Take a deep breath and think for a minute before you make any decisions. No need to hurry so long as she is stable. I am not a vet and I don’t know the extent of your pup’s injuries, but make sure you ask the vet every possible question you have. The first question in my cheap mind is can the hip be relocated and the leg splinted? Seems to me that if the splint does not work, the option for amputation could still be applied later. Does it have a time-limit? I don’t see why it would.

I have seen a lot of dogs overcome their injuries and continue to function very well. A friend has a pup that was hit by a car and laid in the ditch for a couple days before being found. The vet offered splint, surgery or amputation. We are going the splint route for financial reasons. So far so good. We will know more in a couple weeks when the splint comes off.

Amputation in my parts is about $800.

Second, you may call around to other vets and some of the rescue organizations in your area to see if they know of any vets that might work with you financially. Also check out this list to see if anyone might be able to help. But as long as Elly is stable, breathe before you decide. No hurry.

My fiancé and I adopted a rescued puppy, Elly, about a day ago. She was VERY shy and in need of socialization with people; likely had been abused. We decided she was the sweetest thing we had ever seen and that we could help her have a great life! We picked her up yesterday and she was starting to get settled in – beginning to come up to us without using treats as motivation, rolling on her back for us to pet her, and exploring her environment.

A few hours ago, our wonderful rescue became a nightmare. I was taking her for a walk before heading to the pet store to buy her a new harness and leash – we had one donated by the shelter that we were using. We were on the path behind our place and a woman with a cane came walking towards us. My poor puppy was terrified and started to thrash around frantically. She managed to slip her head out of the collar and bolted down the path. I ran after her, but when I turned the corner she was nowhere to be seen. My fiancé and I spent hours searching the woods behind our place, calling every resource possible, and posting flyers up.

Then we got the call….a local vets office had her and was able to identify her through her microchip. A policeman had found her about one road over hit by a car and lying in the middle of the road. My worst nightmare became a reality. We immediately rushed over to see her and were told that she had significant injuries to her right hind leg; we still do not know if she has internal injuries. She has a dislocated hip and broke her leg in several places. The vet told us we had two options to consider: (1) see an orthopedic surgeon to look at complex surgical repair OR (2) amputate. While amputation was presented as the cheaper option, both options are way more than what we can afford on our student salary – I am a Physical Therapy Resident, and my fiancé is a full-time student working towards his Master’s in Business.

So… I am sitting here, with little sleep, desperately searching the internet for some hope that we can afford this surgery to save her leg and keep her in our lives. I wonder if anyone has any suggesstions?

We will be back in the hospital later today to make our decision!

Pray for Elly!