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Free Animal Doctor
Animal Story
He carried it for a year. Now it’s gone.
Sammy Wolf — 14 years old, and stoic about all of it.
Sammy is a 14-year-old Pitbull and Lab mix with a growth that hung from his mouth. Shannon first noticed it about a year ago, when it was small. Then, over a few months, it grew fast.
She found him 13 years ago, running loose on 39th Street in Kansas City, and chased him down until he was safe. Nobody came forward to claim him — so Sammy became hers. She calls him sweet and stoic: always serious, always steady.
The barrier was money. Shannon sells vintage clothing at shows, so her income isn’t steady — and she’s been caring for her boyfriend Mark through a stroke, a heart attack, and repeated hospital stays. 40 donors closed that gap.
funded — $1,457 from 40 donors, paid directly to his veterinarian. 💙
Sammy went in for surgery at Blue Ridge Plaza Animal Clinic in Missouri, with Dr. Tarantino. Once he was under anesthesia, the team could see the full size of what Sammy had been carrying around.
Heads up — surgical photos ahead. Prepped and ready for removal.
Dr. Tarantino removed the mass cleanly — and while Sammy was already under, took care of several smaller tumors on his legs at the same time. One anesthesia, one recovery, everything handled.
Out, in one piece. That’s what he’d been carrying on his chin.
The smaller growths from his legs, handled in the same visit.
Closing him up, still under anesthesia.
And here he is on the other side of it — stitched, sore, and finally free of the weight on his face.
Post-surgery: tumor gone, stitches in, and a whole lot lighter.
Dr. Tarantino and the team at Blue Ridge Plaza Animal Clinic take on cases like Sammy’s — where the owner simply can’t afford the care. We’ve worked with them many times, and it’s always the same story: excellent medicine, and real compassion for the families behind the animals.
Every dollar was held by FAD and paid straight to the clinic — never to the owner. Here’s the invoice, if you’d like to see exactly where it went.
Sammy’s invoice, paid directly to the clinic. View full size →
Fourteen years old, and this sweet stoic dog gets to spend the rest of them comfortable. That happened because 40 people decided a senior dog they’d never met was worth it — and because a clinic in Missouri said yes.