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Bekka is a 5-year-old golden retriever who was rescued 2 years ago. She was posted for sale in a Craigslist ad as part of a package deal with a washer and dryer. She is living proof of the potentially nightmarish results of backyard breeding. She came to our home with neurological problems and severe anxiety. Behavior specialists told us that she’d probably been left alone outside all day and had never been socialized to humans or other dogs. She made good progress with positive reinforcement and began to relax, trust, and play. She mastered the obstacle course at our local dog park and enjoyed long walks in the woods with our other rescued dogs. She became especially confident outdoors, and would happily trot around our fenced yard, smiling and wagging with her head held high.

And then disaster struck. She rapidly developed severe cataracts in both eyes. At only 5 years old, she is nearly totally sightless. She can’t even see shadows, and constantly walks into doors, windows, and our other dogs. She panics at the dog park and crashes into the obstacle course she had so enjoyed. She is frightened of most everything now and spends most of her time hiding on a stairway landing. She has restricted her life to a few basic routes through the house to find the water bowl and her favorite bed. This sweet, gentle soul lives in utter darkness and rarely wags or smiles.

No dog should have to live this way. Bekka deserves the opportunity to live a long, happy life; to run without fear of crashing into something; to visit new places without panicking; to once again jump up onto her comfy spot on the couch knowing she will be able to safely jump off. You can help us help her. Cataract surgery can restore Bekka’s quality of life.

Cataract surgery is a low-risk and very successful surgery, but the price is prohibitive. The estimated cost for both eyes is $4400 (one eye is $4100, doing both seems like a no-brainer). We have a highly regarded veterinary ophthalmologist nearby who routinely performs such surgery and Bekka, because she is very young and otherwise healthy, is a perfect candidate for surgery. She will be able to see the world through her new synthetic lenses almost immediately. Imagine how awesome that would feel to her.

All we need now is some financial assistance so that Bekka can see again. No contribution is too small. Every dollar raised helps.

Thank you.

If for some reason Bekka’s surgery isn’t done all donations will be forwarded to Main Line Animal Rescue in Phoenixville, PA.