TONIGHT. HOW ONE STRAY DOG IS RESCUING A FREMONT ANIMAL SHELTER. THANKS FOR JOINING US. I’M BILL SCHAMMERT FOREVER HOME IN FREMONT POSTED ON SOCIAL MEDIA FRIDAY NIGHT, ASKING FOR DONATIONS TO SUPPORT A SURGERY FOR A STRAY DOG BROUGHT TO THE SHELTER. NOW THEY’RE TALKING ONLY TO KETV NEWSWATCH SEVEN’S BETH CARLSON ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED NEXT. BETH. BILL, 18 MONTH OLD MARSHMALLOW WAS BROUGHT TO FOREVER HOME THURSDAY NIGHT, UNABLE TO WALK ON HER BACK LEG. THE SHELTER PRESIDENT POSTED ONLINE ASKING FOR DONATIONS FOR A $5,000 SURGERY TO REPAIR THAT BROKEN FEMUR. HER PRESIDENT, MARTHA BANG, TOLD ME THAT SHE COULD HAVE NEVER IMAGINED WHAT HAPPENED NEXT. READY? OH, OKAY. OKAY, WE WON’T HELP FROM THE COMMUNITY IS GETTING ONE STRAY DOG BACK ON ITS FEET. SHE’S GOT A CLEAN FEMUR BREAK, BUT IT WAS ALSO REALLY GOOD NEWS THAT HER PELVIS WAS NOT BROKEN. TWO FREMONT RESIDENTS BROUGHT MARSHMALLOW IN AFTER FINDING HER ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF TOWN. AFTER AN UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT TO FIND HER OWNER, FOREVER HOMES DIRECTOR MARTHA BANG BEGAN PLANS FOR SURGERY TO FIX HER LEG. THE PRICE, $5,000. WE SOMETIMES HAVE TROUBLE RAISING $800 OR $500. SO BANG PUT A POST ON SOCIAL MEDIA ASKING FOR COMMUNITY DONATIONS. WITH ONLY A FEW DAYS TO SPARE BEFORE THE SURGERY. ALL WE CAN DO IS TRY AND, YOU KNOW, AT THE END OF THE DAY, IF WE DIDN’T RAISE THOSE FUNDS, I WAS CONFIDENT THAT WE COULD RAISE THE FUNDS FOR THE AMPUTATION. AND NEARLY 48 HOURS LATER, THE DONATIONS KEPT RUNNING. YOU KNOW, COMING IN AND COMING IN AND COMING IN. AND AS OF TODAY, MIDDAY, WE WERE AT ABOUT $31,000. WE WERE JUST ASTOUNDED AT AT THE RESPONSE. PEG WAS WORKING SATURDAY WHEN HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE STOPPED BY WANTING TO LEND A HAND TO FIX ONE DOG’S LEG. NEVER IN THE EIGHT AND A HALF YEARS I’VE BEEN HERE HAVE WE EVER MADE THIS MUCH MONEY AND HAD THE RESPONSE THAT WE HAD. AND OF COURSE, I SHED A LOT OF TEARS BECAUSE I WAS SO HAPPY FOR IT. BANG ADDED THAT IT COULDN’T HAVE COME AT A BETTER TIME. WE ARE ALL ALWAYS FULL. THEY NEED TO COME IN FASTER THAN THEY’RE GOING OUT ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND RIGHT HERE IN FREMONT. SHELTERS ARE DEALING WITH OVERCROWDING IN A TIME WHEN BUDGETS ARE TIGHT. WE OPERATE ON A SHOESTRING BUDGET AND WE WORK PAYCHECK TO PAYCHECK. AND SO THE OUTPOURING OF SUPPORT IS COMPLETELY OVERWHELMING FOR US. MARSHMALLOW HAS RESCUED THIS SHELTER. SHE’S VERY SPECIAL GIRL FOR SURE. MARSHMALLOW SURGERY IS SCHEDULED FOR TOMORROW. SHE WILL NO LONGER NEED AMPUTATION. AND THEN FROM THERE, SHE’LL GO TO A FOSTER FAMILY FOR HER RECOVERY. FOREVER HOME’S DIRECTOR TOLD ME THAT THOSE DONATIONS WILL NOW GO TO SUPPORT MOR
'We were just astounded': Shelter raises $31,000 after asking for donations for one dog's surgery
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Updated: 2:31 PM CDT Aug 4, 2025
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Furever Home needed $5,000 to afford a surgery for a stray dog with a broken femur, so they took to social media.Two days after they made the post, the animal rescue in Fremont, Nebraska, received over $31,000 in donations."We sometimes have trouble raising $800 or $500. But all we can do is try and, at the end of the day, if we didn't raise those funds, I was confident that we could raise the funds for the amputation," Furever Home Executive Director Martha Bang said. "The donations kept running, coming in and coming in and coming in."Two Fremont residents said they found a stray dog near the freeway that was unable to walk, according to Bang. After an unsuccessful attempt to find the owners, the dog was nicknamed Marshmallow, and plans began for surgery."She's got a clean femur break. But it's also really good news that her pelvis was not broken," Bang said. Bang said the shelter does not have extra funds for emergency surgeries. She added that the shelter deals with overcrowding, which puts a strain on their resources."In the eight and a half years I've been here, have we ever made this much money and had the response that we had. And, of course, I shed a lot of tears because I was so happy for it," Furever Home board member Peg Gaudreau said. Marshmallow's surgery is scheduled for Monday, and from there, she will go to a foster family for her recovery. The money raised will now go to help other emergency surgeries for rescue dogs. Fremont is around 42 miles outside of Omaha.
FREMONT, Neb. — Furever Home needed $5,000 to afford a surgery for a stray dog with a broken femur, so they took to social media.
Two days after they made the post, the animal rescue in Fremont, Nebraska, received over $31,000 in donations.
"We sometimes have trouble raising $800 or $500. But all we can do is try and, at the end of the day, if we didn't raise those funds, I was confident that we could raise the funds for the amputation," Furever Home Executive Director Martha Bang said. "The donations kept running, coming in and coming in and coming in."
Two Fremont residents said they found a stray dog near the freeway that was unable to walk, according to Bang. After an unsuccessful attempt to find the owners, the dog was nicknamed Marshmallow, and plans began for surgery.
"She's got a clean femur break. But it's also really good news that her pelvis was not broken," Bang said.
Bang said the shelter does not have extra funds for emergency surgeries. She added that the shelter deals with overcrowding, which puts a strain on their resources.
"In the eight and a half years I've been here, have we ever made this much money and had the response that we had. And, of course, I shed a lot of tears because I was so happy for it," Furever Home board member Peg Gaudreau said.
Marshmallow's surgery is scheduled for Monday, and from there, she will go to a foster family for her recovery. The money raised will now go to help other emergency surgeries for rescue dogs.
Fremont is around 42 miles outside of Omaha.
