Cancer-stricken dog saved by generosity of Irish Guide Dogs

A Co Kerry student’s guide dog is to undergo surgery in an attempt to help the animal to overcome cancer after an offer of financial support from a charity.

Patsy, a six-year-old golden retriever, who assists UCC arts student Dara O’Cinneide, was expected to die within two or three months without surgical intervention.

Mr O’Cinneide, who is from Tralee, told Cork’s 96FM he had not purchased pet insurance and did not have the money to cover the surgery, which is expected to costs thousands of euro.

“I, through procrastination, never got any pet insurance. And the vet bills have been stacking up. I just panicked as she needs the operation next week. I have the dog five years. She is my world. The vets say she needs the surgery next week. Without it she won’t see Christmas,” he said.

“The surgery, all going well, will give her another few years. I put pet insurance on the long finger because she was young and I thought she was invincible. Then she was over five and most places don’t take insurance after five years old.”

Mr O’Cinneide had been “penny pinching” to pay Patsy’s vet bills and set up a Go Fund Me page last week in order to highlight the situation. He said Patsy has changed his life in “unimaginable” ways.

“She is gentle, moody, stubborn and most importantly my best friend and world. She has changed my life in ways unimaginable.”

David McCarthy, of the the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind (IGDB), contacted Mr O’Cinneide to tell him that there was no need for him to be out of pocket.

“We have hundreds of owners of guide dogs across the country and a lot of them would be in Dara’s situation and wouldn’t have insurance for one reason or another,” he said. “[PET] insurance is no different to health insurance, it can be the first thing to go when things get tight.”

Mr McCarthy said that the organisation would never see a guide dog owner “stuck”.

“What we do usually with our owners is we work out a deal where a guide dog owner can fund some of the cost of the treatment. But if they can’t fund any of the costs then Irish Guide Dogs would look after the cost of that,” he said.

“The good news here is that Patsy is going to be looked after.”