Help Pickle get life-changing Surgery

My name is Katie, and I'm desperately trying to raise money for the surgery of my dog.

Anyone who knows me well knows I hate asking for money. Whether that's borrowing it or not, from friends or family, I really don't like asking for financial help. However, in this case, I feel like I have no choice.

I have a 1-year-old pup called Pickle. He's such an amazing little dog. I got him in January 2022. I was approached online by somebody who stated that their sister's dog had recently had a litter. They were planning on keeping one, but because he was so small, they didn't think he was safe around their Alsations. I agreed to go and see him - I had no intentions of taking him home with me that day... until I arrived. I could instantly tell that the breeders were dodgy. They would not let me in their house, see the dogs living conditions or meet any of the other dogs on the property. They passed him over to me, without any materials and asked "Do you want him? If so, someone else is coming in an hour so it's now or never". In that instant, I knew I couldn't leave him there, and so I left, carrying him home in the scarf I was wearing. It was one of the best decisions I ever made.

From the get-go, he had visible health issues. He'd contracted Giardia from the breeder's poor living conditions. My local vets were negligent, claiming that I was 'feeding him the wrong food'. It wasn't until we ended up at another emergency vet weeks later, hundred of £ down, that they then confirmed he had a stomach parasite. As well as this, he is structurally very wrong. His back is excessively arched, his body isn't in proportion and he has breathing issues.

In June of 2022, he and another dog played a little too rough and he ended up injuring his one of his back legs. I visited multiple different vets at different practices over 4 months, who all told me that it was something called a 'Learned Behaviour' and essentially, that he was faking it. All of these vets told me to leave it, as he'll eventually walk on it again.

Fast forward to December 2022 - I took Pickle to the emergency vet for something else, and when we saw the vet there, he pointed out his leg and told me straight away that this was a real injury and not a Learned Behaviour. We saw the Orthopedic Vet at Streatham Hill Vets a few days ago, who confirmed that he had damage to his kneecap and his cruciate muscle.

As this injury has been left for so long, he now needs two surgeries to fix this. Due to his small size, there are some surgeries they cannot do as they may not have the correct materials. The vet has estimated that these surgeries, alongside an X-ray, will come to around £5000.

I cannot express how much I love my dog. I got him at a really low time, and I'm heartbroken that previous vets were so negligent toward him. I've already spent thousands on previous vet bills, and I really wish that I had the £5000 to do these surgeries, but in all honesty, I don't. Over the past few months, I have worked overtime, I've asked for a raise at work, and I have sold my clothes and belongings online in order to pay for his medical bills. Unfortunately, it's not been enough.

My main focus is to make sure that he gets the help that he needs. I know dogs are expensive, and I made sure to get a good pet insurance plan as soon as I got him, to ensure that routine appointments and anything urgent is then covered by this. My insurance will cover £2000 of the surgery, but the vets need the money upfront - which I do not have. I'm at a point where I'm regrettably having to consider re-homing him, which is something I really don't want to do. He is indescribably loved by myself, my friends, and my family, and I want to do everything I can in my power to keep him at home with me.

I've tried applying for help from the PDSA, RSCPA, Blue Cross and many more. But because I don't meet their requirements, they can't help me financially here.

I know this is a real long shot, but if you know anyone who can help then I would appreciate any support here. Whether it's donations, advice, or putting me in touch with any charities that can help - it would be a huge, huge help.

Thank you so much for reading this, and thank you in advance for your help.