Couple Uses Wedding Fund to Pay for Surgery on Injured Dog Found on Side of Road: ‘She Deserved a Chance’

An Arkansas couple has given up their wedding fund to help an injured dog in need.

Dylan McCay and his fiancé Emily Roberts revealed they used the money to pay for reconstructive surgery on a Goldendoodle they found seriously injured and abandoned by the side of a road, according to a post shared by the couple on Facebook on Nov. 2.

This came after they had read an earlier Facebook post about the injured dog on Oct. 31. In response, McCay drove 20 minutes to the dog’s location where he found it had been “struck by a vehicle in a hit and run.”

“It had been raining all day and she was wet. I gathered towels and blankets and sped to the location,” they wrote about the Goldendoodle, which they have since named Acklin. “Her back legs were both covered in blood and appeared broken… She was shivering and coughing.”

McCay took Acklin to Greenbrier Animal Hospital to be treated for her injuries, per KATV.

While there she was discovered to have fractured the femurs in both of her hind legs. Vets were also concerned Acklin could catch an infection from being left out in the rain, according to the couple’s post on Facebook.

As the dog was not microchipped, no owner was listed as responsible for the pooch — leaving the financial responsibility on the couple. “[We] decided in that moment that I would do whatever was necessary to help this puppy. She deserved a chance at life,” they wrote on Facebook.

The dog’s injuries required extensive reconstructive surgery on her legs, costing between $10,000 to $15,000, according to McCay and Roberts, which they agreed to pay for using all the money they could scrape together.

“We have pulled the money from our wedding fund and our overall life savings to fund these medical expenses,” the pair wrote. “That being said, we are joyous and excited at the possibility of saving this wonderful girl and giving her the best life she could imagine.”

The couple added that they hope to care for the dog “long term” and have created a GoFundMe to help raise funds for Acklin’s care.

In an update posted on Nov. 5, McCay and Roberts shared that Acklin’s surgery was successful and that they are now focused on raising money for her rehabilitation costs, which she is due to start soon.

“Our sweet girl is able to get this much-deserved help because of all of you,” they wrote. “Her rehabilitation and therapy will be expensive, but we are working as hard as we can for our sweet girl.”