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Miranda Lambert Launches Fund to Help Cover Pets' Vet Bills During Coronavirus Pandemic

Jamie Wright

Miranda Lambert is stepping in to help pets impacted by the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The "Bluebird" singer has teamed up with the Waggle Foundation to establish the MuttNation Fund, which will help music industry employees cover their pets’ medical bills.

Lambert was inspired to launch the charity effort after her backup singer and close friend (and Voice alum) Gwen Sebastian's dog Earl fell ill in March as coronavirus infections began to spike in the United States. Due to the pandemic, Lambert had to postpone the remaining stops of her Wildcard tour.

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Earl was diagnosed with a rare liver disorder — a condition that brought with it several hospital stays and relapses, and medical treatments he'll need for the rest of his life.

Gwen Sebastian

"It was such an unexpected major expense at an already tough time," Lambert, 36, said in a press release. "So, it got me thinking that there must be a lot more people whose careers in the music industry have been on pause due to lack of live performance opportunities, and who are struggling with their pets' vet bills."

She continued: "Because music and mutts are my two passions, I knew I had to do something and thought that starting this fund would help both the music community that’s been so supportive of me, and their pets."

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Lambert's love for dogs is apparent in both her personal and professional life: she’s a doting mom to nine pups and created the non-profit MuttNation Foundation in 2009 with her mom, Bev, to support animal rescues throughout the country, among other pet-related initiatives.

The application for the fund is open to anyone in the music community who has a dog or cat with medical needs and whose life has been impacted by the pandemic. All of the money is donated via Waggle, an animal-focused, online crowdsourcing platform, and will go directly to the dog or cat's vet.

MuttNation is kicking off the fund with a matching grant donation, but anyone can donate to this effort. The fund relies on donations from "caring people who are moved to help after reading the stories about the pet in need on the page," according to the press release.

If extra funds are raised for any pet, the excess will roll over into the MuttNation Fund to help more animals in need.