Owner of rescued terminally ill XL Bully appeals for help to pay £6K surgeries
The owner of a rescued terminally ill XL Bully has appealed for help to pay eye watering vet fees.
Samantha Burne, 53, fostered seven-year-old Nuke, who was rescued from a puppy farm, underweight and with his ears brutally clipped. The dog spent 15 months at the RSPCA in Leicester after being saved, whilst a cruelty case was ongoing and it was discovered he had terminal skin cancer.
Following this, the charity appealed for a loving home to look after Nuke for what they thought would be his final few months. That was where Samantha, who is in remission for cancer herself, stepped in. From Woodgate, Leicester, she persuaded her family to take Nuke in and almost three and a half years later the beloved pooch is still alive, LeicestershireLive reported,
The RSPCA had been paying for his expensive medical bills up until Samantha adopted him. The recent ban on XL Bullies means the RSPCA are unable to legally keep them in their care. For Samantha she decided to adopt Nuke right then and there. "When the ban came in, I thought the dogs [XL Bullies] would go back to the RSPCA, but I was promptly told that would not be the case," Samantha said.
She continued: "So this dog that has been through the mill and has had a raw deal in life, who was thriving 99 per cent of the time, is now in a different predicament. When they told me, I just burst into tears. There were a lot of tears in the room as everybody was so involved in looking after Nuke at the RSPCA and they really wanted me to adopt him. I went there [Woodside RSPCA] by myself not knowing it was going to be this huge decision."
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Nuke's skin cancer develops as little pustules which then grow malignantly underneath the skin and have to be removed. Samanatha said each surgery totals £6,000 when you include all the post-op treatments and antibiotics. This procedure has been carried out for Nuke three times under the RSPCA. Samantha said: "I was absolutely shocked. Because this is now our family pet, it wasn't even a decision. I thought we would make it work.
The beloved pooch needs surgery to combat his cancer which costs £6,000 each time (Leicestershire Live / BPM Media)
Samantha took Nuke in after the RSPCA had to cut ties with him (Leicestershire Live / BPM Media)"We have got such a love for the dog. Even if he has only got six more months, that's six more than he would have got at the RSPCA. When I got back and told my husband, it was 'oh heck' when we realised how much it was going to cost us. But I am prepared to fight to the bitter end, you don't give up on people who have cancer. It's like saying the surgery is too expensive for your kids. You are not going to do it."
Sam herself is in remission for cancer and Nuke's situation resonates strongly with her. She recalled how the first day with them, then four-year-old Nuke fell down the stairs. She said: "We took this four year old dog on from scratch. Patience and perseverance, and three and a half years later we have this dog that has got a lust for life. He gets so much good out of his life. He welcomes anybody.
"Everybody comes around to see Nuke. He has such a big impact on my extended family, they have such a connection with him. They don't even come to see me," Sam said jokingly. Her daughter is also a volunteer at the RSPCA and volunteers every Sunday. The family, like most Brits, simply can't afford the expensive surgery Nuke needs.
Samantha said: "We knew that when we adopted him, but that was the only option other than euthanizing. [The surgeries] are very expensive because of the size of the dog, it's £6000 per surgery to remove [the pustules] and all the treatment afterwards. It shows a pustule on the skin and then it grows as a malignant [tumour] underneath. The pustule can just appear out of nowhere. He has got skin cancer and they are always going to come back."
"They wouldn't continue the surgery at the RSPCA if it wasn't in the dog's best interest. It's just until the vets say enough is enough, it's spread too far." Samantha has started a GoFundMe to raise money to help go towards Nuke's medical bills.
A spokesperson for the RSPCA told the Mirror: “We are so grateful to Samantha and her family for adopting Nuke having provided him with a loving foster home for more than three years - especially after he had been through so much in his short life.
“We are so pleased that Samantha and her family offered to give Nuke a loving forever home - even though they may not know how long he will be with her.
“Sadly, as he is now no longer a foster dog under the care of the branch and is an owned pet - we cannot continue to fund his medical bills, but we will continue to support Samantha and Nuke in any other ways we can over the next months and hopefully years.
“The Government’s ban on XL Bullies not only remains devastating for so many dogs, but is also taking a heavy toll on owners, on rescue centre staff who have grown close to dogs in their care.
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“As a member of the Dog Control Coalition, the RSPCA remains vehemently opposed to breed specific legislation; an outdated approach which fails to protect public safety and seriously compromises dog welfare, and we will continue to campaign against legislation that unfairly punishes dogs based on their appearance.”
Click here to visit the fundraising page.
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