blood-work and x-rays for before and after visual purposes. From there I will have a definite surgery date.
HOWEVER, they have already told me as a forewarning this procedure will be about $4,000 dollars.
Upfront I will need at least $1000, so as a bare minimum I hope to at least make that. I'm working hard to earn this but I can't do this alone within this short time frame.
I need Sadie to function in my every day life, that means this surgery is an absolute necessity for the both of us.
A single dollar donation will make a world of difference to us- and if you can't, please spread this to your friends and family.
I will be updating this campaign each time I receive new information about the progression of her operation.
Our next update will be June 15th after our evaluation with the surgeon.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, and please share!
With lots of hope and love,
Elisabeth and Sadie
Edit: her blood-work and x-rays have been moved to June 21st.