Cowtown Friends of FWACC is a non-profit organization whose mission is to improve the lives of shelter animals in the city of Fort Worth. Last year, in 2021, we participated in our first North Texas Giving Day and focused our efforts on fundraising for life-saving medical care. Thanks to many generous donors, it was Cowtown’s largest fundraiser to date.
Because of your generosity, Cowtown Friends was able to provide outside diagnostics and emergency medical attention for multiple dogs who reached a critical health level while in the shelter. Sadly, two dogs were rushed to the emergency room in an attempt to save their lives, but it was ultimately decided by the vets that the decline in their health was too severe to overcome and so they were set free. However, Cowtown Friends was able to fund life-saving care for several other dogs in urgent need, including Baby, April, and Beauty.
Baby was a 10-year-old chihuahua who was surrendered to the shelter because she stopped eating and had an enlarged stomach. The shelter suspected a serious medical condition and knew the dog needed outside medical care. As soon as Cowtown Friends was contacted about her condition, we immediately took her to the vet. Through bloodwork and x-rays, it was quickly determined that Baby was suffering from pyometra, an infection of the uterus from not being spayed, and was in urgent need of surgical intervention. After life-saving surgery, she began her recovery and was ultimately transferred to an amazing local rescue partner to finish her recovery in preparation for adoption.
April was a sweet 3 month old puppy who originally came into the shelter as part of an unwanted litter, but was quickly adopted by a family. However, only two weeks after being adopted, April was returned to the shelter after her concerned owners took her to the vet, where she was diagnosed with a severe heart murmur and congestive heart failure, which unfortunately were outside of the care they were prepared to provide. While back in the shelter, April was weak and had incredibly labored breathing and it was determined by the shelter vet staff that she needed to be seen immediately by an outside vet to determine the best course of action. Cowtown Friends paid for her to be stabilized at a local vet and for diagnostic tests to be run. Ultimately, it was determined that April had a condition called Patent Ductus Arteriosus, which is a severe opening of two blood vessels leading to the heart, which can be deadly if not treated as it can lead to heart failure. Because of the quick intervention of Cowtown Friends, a rescue was able to have a full picture of her future needs and took April into their care to receive the subsequent surgery and care she would need prior to being adopted. April’s foster ended up falling in love with her while nursing her back to health through her surgery and we are happy to report that April ended up being a ‘foster fail’.
Beauty was a senior pitbull mix that arrived at the shelter as a stray in poor condition. Shelter staff rehabbed her as best they could but a month later she had multiple grand mal seizures associated with a fever. Cowtown Friends was notified by a volunteer that Beauty desperately needed outside medical care that went beyond the means of what the shelter could provide or she would be euthanized at the shelter. Cowtown Friends agreed that Beauty deserved a second chance and immediately called a vet to let them know she was on her way. As the volunteer got to the vet, Beauty had another seizure and was rushed to the back. After getting her stabilized, Cowtown Friends paid for diagnostics. The tests determined that her thyroid numbers were low and additional blood work was needed to determine the cause. Beauty was able to start on a daily supplement to correct and maintain her thyroid levels. After her hospital stay, a wonderful local rescue stepped up to continue to help Beauty. Unfortunately, Beauty’s seizures considered to worsen despite the amazing care she received, and she succumbed to her seizures. Although not the ending any of us would have wanted, knowing that she knew love in her final days gives all of us some peace.
Baby, April, Beauty, and all of the other dogs we helped last year would not have been helped without your generous donations last year which allowed Cowtown Friends to provide the immediate care they needed before working with local rescue partners who ultimately took these dogs into their programs. It truly takes a village to help shelter dogs in need, and we couldn’t have done it without you!
Please stay tuned to learn more about our goals for North Texas Giving Day 2022 and how your generous donations can help support thousands of pets looking for a new beginning and a better life. Please consider giving with a purpose to Cowtown Friends of FWACC this North Texas Giving Day to continue saving the lives of animals at FWACC. Because they are worth it.
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