Please help us fund Andries’s scapulectomy surgery!

#helpfundandries

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Andries's Story

Andries (formerly known as “Bacon”) is a very brave little township rescue-dog, who miraculously survived the canine parvovirus after which he lost his front left leg due to complications with the IV (drip) during a very bad secondary infection. The leg was amputated at the end of the humerus, creating a very tiny stump. He was about 3 months old during this whole painful ordeal.

Andries recovered well and was adopted by Cobus and Elzanne from Somerset West in October 2020 from The Sushi and Panda Foundation. He is a very active and incredibly energetic young pup and became well-adjusted to everyday activities and playtime on his three healthy legs. He loves his new home, his new canine brother and sister, all his curious feline friends, and his very loving human family.

His favorite activities are going for walks at the off-leash park, playing tug of war with his rope and doggy siblings, chasing the ball (although he never fetches it), chewing on sticks and his mum’s loose carpet, and “singing” when his humans arrive home from work each day. He is such a good boy and never stingy with wet kisses!

In January 2021, at only 7 months old, Andries started to develop a chronic seroma on his stump, a pocket of normal tissue fluid that develops in a high motion/loose tissue area such as the armpit region after a front limb amputation. This is very normal after amputation and the fluid usually gets reabsorbed by the body within about 3-7 days, but this was not the case with Andries and the fluid kept building up due to all the movement around his shoulder - even after a long course of antibiotics, anti-inflammatory pills, pain medication, and lastly, surgical drainage at the local vet.

At a certain stage during this fluid build-up, the skin around Andries’s stump becomes so tight and stretched, that poor Andries is in constant agony due to the pressure underneath the skin and on the surrounding bone, muscle, and scar tissue. He doesn’t want to eat, move around, or even go to the toilet, and he just lies on his pillow crying in pain and discomfort!

Chronic medication and weekly fluid drainage is unfortunately not the long-term answer.

After specialist veterinary advice and much consideration, it was decided that it would be better for Andries to get the remaining part of his leg as well as the scapula completely removed to prevent further complications and pain. By removing the stump and shoulder blade entirely, movement in that area will be restricted, the skin and underlying muscle tissue will be more even and the whole area less aggravated by Andries’s natural movement. This will stop the seroma from developing further and is the best option for Andries's future well-being.

Unfortunately, this is a very expensive procedure that Cobus and Elzanne did not plan for when adopting Andries, and the COVID-19 regulations since March 2020 also had a major impact on their current financial situation.

We really want to give Andries the quality of life that he deserves after everything that he has been through. He is worthy of the best life without any pain and discomfort.

We kindly ask your financial assistance to help pay for Andries’s much-needed surgery. We welcome even the smallest contribution to help fund our cause.

Thank you so much for caring and all your support! xxx

*Any proceeds exceeding our initial target total of R20 000.00 for the surgery will be utilized to also pay for Andries's additional follow-up vet visits and post-operative physiotherapy rehabilitation.