Happy Giving Tuesday! 

Our goal today is to raise $5,000 which will be MATCHED by another $5,000 for a grand total of 10,000 $mackeroos for the SPCA of Tompkins County!

Meet Arcadia--or Sweet Cady, as her foster mom calls her.

Along with her canine brother, Arcadia--a very young dog who would undergo multiple surgeries at the shelter--came to the SPCA in July when her owner sought help through our Public Assist program. Facing housing difficulties of his own, the dogs needed temporary care. Among our most critical offerings, Public Assist serves animal owners and pets, like Acadia, when in dire need.

Cady has a bum leg.

Cady arrived with a congenital angular limb deformity, causing her leg to bend and twist. She was very thin and missing fur. SPCA staff scheduled her for spay surgery soon after admitting her. (The Public Assist program mandates spay or neuter surgery--at no cost to the pet owner--before an animal can be returned.) She enjoyed much needed rest and good nutrition while in our care, and returned to her owner in September. But she wasn't gone for long.

Cady returns to the SPCA.

In October, Cady was back with a concerning leg injury that had gone untreated for more than two weeks. Given her condition, our Humane Investigation Officer successfully negotiated her surrender and she became ours. 

But there was no cause for celebration just yet. Cady's thigh and knee were swollen, and she could not bear weight on her leg. She'd become emaciated and had also suffered a noticeable bump on the head with tissue swelling and bone inflammation.

Our medical team got right to work: assessing Cady's injuries and developing a treatment plan to restore her health and wellness.

Hers was not an easy case, however. Radiographs showed multiple previous fractures in her hip and knee, as well as some bone abnormality that might warrant surgery. In complex cases like Cady's, a second opinion is always a good idea, so an orthopedic consultation at the Cornell University Hospital was arranged (and paid for by an extraordinarily generous donor).

A week later, surgeons at CUHA removed the head of her femoral bone in hopes of restoring mobility to her leg. What an ordeal for this seven-month-old dog!

Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of physical therapists at CUHA--and her new foster mom--Cady's leg remained painful after surgery. Hopes for improvement diminished as Cady's condition worsened.

After much discussion, the medical team concluded that amputation offered Cady's best hope for long-lasting freedom from pain. Two days from the time of this posting, Cady will undergo this life-altering operation.

Tripod dogs live long and healthy lives.

We have so many positive stories to tell about dogs with limb amputations! They just don't carry the baggage that humans do over things like this. Instead they keep on, keeping on--only with three legs.

However drastic her amputation may seem to some, relief from chronic pain is Cady's best path to a long, healthy, and enjoyable life.

Foster mom extraordinaire, Lisa, will continue administering physical therapy for Cady, and caring for her until she's ready to go home. 

We are an SPCA Team.

The journey of this brave animal--and our dedicated staff--is the story of the SPCA.

We are a team: of empathetic Humane Investigators; of highly trained medical staff with access to world-class specialty care; of loving and skilled foster families; and of astute adoptions counselors, brimming with compassion for our charges. 

You are part of the team, too. Beyond this, you're part of the SPCA family. You make these journeys possible.

What's really special about this challenge . . .

The donors behind this challenge campaign--a couple who will match your gift, dollar-for-dollar--are extraordinarily generous animal lovers like you. Not long ago, following a cruelty investigation conducted by the SPCA, a special little dog entered their lives as a foster who, ulitmately, they adopted. They know firsthand the healing that the SPCA makes possible for desperate and deserving animals. It requires diligence, love, and medical expertise; and the dedication of a community of vererinarians, professionals, volunteers, foster families, and adopters. And donors like you!

WIll you help Cady--and other animals like her--by making a gift today?  Every dollar counts. Just click on one of the buttons at the top of the story to begin. Thank you!