Heart surgery for Zorro

Hi! My name is Zorro! I am a 7 month old terrier mix and I've had a rough start in life.During the second month of my life the vet noticed  I had a heart murmur. The vet told my mommy that my heart murmur was a grade 3 out of 6 and that she would need to keep an eye on my heart murmur. When my mom adopted me , she did not know how sick I was. It has now been exactly a month since my last visit to see the doctor. During my visit my mommy explained to the vet that when she holds me in her arms ; she can feel my heart beating extremely faster than before. After the doctor listened to my heart, my mommy was told my heart is now a grade 5 out of 6 murmur. My mommy than asked the doctor what does that mean? The vet explained that I have a congenital heart defect known as PDA or Patent Ductus Arteriosus, that causes a heart murmur known as a "washing machine murmur".  So basically I have a ductus that did not close. It remains open or "patent." When the ductus stays open, blood from the aorta will want to flow, not to the body but to the low resistance ductus opening and into the pulmonary artery of my heart. This is called a left to right shunt and creates an assortment of problems.

Why left to right Shunting is Bad
The body has its oxygen requirements and demands to be serviced by the heart. The problem is that a great deal of blood (how much depends on the size of the ductus) is shunting back to the pulmonary circulation. In order to meet the body's oxygen demand, the heart is going to have to pump all the more blood to cover what circulates in the shunt as well as what the body needs. This is a lot of extra work for the heart and failure can result, leading to coughing, weakness, and difficulty breathing. 

With this type of murmur I require surgery. Without the surgery, I won't make it to my 1st birthday.  She loves me so much that she is not willing to give up hope. The surgery that I need to save my life is very expensive, so my family and friends have set up this Gofundme page to help with my surgical costs and follow-ups. "Your support helps save two hearts--"Mine Literally, and my mommies figuratively." 

WHAT ZORRO'S MOM WANTS YOU TO KNOW

I know that to some people, a dog is just a dog, but as so many dog parents know, Zorro is so much more. He is my nonhuman person best friend. He is my cherished baby. He is the greatest love of my life and he is part of our family. He may be a puppy, but his mind is as clear, alert, playful and focused of that as a young puppy. It breaks my heart to watch him go through this. He should be able to live his life longer than what the doctors are saying. He has such an incredibly sharp mind and one of the most wonderful personalities I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Without him in our lives our family will definitely feel the loss of a family member.Your donation to this campaign means more to me than words can ever possibly convey.