Gordo

About the Campaign

Gordo is a 10-year-old male Yorkie with a mass under his chin that has grown to about the size of a golf ball, you can see it in the photo above. His vet at VCA Animal Hospital on Nellis Boulevard in Las Vegas wants to take a needle sample for cytology to find out what it is, and then remove it. His owner Alma borrowed money from family just to cover the $116 consultation there.

Alma first noticed the bump about five months ago while giving Gordo a bath. It was the size of a pimple, and it went away. She switched shampoos in case it was irritation. Then about three months ago it came back and kept growing, fast. A lump that disappears and returns larger is not a skin reaction, and at Gordo’s age and this size, it needs to come off and be tested.

In this photo you can see the size of the tumor through the window light:

Gordo has been with Alma his whole life, she got him as a puppy. She had worked as a receptionist at a medical clinic until but when she went on short-term disability, she ended up losing her job. She has been unemployed for eight months and is looking for work. She lives with her mother, who helps her, and gets by on Medicaid and weekly trips to food pantries; her food stamps have ended too. She has no credit, so Care Credit turned her down. She could not pay for the consultation without borrowing, and she cannot pay for a biopsy and surgery at all.

The first step is finding out what this mass is, and the second is getting it off Gordo’s chin. Donations will cover his cytology, bloodwork, anesthesia, surgical removal of the mass, biopsy of the tissue, pain medication, and follow-up care. All donations are paid only to the veterinarian. Estimate below, click to enlarge: