Help Fix our Sasha ♥️
Donation protected
A couple of years ago while in highschool, my oldest child Leila was struggling with mental illness. It was a very tough time for her. Heart wrenching.
Anyone who knows us knows that Leila has always been an animal person. She started taking care of and riding horses at 4 years old and has always connected with animals much easier than humans. She began animal sitting at an early age, as people trusted her with their animals. This responsibility was so good for her. Being with animals made her shine. ♥️
After a concussion due to a fall off a horse, her anxiety and depression started spiralling out of control.
Doctors wanted her to rest and recover and stay off horses for several months to let her brain heal. This was extremely hard on Leila as horses were her life. Her therapy.
Over the next several weeks, her mental health deteriorated more and things were grim. She begged me for a therapy dog. Leila felt that getting her own dog would help her get and be well.
I was struggling with heath issues of my own and could not add another thing to our family to take care of. We decided that over the next year, Leila would research how to go about getting and training a therapy dog to help her manage her mental health. When she was not in crisis and able to consistently care for a dog, we would try and find her a perfect match. She was super motivated and we felt this was very helpful for her recovery.
This fall, we decided she was ready. We found a rescue close to Hamilton who had just rescued several dogs from a meat festival in China. These dogs were raised to be eaten. We joked about this being the closest thing to us rescuing a cow or pig as we have always dreamed of.
We went to the rescue and there she was! Sweet, shy, timid, nervous, Sasha. A small, 3 year old German Shepherd with the sweetest little face. Knowing her rough start at life, we were so happy to have found her to give her a loving home.
Leila began connecting with Sasha right away. Although Sasha would need lots of socialization and training to be a therapy dog, Leila was up to the task. This made her feel so good.
After having her home it was clear that Sasha had not been treated well in her previous life. Men, in particular, terrified her. Zero aggression, just raw fear. The signs were obvious that Sasha was not going to be a therapy dog over night.
Leila started working really hard with her to gently introduce her to life as a companion animal. My heart was bursting with pride watching this happen. We felt as thought they both won the lottery.
Now to Friday.
Leila had a bit of a relapse of depression last week. She wanted to go visit her best bud in St. Cathareine's. I encouraged her to go and leave Sasha at home with me.
When I returned home from dropping Leila at the bus stop, I was told that Sasha had bolted out our front door and was gone. This is out of character for Sasha. She is a totally chilled out couch dog.
We went out looking everywhere and obsessively called animal control for updates. We searched on foot, bike and car. My heart was heavy and my optimism was low. Poor Sasha must be terrified. I kept seeing flashes of Leila's crying face. I had to find that dog.
After a couple of very scary hours of sightings of Sasha running on the 403 and area, Hamilton Animal Control picked her up after being hit by a car on York Blvd.
I'm not ready to relive what this news did to Leila.
After a nerve racking Friday night at the emergency vet, (who were absolutely amazing) we took her to the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph (equally amazing) yesterday to make some big decisions.
Turns out, Sasha has a badly broken back leg and cracked pelvis that need surgery. There is a chance later down the road that she will need her front leg amputated.
The vets all agree, although her care will be time consuming and very expensive, she is young and healthy and will recover well. All the staff immediately mention Sasha's sweet temperament. Everyone is rooting for her.
Of course the question came up about putting her down as the price tag was high. I could not bring myself to put her down over cost of care. They all agreed.
We were quoted yesterday $7000 for her surgery and vet care and we have spent several hundred dollars at the emergency vet already. Sasha's probable amputation will be another $2000-$3000.
That's a lot of money.
With pet's come cost. I get that. We took out a loan and paid it.
I was encouraged by our Vets and friends to tell our story. This has been a rollercoaster of emotions and the financial burden is real. Leila has settled knowing Sasha will recover and she encouraged me to tell her story too.
If you would like to pitch in a few bucks to help us ease the financial stress, please do. Our family is grateful for any amount we raise.
We really feel we made the right decision to fix up Sasha. Many people may not understand how we can fathom paying so much for a dog. I'm not here to defend our decision. I am just so happy that Leila and Sasha will have many more years loving and helping eachother navigate this strange world of ours. ♥️
Joanna xo
Anyone who knows us knows that Leila has always been an animal person. She started taking care of and riding horses at 4 years old and has always connected with animals much easier than humans. She began animal sitting at an early age, as people trusted her with their animals. This responsibility was so good for her. Being with animals made her shine. ♥️
After a concussion due to a fall off a horse, her anxiety and depression started spiralling out of control.
Doctors wanted her to rest and recover and stay off horses for several months to let her brain heal. This was extremely hard on Leila as horses were her life. Her therapy.
Over the next several weeks, her mental health deteriorated more and things were grim. She begged me for a therapy dog. Leila felt that getting her own dog would help her get and be well.
I was struggling with heath issues of my own and could not add another thing to our family to take care of. We decided that over the next year, Leila would research how to go about getting and training a therapy dog to help her manage her mental health. When she was not in crisis and able to consistently care for a dog, we would try and find her a perfect match. She was super motivated and we felt this was very helpful for her recovery.
This fall, we decided she was ready. We found a rescue close to Hamilton who had just rescued several dogs from a meat festival in China. These dogs were raised to be eaten. We joked about this being the closest thing to us rescuing a cow or pig as we have always dreamed of.
We went to the rescue and there she was! Sweet, shy, timid, nervous, Sasha. A small, 3 year old German Shepherd with the sweetest little face. Knowing her rough start at life, we were so happy to have found her to give her a loving home.
Leila began connecting with Sasha right away. Although Sasha would need lots of socialization and training to be a therapy dog, Leila was up to the task. This made her feel so good.
After having her home it was clear that Sasha had not been treated well in her previous life. Men, in particular, terrified her. Zero aggression, just raw fear. The signs were obvious that Sasha was not going to be a therapy dog over night.
Leila started working really hard with her to gently introduce her to life as a companion animal. My heart was bursting with pride watching this happen. We felt as thought they both won the lottery.
Now to Friday.
Leila had a bit of a relapse of depression last week. She wanted to go visit her best bud in St. Cathareine's. I encouraged her to go and leave Sasha at home with me.
When I returned home from dropping Leila at the bus stop, I was told that Sasha had bolted out our front door and was gone. This is out of character for Sasha. She is a totally chilled out couch dog.
We went out looking everywhere and obsessively called animal control for updates. We searched on foot, bike and car. My heart was heavy and my optimism was low. Poor Sasha must be terrified. I kept seeing flashes of Leila's crying face. I had to find that dog.
After a couple of very scary hours of sightings of Sasha running on the 403 and area, Hamilton Animal Control picked her up after being hit by a car on York Blvd.
I'm not ready to relive what this news did to Leila.
After a nerve racking Friday night at the emergency vet, (who were absolutely amazing) we took her to the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph (equally amazing) yesterday to make some big decisions.
Turns out, Sasha has a badly broken back leg and cracked pelvis that need surgery. There is a chance later down the road that she will need her front leg amputated.
The vets all agree, although her care will be time consuming and very expensive, she is young and healthy and will recover well. All the staff immediately mention Sasha's sweet temperament. Everyone is rooting for her.
Of course the question came up about putting her down as the price tag was high. I could not bring myself to put her down over cost of care. They all agreed.
We were quoted yesterday $7000 for her surgery and vet care and we have spent several hundred dollars at the emergency vet already. Sasha's probable amputation will be another $2000-$3000.
That's a lot of money.
With pet's come cost. I get that. We took out a loan and paid it.
I was encouraged by our Vets and friends to tell our story. This has been a rollercoaster of emotions and the financial burden is real. Leila has settled knowing Sasha will recover and she encouraged me to tell her story too.
If you would like to pitch in a few bucks to help us ease the financial stress, please do. Our family is grateful for any amount we raise.
We really feel we made the right decision to fix up Sasha. Many people may not understand how we can fathom paying so much for a dog. I'm not here to defend our decision. I am just so happy that Leila and Sasha will have many more years loving and helping eachother navigate this strange world of ours. ♥️
Joanna xo
Organizer
Joanna Oh
Organizer
Hamilton, ON