Mobility Service dog Fundraser

Hi there!

My name Is Ruby Bard. I'm a 26 -year-old Disabled Artist who is trying to fund the acquisition and training of a Mobility Service dog to help me in my day-to tasks as an ambulatory wheelchair user. We plan to name them Guaranteed Income but call them "Garry". I am trying to fund it via saving up $500 a month via Commissions and Art Print sales. I can draw anything from pet portraits to character designs to graphic design to anthro to map design and almost anything in between. To see my work, please visit rubybard.art for examples and email ruby@pellant.com for any inquiries.

Donations are appreciated but not expected, those can be sent to my PayPal or my Coffee. We do not have a go fund me as that company takes a percentage of your donations larger than these two methods so more of your money goes twards the cause!

Paypal

Buy Me a Coffee

*Update* MAY 19th 2025: We have raised $3000! We have reached the pups adoption fee and put down a deposit! We are only $1000 away from our minimum goal and $2000 away from our main goal!

Commission Rates

Digital Price (Traditional Medium Price)

Head Shot or Bust - From the shoulders up - $25 ($35)

Half Body - From the Waist up - $40 ($50)

Full Body - Head to toe - $60 ($80)

Additions

Background - Something other than abstract colors as the background of your piece - +$15 (+$25)

Additional Figure - An extra figure in your piece - +$20

Use of Metallic/Holographic Watercolors (traditional piece only) - Add an extra bit of sparkle to your artwork - +$5

Email: ruby@pellant.com Or text: 651 888 0884

FAQ

Who

Hi, my name is Ruby Bard. I am the artist fundraising for the mobility service dog. I need a mobility service dog due to the degenerative nature of my condition and my high rate of injury doing everyday tasks. I suffer from Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Hypo-tension (POTS), and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS). POTS Means I'm likely to get dizzy and lose balance or pass out because my blood pressure tanks when I try to stand or get up. EDS causes joint degeneration, increased injuries, and healing time because my connective tissue is very poorly structured. I often hurt myself, and it takes at least twice as long to heal. I can hurt myself doing anything, but I mostly hurt myself by bending down to get stuff or trying to get up from a sitting position. Little improvement has come with almost a year of physical therapy, so we're taking the next step forward and trying to prevent injury before it happens by training a service dog. I currently have a 6lb toy poodle who does psychiatric (Complex PTSD and Autism) and cardiac alert (POTS) whose skull is smaller than my phone, so she is unable to do any mobility tasks like grabbing things I drop or getting me things or carrying my emergency medications. Tho she is amazing at medical alert, we are in need of something to make me moving around both in and out of the house safer. I am in a wheelchair during the summer months if I leave my house and am in the chair about 60% to 40% the rest of the year. I have been approved for an Adaptable Manual/Motor Wheelchair, which I will be assessed for in March 2025. My husband and I both believe that a mobility service dog trained in retrieval tasks will make my independence safer.

Uni and I at pride this summer in my wheelchair

What

We will be getting a Male Labrador Retriever from a line of English/Show Labrador Line. In this line, there are lots of therapy and Canine Good Citizen titled dogs. Our trainer is also a former Assistance Dog International trainer who worked with this breeder in the past. Both my therapist and my trainer have agreed this is the best move for me as my mobility has greatly decreased in the last three years, even with physical therapy. I have an excellent team to work with, as well as lots of skill-training dogs, including poodles, who tend to be more opinionated than labs, so I feel I will be more than able to do the training and care.

UPDATE May 1st 2025: My breeder friend called me early in the morning to inform me that her girl Daisy is pregnant with at least eight babies! She's a Yellow Lab bred to a male Yellow Lab named Stone. Both have clear health records and good confirmation. She is due May 25th, so we will know if we have any males by the end of the month! If we find our Gary in this litter, he will be coming home July.

UPDATE May 252025: THE PUPS WERE BORN! 2 Girls 6 Boys! We have a great chance of finding our Gary who will be ready to come home July 20th.

All fundraising will go toward the purchase and training of the dog.

When

We are looking at the litter being born sometime next spring. I am looking to save up at least $500 a month for the next five months. We need to save up $3000 for the adoption fee, $1000 for training and $500 for vet care. An additional $500 will be saved for gear necessary to the dogs job. This should cover most of the fees for the first year of the dog's life, and the rest will be much longer term, so my husband and I will be able to budget more reasonably past that. My husband will be able to finish his Master's this semester and work full-time after that. The dog will need to train for at least two years (and the closing of the growth plaits), so the dog (who we plan to name Guaranteed Income and nickname Garry) wouldn't even be fully able to work till 2027. That Is why we are starting now.

I have Saved up $3500 sofar, We need about $500-800 more to reach our goal!

Why

I, unfortunately, can not see my mobility getting better as I age. EDS is a disease that gets worse as you get older and the more you injure yourself. I struggle to safely move around my house, let alone in public, and am always using my mobility aids (a cane and a wheelchair) when I go out to be able to do things safely. I have a psychiatric and cardiac alert dog named Universal Healthcare (we call her Uni), but she is a 6lb toy poodle and is too small to be able to lift my cellphone, and at less than 12 inches tall, she can not hand it to me at a reasonable height. She's more likely to get hurt by me dropping something than be able to hand it to me. Poor thing has to go running away if I drop my cane to make sure she doesn't get hurt. When we got her, we just thought she would work psychiatric alerts; we had no idea how sick I actually was. I am also left alone a lot more thanks to my husband finding a really good fit for a job, but that means I'm not able to ask him for help as much. I want to be more independent, and I know that a mobility service dog is a perfect fit for that.

How

We are trying to raise about $5000 total. $3000 in the next 5 months. I need to save about $500 a month to pay for the Adoption fee of $3000, as Garry will be coming from a line that is specifically tested and cleared—the additional $2000, will be broken into $1000 for training (STAR Puppy, Beginners Obedience, Advanced Obedience and CGC/UCGC) and $500 for vet care. With $500 remaining for gear and home care supplies.
I will do as much work as possible to make up that amount; we only started allowing donations after I was unable to save enough for my February goals. But I still prefer work for Artwork Commissions, Knitting/Crochet Commissions, and Print Sales.

I have Saved up $3500 sofar, We need about $500-800 more to reach our goal!

My gallery of work can be found HERE

Feel free to email me at: ruby@pellant.com

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