About the Campaign
Chief is a 7-year-old male American Pitbull with a tumor under the skin on his chest. It is about the size of a golf ball or larger, and a new growth has started coming out of it. His vet says it needs to be surgically removed and the tissue sent for testing.
Thalia first noticed the lump about a year ago. Her regular vet told her to monitor it and not to worry unless it got bigger. Last month it did. When she called back, that vet wanted to start with a cytology, a needle sample of the cells, but did not want to remove it. That did not make sense to Thalia for a mass that was clearly changing, so she took Chief to a second vet. That vet recommended removing the whole thing and testing it afterward, since it has to come out either way. That is the plan now, and Thalia got the estimate yesterday.
Chief came from a friend of Thalia’s whose dogs had puppies. When she went to see the litter, Chief was the only puppy that followed her around, so he was the one who came home. He was three months old, and he has been part of the family ever since.
The kids love to dress chief up!
The cost is the barrier. Thalia is a stay-at-home mom with three kids and a fourth on the way, and she homeschools her older girls. Her husband works in construction, and that is the household’s only income. She has a few hundred dollars to put toward Chief’s surgery, but nowhere near the full amount.
The vet cannot know exactly what the mass is until it is removed and tested, and the goal is to get it off Chief’s chest before it grows any further. Donations will help cover his exam, bloodwork, anesthesia, surgery to remove the tumor, biopsy of the tissue, pain medication, and follow-up care. All donations are paid only to the veterinarian.
