"Currently, I own a blue merle named Chief. Last year, we were practicing “load up” which is get up onto the truck when asked. We worked on it and I was satisfied that he had got it down. He jumped off and ended up landing wrong. As I checked him out, I noticed his back leg was just dangling. I rushed him to the vet and that’s when I got the bad news. He had broken his leg in such a way that he was going to need rods and a plate to fix it. The surgery cost $4500. I had the option to amputate which would be about 1000. At the time, I had been laid off work and was barely getting by. I had no idea how I was going to pay. I barely had enough money to feed us. I cried and cried. 
As cliché as it sounds my grandpa told me to pray and my mom told me that Chief deserved to have his leg fixed. She lent me a credit card on the condition that I pay it back. I took him in the day before and paid the amount. It was scary to do so because I had no idea how I was ever going to pay it off. I shared my struggles with the vet techs, and they were so nice and understanding. Chief was there a total of 3 days to prep, do surgery, and then be monitored afterwards. On the final day I went to pick him up and was asked to sit in a room. As I waited, the head tech walked in and told me that she had some important news. That’s when she told me that an anonymous donor had paid for Chief’s entire surgery. The whole amount of $4,500.00. I was in shock and began crying. I said how could someone pay that much? She told me the donor had walked into the back room and they fell in love with Chief and decided that they wanted to help him.
I still can’t believe it. Someone who didn’t even know me or my dog gave him and I one of the greatest gifts that I had ever received and they wanted nothing in return, all because they loved Australian Shepherds. I couldn’t even properly thank them! This huge weight was lifted off my shoulders.
From that moment on, I decided that I was going to pay it forward. This person helped me more than they could ever know. I was struggling with depression, I felt like things were hopeless. It was hard to get out of bed, hard to get dressed, but Chief kept me going. He was my responsibility. He was my light in the darkness, the reason that I got out of bed each day. Not only did that person help Chief, but they helped me too. It’s been about a year and Chief is thriving. I found a full time job and am finally back on my feet. 
By fostering, I hope to achieve the same thing. I want to give a dog the chance to love and help someone. They may need them more than they even realize. I also hope to repay the kindness that was shown to me and maybe inspire someone else to do the same. 
I currently have my first foster by the name of Eden. It’s only been a few days, but I’m excited at the things she can achieve. She is a beautiful dog and I hope to find her a furever family that will love her unconditionally like the way that I love Chief".