Norcal German Shepherd Rescue dba ShepHeroes: Emergency Medical Grant Report

How did this grant help your organization and the pets in your care?

The 2020 Emergency Medical grant was used for littermates Zeke's abdominal hernia and Chloe's inguinal hernia repairs, along with their respective neuter and spay. Both 8-week-old pups were rescued from the Tracy, CA, shelter as the state mandate shuttered animal-control facilities for Covid. Although we applied for funds solely for Zeke's severe hernia repair based on the only clinic available for surgery at the time, we were able to work them into a different vet for a reduced fee, which allowed us to cover 100% of Zeke's surgery and a majority of Chloe's severe hernia repair surgery also.

Through the Petfinder Foundation's 2020 Medical Emergency Grant, the funds enabled us to launch our two 8-week-old shepherd puppies to bright futures. Our vets had recommended immediate surgery to repair Zeke's and Chloe's hernias to avoid life-threatening complications, and the $1,000 grant allowed us to cover both littermates' hernia repairs.

How many pets did this grant help?

2

Please provide a story of one or more specific pets this grant helped.

Zeke’s foster family, who cared for him from the time he left the shuttered shelter through the critical pre-surgery and post-surgery stages, found him to be irresistible and adopted him. He continues life as Zeke. His family had just lost their young shepherd to hemophilia, and Zeke filled their hearts with joy.

Chloe’s foster mom loved and cared for her through her critical time in rescue and during her recovery stages, and said goodbye when Chloe was matched with another shepherd-experienced family who had recently lost a beloved shepherd to cancer. Chloe is now Luna, living with a couple of teens and parents who adore her, posting regularly on an Instagram page dedicated to Luna: @gsd_.luna