Misty is a 8-month-old Bernese Mountain Dog in Kenosha, WI, who needs $2,000 for Balloon Valvuloplasty.

I have always had big dogs growing up. While I was living on my own, I was REALLY missing a dog in my life. I decided to start looking into getting a dog when my boyfriend & I bought a house with a big back yard. I thought, "go big or go home" and wanted a Bernese Mountain Dog. After researching we found Misty through an in-state breeder. We were informed of her heart murmur Grade 1 at that time.

Misty's exercise is limited, so we take very short & minimal walks to the car and in a store. When she has had enough walking, she will sit down and not move. She loves to snuggle with us, meets us at the door after work and loves watching TV (current fav: The Secret Life of Pets). She still gets the zoomies and goes after her stuffie "Sandy the Snake" as if it were real.

MIsty has a big personality! Her favorite toys are "Sandy the Snake", "Honkers the Hog" and Stitch. She pulls these out of her toy bin to play with them. She LOVES to play in snow. Misty also likes hanging out with her cousins & learning from their bad behavior and a cuddler with all her grand-maws and Paw-paws.

Her Grade 1 heart murmur, quickly became a 5-6 & she was diagnosed with pulmonary stenosis. She underwent an emergency surgery that cost around $10,000 for stent placement. Misty has now outgrown the stent & has been having symptoms of going back into heart failure. Scheduled for a balloon valvuloplasty w/multiple balloons to try to extend the stent. If it fractures, a new stent is needed.

The first surgery cost approx $10,000 with 8 medications needed after surgery. This surgery's estimate $10,000-$12,000. Luckily the hospital is only charging "cost price" for the balloons and the human cardiologist is donating his time and a stent incase they need to use it.