Country singer Carrie Underwood has a soft spot for animals, so when the opportunity presented itself for her to help out an ailing police dog, she did not hesitate.
Underwood donated a signed guitar to help save the life of Kevin Branscum's partner, a K-9 narcotics detection dog named Gino. Both of them are members of the McIntosh County Sheriff's Department, the Muskogee Phoenix reported.
Branscum and Gino the German shepherd have been with the team since 2012, so they were all devastated to find out that he contracted heartworms because of a mosquito.
"We went to the vet to treat an ear hematoma Gino had," Branscum said. "We scheduled surgery to drain the blood out. They were prepping for surgery and the plan was to put him to sleep and clean his teeth. Before putting him to sleep they had to do some blood work."
The blood work sadly revealed Gino's sickness, which requires very expensive treatment.
"We've been going to vets for months, and we'll be done with treatment in May," Branscum shared. "Treatment includes pills and injections. We started a pill which he has to take for 30 days, and he has 120 pills to take. March 9 he starts injections. There's three altogether. Once he's done, they will run test."
The total cost for the heartworm procedure is almost $2,000, and each vet visit for Gino is $100. Branscum revealed that medical expenses for Gino have already totalled $4,000 since December. And because Gino is privately owned, the sheriff's department cannot help with Gino's mounting medical bills.
The community, however, heard of Gino's story and kind hearted individuals have pledged to help. Animal rescuer Bernita Rittenhouse relayed the news to Underwood, who donated two autographed guitars - one for Gino and another for the Eufaula Fire Department.
Underwood's donation really touched the heart of Branscum, and he is hopeful that the guitar will be able to support Gino's medical bills.
"I'm grateful," he said." There's really no words for it. It's awesome. Being that she's from around here makes it even that much more special. I was definitely surprised."
