need pets help

Bentley is our 8 year old Yorkipoo. My mother and I got Bentley when I was a senior in high school, he was suppose to be my replacement when I left home to go to college. However Ben has always been my little soul animal. When my mother passed away Bentley and Pax became my little reminder of her.

Wednesday (April 14th), I was teaching from home and noticed that Bentley was starting to trip a lot. He is usually a little clumsy so I wasn't too worried but I took note of it and decided to monitor him. As the day progressed I found that Bentley was no longer able to use his bed stairs without falling. Becoming more concerned I reached out to Josh and we decided taking him to an animal hospital was the best decision. Waiting for Josh to come home I took Ben out to his favorite bathroom spot (a pile of rocks behind our apartment), when he went to use the bathroom he lifted his leg and the one he was standing on gave out causing him to fall again. We went to NorthStar VETS- Maple Shade and everyone was very nice and understanding. They checked Ben's vitals, physical exam, and blood work. Everything came back perfect other than the fact that his legs were not strong enough to support his body, he did not appear to be in any pain. They told us to take him home and monitor him, if it continued to follow up with the NorthStar VETS in Robbinsville because they have an MRI machine and a Neurologist who will be better to diagnose and manage Bentley.

We noticed that Thursday Bentley was no longer eating, drinking, or going to the bathroom on his own. Friday morning as I was starting my day, I set up a comfortable area for Ben to relax while I work. Pax stepped on the pillow which caused Bentley to move and he yelped out, it was a yelp that Ben has never made before, he is usually very strong and I have heard him yelp very few times. This became more alarming that Bentley might actually be in pain so Josh and I immediately brought him to the NorthStar VETS- Robbinsville. Again we have experienced such great care, they admitted Ben into the hospital with the belief that he has IVDD and were going to confirm that with an MRI and surgery. Many hours later they told us that Bentley had been in the MRI for a few hours and that the imagining was showing serval bulging and degenerating disk with spinal fluid in his cord. This is now more complicated than they thought and we now need the Neurologist to determine if the surgery is too risky or not.

Josh and I are still learning and unfortunately we did not learn about pet insurance until it was too late. This vet/hospital bill is more than we can manage and anything that can be given to help is far more appreciated that we can put into words.