09/8/2021
"It’s the first day I been without Buddy in 9 ½ years."
Cindy lives in Akron, Ohio, and became a One Health Family Member in the summer of 2021 when her beloved dog Buddy needed urgent veterinary care. Since Cindy met the qualifications to get Vouchers from One Health Organization, she felt empowered to get Buddy the care he needed. She had $250 worth of Vouchers and a list of veterinarians in her area that accept Vouchers as payment.
Then, other problems stopped her from getting the care that Buddy needed. Cindy didn't have a primary veterinarian for him. Making an appointment for Buddy was more difficult than expected. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many veterinarians changed their business practices for staff and client safety, and couldn't keep up with demand for their services so they had to stop taking new clients and patients. It also created a backlog for existing clients who must wait weeks to months to get an appointment.
Despite our best efforts to help Cindy, she was unable to save Buddy. Buddy’s condition worsened to the point that he had stopped eating and died at home without receiving any veterinary care to prevent or decrease his pain and suffering. We will never know if Buddy could have been saved if he had been able to get to a vet in time, or if Cindy could have opted for end-of-life care to stop Buddy’s suffering.
Whatever the possible outcomes could have been, it is important to continue to aid pet owners like Cindy, who need veterinary care and other resources to keep their pets healthy at home. Through financial support from caring people like you, One Health Organization can continue to provide financial assistance in the form of Vouchers and be an information hub of pet-related resources to pet parents.
We kept in touch with Cindy as her story unfolded. In Cindy’s own words, “I appreciate you checking on us. You are the only one who has tried to help. I appreciate it.”
