Candice Meadows is now feeling more optimistic about her injured dog, Noir.
Animal lovers from Chilliwack to as far away as Alberta have been sending in donations to help the family pay for a $3000+ surgery.
They’ve been waiting for the infection to clear before the tricky surgery can get underway, which is slated for Thursday.
Meadows told The Progress she was beyond distraught when her beautiful 10-month old pitbull/lab cross first went missing.
She woke up suddenly from a deep sleep, and yelled to her daughter, “Where’s Noir?”
The dog was nowhere to be found after escaping from their yard — again.
It turned out the friendly pup had been struck the day before by a hit-and-run driver, severely injured, and left to die.
The family found her under a tarp Monday afternoon whimpering and shivering in the dark with her leg almost severed.
They figure she had crawled under a trailer some time Sunday night after being hit.
“We found her and took her to vet hospital. Her leg was dangling, muscles torn and femur smashed,” said Meadows.
Since last week, vet staff have been flushing the wound and dressing it to clear the infection.
Noir is now healing “beautifully,” she was told.
The tricky operation will be at Menzies Pet Hospital. A specialist surgeon will be rebuilding the bone with pins, in an attempt to save the shattered leg. (See the x-ray image below).
“He said he can rebuild her leg to 99.9 per cent. I like those odds,” she said.
The hit-and-run marked a triple whammy in her life: Cancer, broken ankle and now the dog hit by a car.
For the mom of two, who had just been declared cancer-free a few weeks ago, the vet bill of more than $3,000 was more than she could afford.
So she took a big chance last week, went online, and asked for help.
“I placed a prayer stone on Noir’s collar that night. I thought here goes nothing and went to sleep,” she said. “When I woke up and there were so many messages and offers of help!”
They’ve collected $2,800 so far, with some who called the vet on their own accord to help pay the bill.
The outpouring of support from local Facebook groups has been unbelievable, and Meadows is feeling very grateful for the turn of events.
“I don’t have words but I have to say I’m completely blown away,” she said. “Every time I think about it, I can’t believe it. When you ask for assistance, you put yourself out there for a lot of scrutiny.”
Strangers rushed to donate, as well as family and friends. They just need a bit more to pay the bill, but the whole experience has restored her faith in humanity.
“I am exhausted with happiness. With my new-found health, I am motivated to hit the ground running,” she said.
“Because of this, we will use our lives to give back in whatever tiny way we can.”
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