Shadow, a success story!

A few months back, I wrote about an organization called Frankie’s Friends, that helps pets with life-threatening illnesses receive the veterinary care they need. But, what do you do if your pet doesn’t qualify for help from an organization like Frankie’s Friends? There is another great option I’ve discovered!

If you need help paying vet bills, PetChance.org, a 501(c)(3) organization founded by animal lover, Peter Alberti, could be a godsend. “I was listening to a talk show in the Boston area and a guest vet was answering questions from pet parents,” Alberti shared of his inspiration for the org. “Despite this topic not being addressed in the segment, the majority of questions were from people whose pets needed expensive surgery and they couldn’t afford it. In far too many cases, pet owners are forced to sacrifice quality of life for their pets due to financial constraints. In the worst cases, people must choose to euthanize a pet when reasonable medical care might have been an option. I realized there was a very real need for this service.”

Peter Alberti

What is PetChance.org? It’s a relatively new crowd funding site, whose mission is to remove obstacles for pet owners so they have more opportunity to provide excellent medical care for their pets. PetChance provides a structure for people to create their own crowd funding page under its umbrella, and spread the word about their pet’s veterinary needs. They promote the pages and stories of the pets and offer support to pet parents in what is a very trying and stressful time.

And, it’s already taking off. In less than two years, PetChance.org has already helped 390 people in 49 states, helping to raise over $120,000.

The great thing is no pet is turned away. The only “litmus test” is that treatment be provided by a licensed veterinarian in that state.  But, pet parents must do the work! The greatest success stories are from those who spread the word.

“We know that millions of people can’t afford the pet care they need,” Peter explained. “The veterinary industry is a thirty two billion dollar one, and around $1.2 – 1.5 billion worth of veterinary care people can’t afford. So, we’re talking a very large group of people who need this help.”

And, there have been some wonderful success stories! The journalist from Houston, who writes a blog for the Houston Press, raised two or three thousand dollars in a couple of days for his cat. How’d he do it? He posted on his FB page, and wrote an article about his experience.  “He hit the nail right on the head about what we’re trying to do,” Alberti enthused. “He said, ‘For a few days, I was able to focus on the medical needs of my pet, without having to worry about the financial situation.’ And that’s our big, furry, audacious goal; that people will make the right decision, regardless of money.”

Another great success story came from Massachusetts. A little dog was beaten by its owner and left for dead on the side of the road. A policeman recovered the dog and brought it to the local hospital, offering up her own credit card to get treatment started. Within three days, the community rallied and, with PetChance, raised about $10,000 for this dog, who ended up needing brain surgery and some specialized care. The dog is doing great now, and the police officer who recovered him actually adopted him. I love that!

I’ve included pictures of dogs at the center of some of the Active crowd funding pleas. The beauty of crowd funding is that small donations do add up. If you can give even $10, do it. You’ll be performing the work of the angels for the little guy or girl you help to have a normal life.

Milo’s Story:

Military Working Dog Milo J234, United States Marine Corps Retired, has a large sized tumor in his spleen/stomach that is endangering his life.  This tumor, along with his spleen needs to be removed as soon as possible.  His prognosis is good if we can get the surgery soon.  Milo spent the first 6 years of his life protecting our country’s United States Marines as a human tracker and has been deployed to Iraq 3 times  while each tour seeing a significant amount of combat. Milo was retired due to getting PTSD and lost his will to work.  He has been enjoying life as a “civilian” with his family and friends. We have been told the surgery and aftercare will cost up to $3600. I need help saving Milo. Every dollar will take us a step closer to what we need to raise to get Milo back to duty with his family. Thank you taking the time to read this and please pass this on to anyone you may know.

U.S. Marine/handler & Milo

Draven’s Story:

Draven has ulcerated holes in the cornea’s of both eyes. He needs immediate surgery to graft eye tissue to the holes in order for scar tissue to grow and heal over the divots. His body is not healing the holes on it’s own, and he is in danger of perforating his right eye and losing it altogether.

Draven is the light of our lives. He came to us in 2001 following the devastating and unexpected death of our first Papillon, Bayliss. Just two weeks after Bayliss died a three month old Draven gave us a cuddly, sweet, tender little soul to help heal the void in our hearts. He is quite sensitive to the emotions of his doggie parents, especially his Mama (Nancy). He acts as an unofficial (he is not accredited) therapy dog for Nancy who has been on state disability for the last seven years. She has been diagnosed with PTSD, Bi-polar II, severe depression, generalized anxiety and borderline personality disorder. There are times when the only thing that keeps Nancy alive is myself, Draven and Reily (our 2nd Papillon who is also 13). Draven is Nancy’s little man; who unconditionally loves her and licks away all her tears. He knows instantly when she is having an anxiety attack and rushes to her before I even know there is an issue. For her, Draven is that special animal, kindred soul bond that doesn’t come around but once in a lifetime if pet owners are lucky…[read more on PetChance.org]

Draven

PetChance.org is about to launch its first fundraiser! Pedal for Paws is a 24-hour Spinathon, where twenty four teams of twenty four people each will ride exercise bikes for an hour per person to raise money for Pet Chance. Their goal? Loftly at $175,000. But like the platform Peter chose to help needy pet parents, if you spread the word, people will donate.

For anyone in the Marlborough, MA. area, here are the details of the event. You can find out more at http://pedalforpaws.petchance.org

• WHEN:  10am Saturday January 31, 2015  through 10am Sunday February 1, 2015
• WHERE: Solomon Pond Mall, Donald Lynch Blvd., Marlborough, MA – across from JC Penney entrance, 1st floor
• HOW:  24 teams of 24 people.  Over a 24-hour period, each participant rides the team’s exercise bike for 1 hour to raise $300 per participant.  You can start your own team or you can join a team. You can choose to cycle as “competitively” or as “leisurely” as you like! The team that raises the most money will win a super incentive for the entire group.
• WHY: PetChance.org has helped over 390 pet owners from 49 states successfully raise money for needed veterinary care.  This is a “great start”, and with financial support from Pedal for Paws, Pet Chance will be able expand its capacity and support many more pets in need across the country.  Millions of pets are surrendered, abandoned, left to suffer, or are euthanized each year because their owners cannot provide the medical treatment necessary to keep them healthy!  Thanks to your efforts, these pets have a Chance at health and happiness in their own homes.

PetChance TV is Launching!

Alert! PetChance is also launching its own tv network, called PetChanceTV! Starting January 1, when you visit your local vet or veterinary hospital, you’ll finally have something to do! Screens are going up in these facilities, starting in the Northeast but, eventually, nationwide, and tips on healthcare for pets, great products to buy and interesting stories will be aired for us parents who spend an average of between 29 – 39 minutes in the waiting area.

What started for Peter as a desire to place an ad on InStore Media’s Pet Adoption World (Paw TV) network, became launching his own network to raise awareness about helping our best friends with the best advice and products out there for them.

So, if you go to your vet and don’t see a PetChance TV screen, tell them you want one!

And, remember to please check out PetChance.org, donate and spread the word! They also have a great Pinterest board with lots of stories from pet parents about their babies and the wonderful things PetChance.org did for them.

Do you have a story about important veterinary care you couldn’t afford? Tell me about it in the Comments and maybe PetChance can help you, too!