Whether celebrating victories or navigating difficult moments, the Sanders family has never hesitated to rally around one another. Shilo Sanders continued that tradition by showing up for his mother, Pilar Sanders, during her dog Jax’s surgery. The former Colorado safety made his way to the hospital early in the morning just to be with his mother and sister.

“So I stayed up all night just for this little dog,” Shilo said on his YouTube channel on July 25. “I don’t even know what the surgery is all about. But y’all know I got to be a good guy and go show my moral support for this little dog at 6:00 a.m.”

“I really don’t think my mom and Shelomi might think that I’m actually going to make it there today. But I did tell them I’ll go. My mom lost one of her dogs a year ago or so, and I tried to look for a new dog on Mother’s Day, but I couldn’t find any good dogs. They were just peeing all over the place. So hopefully today she doesn’t lose another one. But that’s what I’m going there for because I’m good luck,” he added.

Pilar and Shelomi took their French Bulldog, Jax, to a veterinary clinic for an operation, and Shilo, being a dutiful son, came for moral support. While Shilo thought it might be a grave surgery, Pilar gave him the good news that it was just a precautionary surgery.

True to form, Shilo lightened the mood during the stressful wait by playfully cracking jokes with his mom. He even called the surgery a nose job for the dog, while Pilar had to explain that it was for his breathing. Shelomi also took part in the healthy banter, adding that Jax’s teeth and Shilo’s former teeth had a lot of similarity.

Pilar Sanders is an avid animal lover and treats them as family members, just like any other dog lover. She has four dogs that she cares for, and she takes their health very seriously after losing one last year. Jax is a French bulldog who is undergoing surgery, and then comes Apollo, who rules the household. Then there was Bella, whom Pilar often saw in her shoots, and who sadly passed away.

Pilar Sanders and her love for dogs

Pilar takes the responsibility of being a dog mom very seriously. She stopped buying packaged kibble for her fur babies and switched to raw food exclusively. She publicly advocated that fresh, whole foods would dramatically improve her dogs’ quality of life. Pilar has shared the recipe on her Instagram many times.

Her standard large-batch dog meals feature custom blends of raw lean ground beef, beef liver, kidney, whole sardines packed in water, leafy greens, roasted beets, sunflower seeds, and organic kelp. These are not made at random but are curated by the vets per NRC standards.

Pilar has also heavily advocated on Instagram about Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome (BOAS). By documenting Jax’s breathing struggles, she educates other owners of flat-faced breeds (like Frenchies and Pugs) on how to identify respiratory distress.