Bride-to-be cancels $2,000 wedding dress to pay for shelter puppy's hip surgery

A bride-to-be in Virginia had just found the wedding dress she loved, priced at about $2,000 — then she saw a rescue group's appeal to fund hip surgery for Serafina, a shelter puppy in North Carolina, and decided to give up the dress and pay for the surgery instead. The heartwarming story, first published last month, is trending online again.

Puppy narrowly escaped euthanasia, then faced a serious hip problem

Serafina arrived at a rural shelter as a puppy with her two siblings, and after spending too long there, all three ended up on the euthanasia list. STAB Rescue in North Carolina stepped in and brought the trio to safety. When rescuers took Serafina to a veterinarian, they found significant problems with her hips that would need surgery — an expensive procedure — so the group posted an appeal on social media.

The bride quietly paid the vet directly; the rescue only found out later

After seeing the appeal, the bride called her fiancé and told him she wanted to skip the dress and pay for the surgery. She did not contact the rescue group; using the veterinary estimate the group had shared publicly, she contacted the clinic directly and arranged payment. STAB Rescue only learned what had happened when the clinic called. Assistant director Alexis Ketover burst into tears when she heard. With the bill covered, Serafina's surgery is scheduled a few weeks from now; she is resting in foster care, and the rescue will look for a permanent home for her after she recovers.

(Photo above: Serafina; image source: STAB Rescue.)