January 13th, 2014
A military family from Georgia wrote to RedRover recently and needed our help. Their little three-year-old Shih Tzu, Ginger, had a massive bladder stone and the family couldn’t afford to pay for her surgery. “We are a military family and recently lost our home,” Elizabeth, mother of three, told us. “We are in the process of getting back on our feet but cannot afford an expensive surgery for Ginger.”
When Elizabeth applied for a RedRover Relief grant, she knew it was the last chance for Ginger.
“We are a financially responsible family: we do not have cable, sometimes only have one cell phone to save on expenses, we do not have Internet, we do our own haircuts (to save money), we hardly ever eat out, and the last time we went to the movies was four months ago and it was at the dollar theater. We honestly just don’t have any money for this right now.”
Veterinarians discovered that Ginger had a large bladder stone that needed emergency surgery. Elizabeth knew her three young children would be devastated if they lost their puppy. She applied for a RedRover Relief grant, and our case managers were able to quickly approve funding to get Ginger the lifesaving surgery she needed.
Following her recovery, Elizabeth sent us an update about little Ginger:
“I just wanted to thank you and RedRover again for helping us in our time of need. I can’t even begin to tell you what it meant to our family! You saved her life! We would have lost her without that surgery and we just couldn’t afford it.You literally saved her life!
Ginger is doing great! She misses the little treats we use to give her, but she has a very strict diet of prescription dog food from the vet, and she’s actually gained a lot of weight from it so I don’t think she’d complain even if she could. She’s back to her old self again (super happy, just a friendly puppy), and seeing her full of energy is nothing short of a miracle when I think how lifeless she was just a couple of months ago. She is feeling great and she loves playing with her human “brothers and sisters.” Thank you for giving us our dog back! She is such a sweet soul to be around. We all love her so very much and you have helped keep our family whole. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for saving our puppy!”