Douglas the Puppy's Double Knee Surgery

Hi, my name is Douglas, and I need your help!

I'm a big, happy, soft puppy who was rescued along with my 8 siblings and my really skinny mommy, from living under a shed in the field where my mommy was dumped over winter. :( My mommy hunted for whatever food she could find to sustain herself to nourish us, so she was not only bones and skin, but infested with worms too. Fortunately, a nice lady found our mom, and then us, and got us to safety where we were dewormed, vetted, and fed well, and we all gained weight and went to a couple foster homes with really nice people who loved us and started showing us how Good Dogs act in the house.

My siblings and I are a happy bunch of little dare devils, and we enjoy wrestling with each other and exploring all the things, including fun things to climb up on and jump on each other from - although we've stopped doing flying dive bombs as much and just stick more to wrestling and rough housing, because the two legged people taking care of us don't seem to appreciate our airborn explorations and make us stop playing when we do that. And we LOVE playing!

However, I haven't been able to play as much lately. :(

Somehow, I hurt myself. It could have been our attempts to roleplay airplanes, because the vet doesn't think it's from us trying to play puppy bowling balls with each other (and our big foster brother, who is a handsome German Shepherd, and who I want to be when I grow up!), and seems to think it's more from the impact of me jumping off something and landing wrong. Oops!

So anyway. My caretakers noticed I was limping on both back legs, so I had to go to the vet. The vet looked at me, noticed I was trying to put all my weight on my front legs as much as possible as I wiggle/waddled over to collect on the love and pets I knew would come, and took me off to do X-rays (which I was a really good boy for! I may have cried a little, because new things scared me, but I always do my best, and it helps when the people I trust tell me I'm doing good).

It turns out, I have a small piece of bone, on each knee, that is supposed to be attached to a bigger bone, with a growth plate between that later fuses the 2 bones together... however, it is NOT. On either side.

So, the vet said I needed to see a specialist (I knew I was special!!)... an orthopedic surgeon?

The kind vet said he could have the surgeon he recommends give us a call, so we are waiting on that, as well as beginning to see about other orthopedic friends I could possibly make, and get some estimates together.

Right now, I am getting 2 globs of peanut butter daily. I'm not the biggest fan of it, but my foster is really deadset on me eating it, telling me it's so I feel better (I guess peanut butter makes humans feel better?... I don't know - they just seem really dead set on me eating this, which, my developing Shepherd super powers tell me, is suspicious...) It also doesn't help that once, when I was debating eating this "peanut butter" and rolling it around on my tongue, I got a really bitter taste! They called it medicine, it tasted so bad though, it HAD to be poison... now I hear talk of trying hot dogs instead though?... Why are the dogs hot? Do they need water? And do dogs that are hot like peanut butter more than dogs that are cool?...

Anyway, I digress.

Apparently, I need to go make new and "expensive" friends, and we need a lot of help to go see them.

We are trying to raise as much as $10,000 towards my anticipated veterinary bills. We are making phone calls today so will hopefully know more exact numbers and estimations in the next day or so, and will post updates as such, but apparently based on past veterinary bills including leg and/or bone related surgeries, this is pretty realistic of a number for us to expect.

We will also be applying for Care Credit and financing, because we absolutely do not expect to be able to fundraise the full amount (but would be over the moon and incredibly grateful if that miracle did occur!), so please also consider SPONSORING me monthly with a recurring donation if you think I'm the cutest, sweetest boy ever (which, I promise - I am!!) and you wish you could bring me home and love me but for whatever reason just can't. :)

I promise to keep everyone updated with news and tail wags!

Thank you so much for reading and helping me get back on the road to being a fully mobile, happy, healthy, romping little guy again!!

XOXO

Douglas