Rio (Lil’ PaPas) is a 10-year-old Long Hair Chihuahua in Loveland, CO, who needs $1,000 for testing and diagnosis.

Rio spent the first six years of his life in a cage as a breeder's dog. He then ended up in a shelter where he was adopted by somebody heavy on drugs who quickly couldn’t care for him and abandoned him. Then I finally found him. He now has a stable home and is spoiled rotten. He is almost never alone and has toys all over that we play with all the time .

Well it’s just me and him. But we play all the time, and if we’re not playing we are cuddling. He insists on being at my feet 24/7, and wants to be included in everything. He’s debarked, so he will grunt or snort to get my attention and if that doesn’t work he will start running around in circles and digging at my feet. He's so good I take him everywhere. Most people think he is a therapy dog.

I’m 26 years old and I am in recovery from mental health disorders and substance use. Rio has a collapsed trachea and possibly congenital heart failure but definitely a heart murmur. We are all each other has. I feel like I would die without him.

Rio has a heart murmur, possibly some stage of heart failure. He needs to see a heart specialist so we know what exactly is going on, how bad it is and what I need to do to help him. He’s been the biggest blessing of my whole life. He was the one thing that gave me hope enough to address my suicidal thoughts and get help. He saves me every day. He is all I have.

He’s like a little person! I can tell him to be quiet or explain to him that I’ll be right back. He always wants to play and he will bring his toy to my feet and drop it and pick it back up then drop it again until he’s acknowledged. He can play fetch, tug-of-war, and keep away. He doesn’t ever bark. Sometimes he gets bursts of energy and runs in circles.