Dogs are well-known to be humankind’s best friends and the older they get, the greater the bond. After you’ve spent a considerable amount of time with someone so understanding, it’s never easy to lose them, especially from a disease, and a person desperately tries to do all that they can to save them. However, according to Unilad, this woman has done something unprecedented in her love for her pooch.

Dolly-Ann Osterloh’s 9-year old dog Snoopy has been diagnosed with mitral valve disease – meaning his heart has grown too big and he needs a surgery done. Snoopy is a a yorkie-chi and was rescued from a shelter in the US nine years ago after he was found in a dustbin, abandoned by a family after Christmas. Last month, he developed breathing difficulties and on assessment was found to be suffering from the disease.

However, the biggest constraint is – the surgery is a whopping £37,000. Dolly-Ann is desperate to save the life of her beloved at all costs and she is selling all her belongings to raise money for his surgery. Because unless he has a heart surgery, doctors say he will only have a few months to live.

Dolly-Ann is doing all that she can to help her doggo which includes giving him medications 11 times a day and since he’s responding positively to the medications, Dolly-Ann feels he will be a good candidate for the operation. The surgery itself seems to be a tricky affair, as Dolly-Ann told Unilad:

We have a slot on the 19th September, in Paris. A vet is coming over from Tokyo to do the operation.

The surgery is really expensive, but its the only way to decrease the size of Snoopy’s heart. Dolly-Ann has raised most of the money through her own life savings, as well as a bank loan and money borrowed from friends and family, however, she still needs another £5,000 to £10,000.

As a means of raising funds, she’s opening her London flat to the public for 24 hours from 9pm on Friday. Anyone can make an offer on any of her possessions:

I would never have expected so many people to be interested in my sale. Lots of people will be coming – I’m letting strangers into my house.

Snoopy is family to Dolly-Ann and much above all the material possessions she has. She just wants him to be okay and would go to any lengths for it. She told Unilad:

Snoopy is like a child to me! With animals, you connect so well to them and the older they get, the more understanding they get.

Dolly-Ann was naturally devastated to find out Snoopy’s disease and now she wants to raise awareness about the disease so that others can decipher it sooner, unlike her. 

It can be common in some dogs – Snoopy will have had it a long time but because he’s had it so long now, he needs the surgery.

Dogs are very prone to heart diseases, especially the smaller breeds. Owners should try and pick up on the symptoms early to avoid complications.

We hope Dolly-Ann is able to raise the required funds and Snoopy has a successful surgery. She is an inspiration to dog lovers around the world. She shares her story here: