A rare type of pneumonia outbreak has hit the dog community in Oregon, forcing the animal sanctuary, The Asher House, to request donations to tackle the sickness that claimed the life of their beloved three-legged rescue dog, Roo.
Lee Asher, the man behind The Asher House animal sanctuary, took to social media to spread awareness of the medical condition that’s hard to detect in dogs and is affecting them at an alarming rate. Animal lovers are coming forward in large numbers to help out, so here’s how can donate to make a change.
‘Rare pneumonia’ hits Oregon’s dog community
Lee revealed in a video posted to Instagram and YouTube that the sanctuary has been hit with a “very rare type of pneumonia”. The doctors are yet to figure out what’s going wrong as the dogs are not showing signs of sickness until it’s “too late” in some cases.
As opposed to the usual source of infection, which is from kennel cough or other underlying health issues, the dogs affected by the unidentified type of pneumonia are not getting detected easily.
As there are no symptoms, the dogs are rushed to the ER when the illness has almost taken over and some of them sadly don’t make it.
Lee said they’ve had numerous vet appointments in the wake of the new outbreak.
The Asher House’s rescue dog Roo passes away
Lee said the three-legged dog, Roo, who melted hearts with her recovery journey after being rescued under horrible conditions, was the first to succumb to pneumonia.
Another pooch named Lady, who was supposed to be adopted, was among the dogs to be affected by pneumonia, due to which twenty per cent of her lung had to be removed.
Meanwhile, another dog names Lily is in the ICU on oxygen as her treatment for the same condition is going on.
Lee said the sickness got to the animals despite their strict protocol and quarantine system within the sanctuary. The nature of the disease is incomprehensible at the given point.
Due to the lack of time to attend to each of the affected dogs and the cost and procedure involved in their medical treatment as the cases surge, Lee requested animal lovers to come forward to make donations for the furry buddies who are in desperate need of help.
The hospital bill so far is over $50,000, claimed the sanctuary owner.
How to make your donations
Lee warned donators against getting scammed and urged them to make their donations only on their official website.
You can find the option to donate on the home page when you visit the Asher House website.
It seems like Lee’s request has attracted a lot of visitors to the site, and there is a bit of lag due to the influx of sudden traffic.
The story on The Asher House’s Instagram account reads: “Please be patient if making donations and wait a few minutes for the system to load.”
Related Topics