An Update on "Goat"

Last week we put out a plea to our supporters for some help for a little pup named "Goat" (now called "Riley" by her foster mom). Goat had a heart defect, and needed to have a procedure done to fix the problem. Without this procedure, she would have lived a very short life. The procedure would be done at Alameda East Veterinary Hospital in Denver, and would cost around $2,500. This would not be something that we have in our budget to pay for, so we reached out to you for help.

The response has been overwhelming, to say the least. In the past 10 days we have received $6,400 to help this little pup, and the donations are still coming in! The donations have been large and small, in fact over 94 people have made a contribution of some amount. It has truly been amazing, and I can't thank you all enough.

Originally, the procedure had been scheduled for May 28th, but a spot opened up this past week, so I drove her up to Denver on Tuesday. I'm no doctor, but I will do my best to fill in what has transpired in layman's terms. The procedure was a non invasive one where they would go in through an artery in her leg, and attempt to put to place a coil in the valve that would gradually close it, and she would be ready to go home the following day. The procedure is able to be performed on 98% of patients. The procedure was done on Wednesday morning at 11 am. Unfortunately, Goat fell into the 2% of dogs that the procedure cannot be performed on. It turns out that the defect in her heart is too large to be addressed with the coil. She was awakened from anesthesia, and fully recovered by that afternoon.

Now we are on to plan B. This coming week she will undergo a more complex procedure to manually close the valve. The surgery will be performed by the top Veterinary Cardiologist at CSU, and assisted by doctors from Alameda East. She will then spend a few days at CSU for recovery. In the mean time she is being fostered at the home of her doctor in Denver. The total cost of all these procedures has now risen to over $4,000. Thanks to all of the generous donations we have received, we will still be able to cover these costs.

Goat's next surgery is scheduled for this Wednesday, May 22nd. I will give you an update as soon as we now how she is doing. Right now she needs your thoughts and prayers for a successful surgery, and a speedy recovery. Thank you all for you support for Goat, now Riley, and for all the animals cared for by LPCHS.