The Cornelius Emergency Vet Fund
Cornelius came to our home in February of 2020. We had never owned a Corgi before, but it was a breed that our son had wanted for a very long time.
We quickly fell in love with his fun personality. His energy was like no other. He loved to play with his balls. He could fetch for hours.
Cornelius was a very active Corgi, and he loved going for walks. Every evening, he had his zoomies where he ran around the house or the back yard.
In late September of 2023, we noticed that Cornelius was not eating. This was not so alarming as he was very picky with his food, and he had a habit of turning his nose to food sometimes. What did alarm us was the fact that he did not want to go for a walk, or to play with his ball. This prompted us to take him to the emergency vet. It was later in the evening and our family veterinarian was closed already.
When we arrived, the first thing the veterinarian did was check the color of his gums. They were a very pale pink. She asked us if he had ingested rat poison, we said no. She asked if he had eaten either onions, or garlic, again we said no. She ordered lab work. Before they would even draw his labs, we were sent a text with the amount due for the labs. $862.37 was what we quietly paid by following the link that had been provided by text. Once that was paid, a lab tech came for Cornelius and took him to get his blood drawn. After about 30 minutes, the veterinarian gave us the sad news that Cornelius had what was called Evan's Syndrome. His own body was attacking both his red blood cells and his platelets. He would need a transfusion if we wanted to try to save his life. She was very honest in telling us that the transfusion could also cause him to pass due to a blood clot. We asked if there were other options or forms of treatment. She said that unfortunately, that was our only course. Steroids would not have enough time to work, as his levels were too low. We asked what the cost would be. She told us to check our phone for another text. My son and I opened the text and could not believe the amount. $5,116.62 for the transfusion. We asked how much time we had to make the decision, and we were told that he only had a matter of hours left to live, and without the transfusion, he would just go to sleep and never wake up. We were devasted. We decided to have the transfusion. We waited and hoped that it would work and that he would not develop a blood clot. They monitored him overnight, and they gave my son and I a room with a bed and a cot in it. They let Cornelius sleep in the room with us. They checked his levels hourly, and they were going up. 24 hours later, we were discharged with a lot of medications and an appointment to have his levels checked again.
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For the next two months, Cornelius was on the highest dose of steroids. On top of two other medications. We also had to take him to have his labs drawn every week. We had hope that the medications would start to work, but sadly, every week his levels would drop. Our family vet tried everything she could. I ended up taking him to a specialist, and she added one other medication to see if that would help. Sadly, on December 13, 2023 his energy was low again and his gums were once again a very pale pink. My husband drove him to the emergency vet again. When they tested his levels, they were lower than they were the first time. Once again, they recommended a transfusion. My husband went ahead and authorized the transfusion. I went to visit him on my lunch break, and he looked good. The transfusion took three hours. His levels were back up, but he needed to stay for observation. After work, I drove straight to the ER. Once again, we were offered a room. This time I was the only one that stayed. I let my son and husband go home to rest. They had been there all day. The nurse told me that they would come in at midnight to run a lab on him. I set an alarm on my phone for midnight. Before my alarm rang, my husband called to check on him. I looked around and he was not in the room. I told my husband; they must have come to get him while I was asleep. He said, ok, let me know as soon as they give you the results. As I hung up, the nurse walked in looking for him. I panicked. I thought he was with her. We moved the bed I was sleeping in, and he had hidden behind the frame. He was panting, and he was short of breath. The nurse ran out with him and gave him to the vet. They quickly ran his labs, and they were still elevated. They performed and ultrasound on him, and he had blood clots in his abdomen. Sadly, the news was devastating. He had thrown a clot in a lung and would not survive. My husband and son came to meet me, and we facetimed our daughter, who lives in NYC so that she could say her goodbyes. We had him put down, as he was suffering. We were devastated.