From Pedro’s owner: I have had Pedro since he was a young puppy. Pedro’s mother never accepted him so he had to be separated from his siblings and bottle fed. I fell in love with him so he came home with me, and my grandchildren picked out his name.

Pedro was a very active dog (not surprising considering he is half Jack Russell). About 5 years ago he injured his back when he tried to jump up onto my lap but fell down. He could not get up, so I rushed him to Medvet where they determined that he had fractured his spine. Surgery totaled $8,000 but I managed to come up with it.

After the surgery he was unable to walk, and it was suggested that he get some physical therapy. I didn’t have the funds to pay for it on top of the surgery, so I applied to Bandit’s BandAid (now Bandit’s K9Care). The PT helped to strengthen Pedro and he can now walk a little, in a drunken sailor sort of way. Regardless he’s a happy and still active boy. 



I have also had to express Pedro’s bladder since his surgery, and he wears a diaper at night. Two years ago I noticed his bladder was hard and he was having difficulty urinating. His vet determined that Pedro had bladder stones that were causing a blockage, so he flushed Pedro with fluids and used a catheter to dislodge the stones. Pedro was then put on prescription food to try to prevent stones forming in the future. 



Yesterday I noticed that Pedro’s bladder was once again hard and I could not get him to pee. This time my vet did not have a catheter that would work for him so we had to go to the MedVet ER. They did imaging and found that he had a lot of stones once again, including some lodged in his urethra, causing the blockage. MedVet gave me a low estimate of $6,000 for surgery, but they also suggested trying to dislodge the blockage with fluids over the weekend. If they can get all of the stones out there is a chance he can go without surgery but the charge for the weekend would be $3,000.



I am retired and on Social Security and live in HUD senior housing. I just do not have a way to pay for this surgery, although I was able to use the remainder of my Care Credit to cover Pedro’s weekend at the ER. However I honestly have no way of being able to pay off those charges anytime soon. 


I love Pedro so much. We have been through so much together. He makes me very happy, and I know when he passes I will not be getting another dog. He is truly one of a kind. Thank you so much for your consideration.

Owner: Sandy Mullins
Veterinary Hospital: MedVet Toledo, OH