A couple have been given the devastating news their puppy needs a life-saving operation just two days after buying her.
Raf Cieslicki and his partner Daria Cieslicka who live in Southport bought a cockapoo puppy just three weeks ago but are now having to raise £3,000 to save her life. Bella, who's just 11 weeks old, was diagnosed with patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), a hole in an artery that fails to close after birth and can be fatal if left untreated, two days after she was bought.
Due to the condition being undiagnosed, the vet requested the dog go under the knife within a week for her to have any chance of survival. As a result, the couple must fork out £3,000 to save Bella's life.
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Having found the advert online for Bella, the couple, originally from Poland, were reassured that the puppy had undergone standard health checks. Two days after collecting Bella they then took her to the vets for a check-up where they were told the devastating news that she would need an urgent operation.
Daria, 31, told the ECHO : "Three weeks ago, on February 28, we bought the dog off this private seller. We were told she's had health checks and that she was brilliant so we believed them and bought her. After two days we took her to the vet who checked her.
"She said she needed a scan. So we booked the scan for the following week and the scan found that she had PDA which means she has a hole in an artery.
"She now needs an operation to close the hole. After this, we hope she'll be fine but we can't get anyone to insure her because she has a pre-existing health condition.
"When we rang the seller and they denied selling her to us. After we said they did, the person just said it was their dad and that he would ring us.
"Since then we haven't heard from them and they won't answer the phone. We were hoping they would pay for the operation because if we gave her back they would probably kill her since she wouldn't earn them any money."
If the family don't manage to raise the money, they plan on taking out a loan to fund the operation. Daria also explained that since they got Bella, their 5-year-old daughter, Kornelia, has fallen in love with her.
She said: "We've only had her three weeks but we love her. We also have a five-year-old and she said to me 'mum, please don't give her to the angels. I'll give you all my money out of my piggy bank'. She is melting my heart."
Bella is set to have her operation on Thursday, March 24. For more information or to donate, click here.
