A free puppy seemed like the perfect addition. She imagined easy days filled with puppy breath and play. The day she met her was full of promise.
In the beginning, everything went as expected: running in the yard, living room couch naps, laughter.
But somewhere between week eight and week eighteen, things shifted. Visits to the vet in Kansas became regular, questions piled up, and the cost soared.
She found herself in the waiting room more than she had ever planned, and the receipts made her stomach drop.
It wasn’t a minor surprise; it was a reality she could not ignore. In the end, she learned that sometimes “free” comes with a cost no one mentions.
It Wasn’t So ‘Free’
When Kayleigh first took in a ‘free’ puppy, she thought that she had hit the jackpot. Getting a dog can be a bit expensive sometimes, so this was good for her.
The pup’s name was Athena, and she was a shepsky mix, half Husky, and half German Shepherd. Kayleigh fell in love with her immediately.
The first few weeks of living with Athena were amazing. She was the most adorable and outgoing pup. They got along great.
However, their fortunes would change because Athena somehow ripped her cornea out when she panicked after hearing fireworks.
The eye injury required many vet visits in Kansas, and a lot of money. If you thought that was it, the vets also spotted some changes to her pup’s ear and some weird spots.
By the time she was 18 weeks old, she had changed dramatically, and not necessarily for the better.
She had stitches, ER trips, shots, and sedation. All of that cost $5,000, which was an insane amount of money. Nevertheless, she’s fine now and hasn’t been to a vet in a while.
Reactions From TikTok
After Athena’s story was uploaded to TikTok, the community had quite a few things to say, and some people even related to this woman’s problem because many of them had the same thing happen.
One person commented: “My $400 mal/GSD that cost me 7k in vet bills when she got parvo from dog daycare.”
Yeah, I had a feeling we would come across someone who also had the same problem, and this just shows how universal some of these problems are.
Another person said: “My $400 mal/GSD that cost me 7k in vet bills when she got parvo from dog daycare.”
Well, it’s good to see that someone actually didn’t have to go through so many hoops and expensive vet visits.
Lastly, somebody commented: “Wdym ripped her cornea out?!! That is so scary.”
Well, even the owner is not sure since she was at work, but best guess was that she heard fireworks and rushed out of her kennel and somehow injured herself when getting out of it.
Nevertheless, everything turned out fine and Athena has mostly healed up. Kayleigh noted that she was worth every penny and she regrets nothing. That is just amazing to see.