On a good day, Manila likes to carry things around the house, usually a bone and sometimes a pair of plastic sunglasses. She play-fights, follows her family from room to room, gives kisses freely and settles in whenever there is an opportunity to snuggle.
“She’s so, so sweet,” her owner, Kaitlin , told The Fetch. “Her personality shines.”
Those moments matter because Manila’s puppyhood has looked very different from the puppyhood her family expected. Before Manila, Kaitlin says her family had spent about three months trying to adopt another dog named Waffles. They had already grown attached when they were told Waffles would not be coming home with them. “It crushed us,” Kaitlin says.
After that experience, the family began looking again and eventually found Manila, who Kaitlin says was sold to them as a French Bulldog. Questions about whether that was the full story would come later. Almost immediately, something much more urgent took over: why was this puppy struggling so much?
The questions started early
Manila came home with hookworms and anemia, according to Kaitlin, along with significant hair loss and skin problems. She also struggled with something as basic as drinking water, and Kaitlin says she had to give it to her by syringe while they began trying to understand what was happening.
What initially looked like a difficult start quickly became something much bigger. Veterinary appointments kept coming, and instead of finding one problem with one clear solution, Manila’s family found themselves dealing with several things at once.
Manila during her first months. Photos courtesy of Kaitlin .
What they know so far
One diagnosis led to another
Manila has since been diagnosed with brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome, or BOAS. At her September 24 veterinary visit, the condition was classified as severe, with episodes of apnea. Kaitlin has also said Manila has entropion affecting her eyes.
The same visit brought more answers about her skin. Manila’s veterinary record lists bacterial and yeast-related skin infections, severe cutaneous mucinosis and inflammation affecting her facial and tail folds. BOAS adds another layer: in flat-faced dogs, narrowed airways can make breathing, sleeping and exercise significantly harder.
For Manila, those problems show up in very ordinary parts of puppy life. Kaitlin says even short bursts of play can leave her exhausted for the rest of the day, while sleeping can be especially difficult because Manila sometimes struggles for breath or chokes in her sleep. Even now, she estimates that Manila spends around 80% of the day asleep.
Even now, Kaitlin says Manila spends much of her day asleep.
What surgery could give her
Manila’s next major step is BOAS surgery. Kaitlin says she has been quoted roughly $5,000 to $7,000 for the procedure alone, before follow-up care, and that insurance will not cover it because Manila’s condition is considered pre-existing.
With apnea now documented in Manila’s veterinary record, the reason for surgery has become even harder to ignore. But when Kaitlin talks about what she hopes it will change, the goal is strikingly ordinary: she wants Manila to breathe more comfortably and have enough stamina for the things most puppies take for granted — playing, eating, drinking and sleeping without her airway working against her.
“The surgery will allow her to breathe and be able to have the energy to be a puppy.”
— Kaitlin
Another unanswered question
Then came questions about Manila’s ancestry
As Manila grew and the medical questions mounted, Kaitlin began wondering whether French Bulldog was the full story. She suspects Manila may also have Shar-Pei and English Bulldog ancestry, but the family is waiting on an Embark DNA test before treating any mix as confirmed.
The result won’t explain every condition, but it may provide useful context. Mixed-breed dogs can still inherit health risks through their family lines, so for Manila’s family, the DNA test is one more clue in understanding the bigger picture.
The puppy beyond the appointments
The medical side of Manila’s story can easily take over the conversation. But when she feels well enough, there are glimpses of the puppy her family is fighting for: curious, affectionate and eager to be part of whatever everyone else is doing.
On her good days, Manila’s personality comes out in full. Photos courtesy of Kaitlin.
She is affectionate, very chill and happiest close to her people. On the harder days, Kaitlin says the itching can become intense enough that Manila scratches until she bleeds, cries and sleeps even more than usual.
Those two versions of a day can exist side by side right now. Manila is still sick, but she is also still very much a puppy, and the moments when she has enough energy to act like one have become a glimpse of what her family hopes surgery and continued treatment can give her more often.
Still in the middle of her story
Manila’s story does not have a neat before-and-after yet. Her family is still navigating specialist care, severe airway disease, ongoing skin treatment, unanswered questions about her background and a surgery they hope could substantially change her everyday life.
What they already know is how much of Manila is waiting underneath all of that — a sweet, curious puppy who wants to be part of whatever her family is doing.
There are still answers Manila’s family is waiting for. What they are fighting for is much simpler: more days when she can breathe comfortably, play, rest and feel like herself.
Just Manila, enjoying the sunshine. Photo courtesy of Kaitlin .
Follow Manila’s story
Keep up with Manila on TikTok.
Want to help Manila?
Kaitlin is raising funds for Manila’s BOAS surgery and ongoing medical care.
Visit Manila’s GoFundMe →Medical context: Royal Veterinary College on brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome, and UC Davis on inherited disorders in purebred and mixed-breed dogs.
