A COUPLE from Launceston are appealing for donations to pay for their beloved dog to receive an operation that could save his life.

Chibbs, a two-year-old beagle, lives with his owners Melissa and Jamie Thomas, their baby daughter and another dog. Twenty-one-year-old Melissa and 24-year-old Jamie bought Chibbs in October 2015, aged eight weeks. It was a trip to the vets to have a lump removed on his shoulder that signalled some concern, when the vet commented on how Chibbs was walking. Melissa and Jamie agreed to an X-ray on Chibbs when they noticed that he began lying down during his walks.

The X-ray found that Chibbs was living with a rare disorder called hip dysplasia, causing an abnormal formation of the hip socket, and the couple were told that Chibbs would need new hips, but not until he was around six-years-old.

However, over time, Melissa and Jamie could tell that Chibbs was suffering with more pain, and would not be interested in his walks. He is now struggling to walk and is incontinent, and takes painkillers every eight hours. This has pushed the need for an operation forward, and the couple rang their insurance company to find out what they could do, when they were told that the insurance would not be able to cover the costs due to the condition being a genetic disease. This meant that Melissa and Jamie would need to find around £10,000 to fund an operation on each hip themselves. Chibbs will need to be put to sleep if an operation cannot be funded, due to the pain he is living with.

Melissa and Jamie have recently welcomed their first child, Ava, into their home, and are currently in the process of buying their first house, so have put out an urgent appeal via Just Giving to fundraise around £5,000 for each hip operation. The operations will need to be carried out separately, due to longevity of the recovery process. Once they have fundraised for the first operation, they will begin their fundraising for the second.

Melissa said: “In a final hope to save Chibbs from being put to sleep, I’m trying to raise enough money for his operation. It’s a long shot and we will need a lot of help getting word out, but I can’t not try.”

Since fundraising, the couple has been told that if the dog has one operation, there is the chance that he will not need the other operation for a few years as long as he is living comfortably.

A Facebook page, Chibbs’ Journey, has been set up to update people on his situation. A fundraising walk at Cardinham Woods took place on Saturday, and the journey continues to save Chibbs. The couple are now £1,500 off their target for Chibbs’ first operation.

To donate, visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/savechibbs and to keep updated with how Chibbs is getting on, join the Facebook page Chibbs’ Journey.