Bella and I were both born in Miami #305tillidie, and she has been my absolute ROCK ever since.

I got Bella at 15 when I was home alone a lot after my parents divorced. I begged for a year and played the ultimate card: I DID NOT ASK FOR ANY CHRISTMAS GIFTS because all I wanted was a best friend. Since then, we've been inseparable. She followed me from Miami to Chicago for college, sticking by my side through dorm life and growing pains. We even took on D.C. together, first by surviving a row house with 12 roommates during a college semester while working, and then staying for two years when I landed my first big girl job!

Now, we're living out west in Arizona. Bella has lived in four different cities with me and has traveled all over the country. From New York to Denver to Breckenridge, Tennessee, San Diego, and Texas, she is a true national traveler.

She is just a month away from turning 10 years old, and my baby has been diagnosed with lymphoma. The crazy part is, Bella doesn't know it. She is still running, playing, swimming, and just living life to the fullest. The only reason we were incredibly blessed to find it so early was because Bella decided not to eat for four days. She was trying to tell me something was wrong, and thank God I listened.

However, right now, my Bella needs YOUR help.

A couple of months ago, Bella completely stopped eating for four days. At first, I thought she was just being picky with her kibble, so I tried making all her household favorites, chicken and rice, scrambled eggs, cheese, but she wouldn't touch any of it. When she finally ate just a tiny bit of soft dog food right out of my hand, I just KNEW I had to take her in. The doctors initially thought it was Valley Fever, and that first visit alone was $2,600. Leading up to her official lymphoma diagnosis, we had about five more emergency visits for fluids, bloodwork, CT scans, X-rays, and medicine. Those visits were a minimum of $600 each, with the most expensive hitting $5,000. Yup, $5,000.

Now, Bella is on the absolute best plan to get her strong and give her the many more years she deserves, because she really is such a happy, healthy, and active 9-year-old pup. She is on a 26-week chemo protocol at the Arizona Veterinary Oncology Center, going in once a week. Each session ranges from $700 to $1,600. I do have pet insurance, but sadly they cap chemo coverage at $2,500 because they don't feel the rest is "needed," which is CRAZY. To make this happen so far, I’ve maxed out my CareCredit, as well as my mom’s and my grandma's. CareCredit works just like a regular credit card for medical expenses, so all of that debt has to be paid back to my family members who so generously let me use their credit to get her treatment started.

Bella has successfully completed 3 sessions, but with 23 left to go, the debt is already piling up and it just isn't sustainable on my own. Please, if you can help keep Bella happy, healthy, and active, it would mean everything. Bells is even willing to put in the work and make personalized thank-you videos for everyone who donates!

Bella is my WHOLE world, and I want to do everything I can to give her the care she needs to fight this. Any donation to help cover her veterinary oncology bills, or even just a share, would mean the absolute world to us. Thank you for helping me fight for my best friend <3