Help Rusty see!

I have a story to tell and a favor to ask!

This little doggie right here is Rusty, my roommate's half-Yorkie half-Pomeranian rescue. He's almost eleven, we believe, and C. rescued him when he was about five years old.

We don't know much about Rusty's first five years, but we do know that they were unhappy, neglected, and likely abusive. His skin was so badly inflamed that all of his hair fell out (so he has an excellent wardrobe of doggie shirts and sweaters), he only has six teeth, he is very, very nervous around strangers (especially men) and doesn't like to be petted by people he doesn't fully trust, and he is very protective of his mom. She's completely devoted to him and he's completely in love with her -- he knows that she saved him.

I came in as her roommate because I was the one that Rusty liked best. And I am extremely fond of the little guy, even if he's still not sure about me. We're still working on it; he's definitely warming up, and I know that it takes time. He's the one in charge of our relationship, and I'm following his lead.

In addition to everything else, Rusty also has cataracts that need expensive surgery within the next week and a half or so -- we found out on Wednesday. The vet says he's still in good health, and so it's time to move quickly to save his sight. It's scary as a little dog to not be able to see, especially one who has such big trust and stranger issues.

So I want to help Rusty and C. out with some of the costs for the surgery, since they took such a big chance on me and welcomed me into their home. Therefore, I'm hoping to have a fundraising giveaway where you, the readers, can enter to win neat prizes by both standard giveaway rules (commenting on the giveaway post) and by donating to Rusty's fund for extra entries.

I'm trying to pull some strings and make some things happen, but I'd love to have your help here too -- if you're an Etsy or indie seller and you'd like to participate, please let me know! I'd love to have your shop and your goods featured here at PeriodicStyle to help Rusty and C., so if you're interested, please email me at periodicstyle at gmail dot com by 3 pm Pacific tomorrow, Tuesday the 20th if you'd like to help out.

If you'd like to know more about C. and Rusty, please visit her doggie-cake baking site (so! cute!) at Caroline's Barkery.

Again, if you're interested in contributing as a giveaway prize donor, the deadline to email periodicstyle at gmail dot com is 3 pm Pacific tomorrow, Tuesday the 20th.

Thank you so much, everyone, and hopefully all of this will come together in the next few days, so I will keep you posted!

image from c's facebook