Cesar Fernandez-Chavez

Hello friends, Thank you for everyone supporting us for Loubie's recovery. She is a strong lady, I saw her tonight, she was happy to see her papa, she ate some of the chicken breast, sweet potato and green beens I made for her, not all but she's making progress. We talked or I told her that hospital food is not the best and she need to get better to get home soon and enjoy her gourmet meal prepared by her chef aka her papa. And when it was the time for her to go back to the icu floor she was putting resistance and the vet aids asked me I can walk next to her so she would walk but at one point she had to continue with the aids, she stopped and turned her head to look at me and it was so hard to make the decision that she needs to go back there without me and I had to walk away. Im sure you all know that feeling like I want to stay but I cant. Tomorrow I will get a call update in the morning from one of the doctors, of course I have a lot of questions but she looked better and she was walking better, I had to help her to stand up when the aid came over to bring her back but she looks like she is breathing better. Thank you all for your support!!!!! Cesar

I’m starting this fundraiser for my 15-year-old golden retriever, Louboutina, or Loubie. She has been healthy and strong overall, so having her suddenly in the hospital ICU with pneumonia has been heartbreaking and frightening for me. Louboutina is known as The Hugging Dog in NYC and around the world, and for years she has been spreading love and healing wherever she goes. She has brought comfort, connection, and joy to so many people, which makes this moment especially difficult as I watch her fight through something so serious. Loubie first started panting heavily on August 15, so I took her to the vet right away. Her doctor did x-rays and blood work and found that she had bronchitis. At that time, there were no signs of tumors, cancer, or pneumonia, which gave me hope. She was started on two different antibiotics and finished them on Sunday, August 30. During that week, she seemed better on and off, and I kept her comfortable with humidifier therapy to help loosen any mucus. But on Thursday, September 3, she began having difficulty breathing. When I called the vet, Loubie tried to walk from her bed to the living room and looked in severe distress. Her vet told me to take her to the hospital right away because she might also need to be seen by a cardiologist. I rushed her to the ER, where she was taken in immediately. The ER doctor spoke to me about possible outcomes, including pneumonia that might require ICU care, and also the possibility of cancer and having to think about euthanasia. Hearing that was devastating, and I was not ready for it. A couple of hours later, the results finally came back: no cancer, but confirmed pneumonia, low blood sugar, and a drop in her blood count. She needed oxygen therapy, IV fluids, antibiotics, and IV nutritional support to avoid aspiration. When she was admitted to the ER, the doctor explained that the initial charge to stay in the ICU was going to be around $10,000 and may increase depending on the length of stay. I was able to see Loubie twice while she was in the oxygen chamber in the ER. The first time, she looked a little better but still very tired. The second time later that evening, she was sleeping, but when she heard me she lifted her head right away. Her eyes looked more vivid, she held herself up better, and she started kissing me. In that moment, I felt her strength and her will to keep fighting. I also want to be honest about why I’m asking for help. I have been unemployed for a long time, and I have also been traveling to visit my 90-year-old mother in Peru because her health has been deteriorating quickly. Between this difficult chapter in my family life and Louboutina’s sudden medical emergency, the financial strain has become overwhelming. The funds from this fundraiser will help cover 1 to 2 days of Louboutina’s ICU stay, and possibly a third night depending on how her condition progresses. Right now she is in the ICU receiving oxygen through her nose and improving. I will keep you updated here about her stay at the hospital. If you’re able to support Louboutina during this time, thank you from the bottom of my heart. And if you can’t donate, sharing this fundraiser and keeping her in your thoughts would also mean the world to us.