FETCH Feature: Zoe (Companions in Crisis)

At FETCH a Cure, we encounter quite a few dogs and cats. Through our Companions in Crisis (CIC) and Pixie’s Pen Pals programs, we have helped hundreds of animals. What many people don’t think about, however, is that when an animal becomes a CIC Recipient or a Pen Pals participant, they become part of the FETCH a Cure family. That doesn’t end when they leave our programs. We have built a community in which families stay connected with us long after their original participation. We love seeing pictures of their new lives and keeping up with how they are doing, and we want to share that with everyone. So, we will be posting weekly FETCH Features about our animals. These will include Pen Pals dog alumni, past CIC recipients, and dogs that are currently up for adoption through the Pen Pals program.

Meet Zoe, a Companions in Crisis recipient!

Zoe, a pitbull mix, was adopted by her family back in December of 2011. On a routine trip to drop off food donations at their local animal control, the Petty family heard that Zoe, then 5 1/2 months old, was scheduled to be euthanized at 6 months. They knew immediately that she was their dog, and they rescued her.

Fast forward to 2018, and Zoe has been part of the family through the birth of two kids (including one born prematurely) and a big move from California to Richmond. The family describes her as friendly and social, and extremely patient with kids. When they noticed her limping, they thought she had sprained her leg, so they took her to the vet. Unfortunately, they discovered that Zoe had osteosarcoma. Without hesitation, they knew they wanted to fight. In the words of her mom, “We did not want to give up on Zoe. We had to save her again, just like we did 7 years ago.”

In order to remove the cancer, Zoe’s front right leg was amputated. With the help of FETCH a Cure, Zoe’s family put her through chemotherapy after the amputation to treat the affected areas. As a tripawd, Zoe has not lost any of her speed and love for life.

July 10, 2019

“Zoe celebrated her 8th birthday on July 10,” says her mom. “We couldn’t stop thinking that if it wasn’t for FETCH a Cure – this would not happen. She enjoyed being spoiled for the day with her favorite food and at the end of the day went to the store with her whole family to pick a special treat – doggy cookie.

“Zoe is now 8 months post-osteosarcoma diagnosis and amputation. She is doing well. We have recently learned that she has a single nodule on her lungs which may mean that the cancer has spread or we are dealing with another primary tumor, so we have started oral chemotherapy. She is asymptomatic and her quality of life is great. It seems like she doesn’t realize that she is sick or on only 3 legs. We hope we get to celebrate many more birthdays with Zoe and that she continues to live a happy life.”