Thank you so much for visiting my page.

I am raising money towards the £10,000 bills for my puppy River, my sweet one-year-old mini dachshund with a very rare condition called Pes Varus. Like many pet owners, I took out pet insurance for River in good faith with the hope that I would never need it, but with the reassurance that I had it if the worst was to happen. River's insurer has rejected my claims, added a number of unrelated exclusions to her policy, and rejected our appeal despite the facts and evidence explained and supported by River's highly qualified specialist vet declaring the rejection unfair and medically unjustified. Though I cannot expect to raise the full amount, I would be so grateful if you could take a moment to read River's story and share if you cannot donate.

My sweet girl River has just had two corrective surgeries for a very rare condition called Pes Varus, a developmental deformity of the leg that occurs in just 1% of the breed. River was examined and x-rayed by an experienced veterinary specialist after really struggling on walks and showing signs of lameness and discomfort. My happy and bouncy puppy was not the same as she used to be, and it broke my heart to see her mobility decline at such a young age. She was found to be suffering from luxating patella ('floating kneecap') and severe Pes Varus (limb deformity), and required surgery to enable her to have a better quality of life. Unfortunately, though it is believed to be a genetic condition, there is currently no way to test for this, and so I never could have known what was to develop. I wanted to do anything that I could to give her the best life she could have. Knowing that the bills were already adding up, and that the surgeries and treatment at the specialist were going to be expensive, I felt so glad that River was insured - and so we went ahead with the treatment.

There were complications along the way. River had her first surgery on August 30th 2017, a day after the investigative x-rays, where the unfortunate and unlikely happened. The instrument used to prepare River's bone for the plate and pins broke inside her leg and couldn't be removed, and so some stability was sacrificed as shorter pins had to be used to hold the intentionally broken and re-aligned bones together. We hoped for the best, and her surgeon believed that as River is so small there was little chance that it wouldn't work. After requesting that the vets claim directly with my insurer, I took River home the next day. Though I knew she would be fragile and uncomfortable, I could tell that she was in immense pain. I took her to our local vets, and there they confirmed the worst; the surgery had been unsuccessful and the pins were rejecting out of her leg. Some more nights in the hospital and a few x-rays later, the specialist explained that River had no choice but to have a second corrective surgery - this time with a longer plate with room for extra pins - the next day, September 8th 2017.

The surgeon had to do the best he could with the situation, and we decided that as we lived so far from the specialist it was best that River stayed in the hospital under 24 hour care for a few extra days. Once she was given the all clear, on September 11th I requested again that the vets claim for this second lot of surgery directly with the insurer, and I presumed that the insurer would take care of the bill and that I could focus on caring for River. We began on the road to recovery with River's medicine, post-op check ups, and weekly physio appointments, and her wound started to heal nicely. Compared to after the first surgery, River is so much better; happier, more mobile (when she's allowed to be!), improving steadily every day. Her 4 week post op x-ray showed that bone is starting to form in the breaks, and I couldn't be happier that she is on the mend...

But I never could have prepared for the insurance to reject our claim. Myself and River's vets have disputed their decision and provided evidence against their reasons for rejection, and I begged for them to reconsider in light of the facts and the expertise of medical professionals, but our appeal was unfairly rejected. I will continue to fight their decision, but as it stands I am no longer allowed to submit any more direct claims and must settle the bills myself. The vets bills that I already owe, have already paid, and the ones that are yet to come, are near to £10,000.

Even if all you can spare is a pound, River and I will be eternally grateful. And if you can't donate, please share. Thank you so, so much.