Help Twyla Dance - Or At Least Walk!
Donation protected
Hi, I’m Eve, Twyla’s mom, who adopted her in late December 2018 with a diagnosis of congenital Upward Turned Paw, later diagnosed as Angular Limb Deformity. Upon adoption she was 5 lbs of fragility and fear with abraded and swollen wrists where she had been banging them around in order to get by. She is now almost 6 lbs with less inflamed wrists and a much calmer demeanor but we have a long way to go. She will need either surgery or prosthetics and lots of physical therapy. In order to improve her quality of life, we are raising funds for the medical and physical therapy treatments Twyla will require.
We don’t know a lot about Twyla’s history: The docs speculate she’s about two years old. In October of 2018 she was rescued from a kill shelter in Salinas, CA by Family Pet Rescue in SF where she was seen by a vet and diagnosed with a congenital malady called upturned paws. We recently got into UC Davis Veterinary Hospital where they diagnosed her with Angular Limb Deformity, (ALD), and although she can “live” with ALD, she cannot play or exercise fully, (she is so spry at heart), and her situation is getting more challenging. Further, she will inevitably develop other problems and conditions to her paws and joints that will require surgery or even shorten her life.
We don’t know a lot about Twyla’s history: The docs speculate she’s about two years old. In October of 2018 she was rescued from a kill shelter in Salinas, CA by Family Pet Rescue in SF where she was seen by a vet and diagnosed with a congenital malady called upturned paws. We recently got into UC Davis Veterinary Hospital where they diagnosed her with Angular Limb Deformity, (ALD), and although she can “live” with ALD, she cannot play or exercise fully, (she is so spry at heart), and her situation is getting more challenging. Further, she will inevitably develop other problems and conditions to her paws and joints that will require surgery or even shorten her life.
Here's a short vid of my first close up look at her paws once home:
Financials:
Whether surgery or prosthetics is best, we are looking at roughly $10 - 20,000, (she will be a spotted bionic wonder dog!). So far, I have unexpectedly spent, (note: charged), $2000 out of pocket just to get her housed comfortably (she needs of things like fur, pillow, and carpet to be mobile around the house and she needs carriers to be transported easily), seen by vets, and CAT scan. The surgery or prosthetic is going to be a big chunk, looking at about $5,000 a leg. Our first visit to the PT on March 15th will cost $350. Assuming we will have several over the next year or more, around $2,500. Keeping her calm, helping her socialize, and keeping her safe through ongoing training, approximately $200 monthly for 6 months equals $1,200. Sadly, I don’t have a car and Davis is a 90 minute drive from San Francisco, so transportation, loss of work etc will definitely exceed $1000. Total cost estimated at the moment: $14,700.
Additional:
I imagine she had a home for some time in the beginning of her life but was not trained how to give and receive love. Her nerves are on edge: she barks wildly at the printer, spray cans, and ceiling fan. She also has aggression issues with some other dogs, (mostly big) and cats, which will need to be addressed so she can socialize more. She bites in play, which I think was taught to her and then perhaps she was abandoned because of it in addition to her deformity. Although her biting does not break skin on me, she needs training so she can be with babies and children so she does not live a life of isolation.
Here is a video taken right after she arrived home that illustrates Twyla's upturned front paws and how they keep her from walking properly. Notice her skinny spine and fear of having food removed, but she loves a good treat!
I fell in love with Twyla when I saw her. She is such an ethereal creature, a little magical. She is soft, loving, bossy, brutal, capricious, and overall a wonderful little dog. I was told she could live with her condition so did not realize the cost involved to caring for her. Once I got her home and realized how challenged her mobility is, how abraded and inflamed her paws were from trying to be more mobile in a body that defies her, it crushed me. My dear dog loving friends all suggested we reach out in community to help her.
This is her today, much more trusting, and little more weight on her bones, and so full of love and life!
I hope you can offer her a little financial support knowing that I will insure Twyla Twinkle Toes will become, more and more, a well adjusted differently abled chihuahua who may just dance!
To help me get the word out, please donate whatever you can and please share my link to your Facebook, Instagram, and/or Twitter!
Financials:
Whether surgery or prosthetics is best, we are looking at roughly $10 - 20,000, (she will be a spotted bionic wonder dog!). So far, I have unexpectedly spent, (note: charged), $2000 out of pocket just to get her housed comfortably (she needs of things like fur, pillow, and carpet to be mobile around the house and she needs carriers to be transported easily), seen by vets, and CAT scan. The surgery or prosthetic is going to be a big chunk, looking at about $5,000 a leg. Our first visit to the PT on March 15th will cost $350. Assuming we will have several over the next year or more, around $2,500. Keeping her calm, helping her socialize, and keeping her safe through ongoing training, approximately $200 monthly for 6 months equals $1,200. Sadly, I don’t have a car and Davis is a 90 minute drive from San Francisco, so transportation, loss of work etc will definitely exceed $1000. Total cost estimated at the moment: $14,700.
Additional:
I imagine she had a home for some time in the beginning of her life but was not trained how to give and receive love. Her nerves are on edge: she barks wildly at the printer, spray cans, and ceiling fan. She also has aggression issues with some other dogs, (mostly big) and cats, which will need to be addressed so she can socialize more. She bites in play, which I think was taught to her and then perhaps she was abandoned because of it in addition to her deformity. Although her biting does not break skin on me, she needs training so she can be with babies and children so she does not live a life of isolation.
Here is a video taken right after she arrived home that illustrates Twyla's upturned front paws and how they keep her from walking properly. Notice her skinny spine and fear of having food removed, but she loves a good treat!
I fell in love with Twyla when I saw her. She is such an ethereal creature, a little magical. She is soft, loving, bossy, brutal, capricious, and overall a wonderful little dog. I was told she could live with her condition so did not realize the cost involved to caring for her. Once I got her home and realized how challenged her mobility is, how abraded and inflamed her paws were from trying to be more mobile in a body that defies her, it crushed me. My dear dog loving friends all suggested we reach out in community to help her.
This is her today, much more trusting, and little more weight on her bones, and so full of love and life!
I hope you can offer her a little financial support knowing that I will insure Twyla Twinkle Toes will become, more and more, a well adjusted differently abled chihuahua who may just dance!
To help me get the word out, please donate whatever you can and please share my link to your Facebook, Instagram, and/or Twitter!
Fundraising team: Team Twyla (2)
Barbara Carrellas
Organizer
San Francisco, CA
Eve Minax
Team member