Sukii - Hair lip surgery and top jaw reconstruction

Sukii was the 10th puppy in the litter, born at 10pm on the 10/10/2007.
(I kid you not).
The following morning of her birth, by a blessing in disguise my mother fell ill and decided not to go to work that day.
When she got out of bed she noticed that a puppy was rejected from the litter. Upon picking her up, she was almost ice cold.
Being sick she took the puppy back to bed where it was warm. This action alone made the puppy more active and alert.
Mum called me, as she noticed that something was wrong with her nose.
Coming off a night shift, I called in to my parents and had a look at the puppy.
Noticing her nose wasn't quite right, I decided to take her to the vets.
The vet immediately dismissed her life and said she had a cleft palate and needed to be put down.
I questioned the vet what this meant (never having heard it before), to which he explained.
I inquired if there was a possibility to fix it and he said yes, but expensive.
Without hesitation, I said I'd take that path. This puppy, less than 12 hrs old had already stolen my heart.
Reluctantly the vet gave me puppy formula and feeding bottle and teet as she cannot suckle her mums.
Over the next 6 weeks, after getting up every three hours to feed her in the initial stages, Sukii's personality started to shine.
She assumed that I was 'mum'. In comparison to her 9 other siblings, she was the first puppy to start eating dry food. A feat the vet said she'd struggle with. She lapped from the bowl her water. A feat the vet said she would struggle with.
By 6 months old, Sukii and I grew very attached. She became the most loyal companion any person could ever ask for. But it was time to visit the specialist! Sukii's fate remained in the hands of a specialist in the nation's capital city, Canberra.
As only 1 of 5 specialists in all Australia at the time, we took the long drive.
After consultation with her specialist we received both good news and bad news.
Good news. Sukii did not have a cleft palate and only had a hair lip (google the difference, gosh knows I did). With this difference she is able to eat and drink, reasonably normal and minimal risk of infection.
Bad news. Sukii had lupus. As she has a pink nose this meant that the other side of her nose would deteriorate and eventually she would need a reconstruction and plastic surgery, stating approx 5-6 yrs time.
Fast forwarding 8 magnificent years with my best friend, I feel that time has come.
She has had cream rubbed on her nose daily ( to which she hates everyday and try's to rub off) which has assisted in the extended time frame.
Naturally, my first concern, which always has been, is she in pain??
The area is sensitive and if bumped hard enough it will bleed which in turn could be painful but on a whole, no. Not yet. It has deteriorated her nose a bit but not at a level where the vet is concerned with pain being an issue.
(ps: we changed vets almost after the specialist. Wasn't happy with the initial vet).
Both Sukii and I are now residents of the capital. Moving here to be closer to her facilities.
Her estimated costs for surgery is approximately $15,000.
Should the bill be less than this, all extra funds will be donated to the ACT Rescue and Foster group which rescues pets and finds them forever homes.