Franklin's Fund
Donation protected
Franklin is everyone's favorite dog.
He is a six-and-a-half-year-old wolfhound cross, rescued as a pup from Pets Haven Shelter in Woodend, Victoria Australia. He is Mr. Personality and has touched the lives of so many people, dogs, and a cat or two. He helped his sister, Gracie, become the sassy rescue greyhound she is today, and he makes everyone smile.
Today, Franklin needs your help.
Those who know us (Bentley and Luke) know that Franklin is not just a dog that's part of our family; he is our family. Along with Gracie and Grizz the cat, our fur family has been on the move for the last year and a half in order to be closer to my American family after spending the last eight years in Australia.
Our journey began when we departed our home in Melbourne, Australia, moved to Honolulu as our first stop for seven months, then Denver for six months, and now we're settled in New York City. All animals in tow, of course---but at great expense. On top of our moves, we've had a lot of big changes: We had a wedding in Hawaii, I turned 30, we lost my mom to cancer, we had epiphanies about moving to new opportunities, we had success and made many new friends, and spent all our money moving our animals with us---with no second thought. Now, settled in New York for barely two months, me with my dream Museum job (the reason for this move), we're starting to get our heads above water financially by starting to pay off our Aussie credit cards and small family loans. Things are finally settling down for the BirdWorth family. . . until now.
This past weekend, a routine vet visit for Franklin has shaken us to our cores. Franklin went into our new vet just down the street in Brooklyn for his annual exam and shots, but what they found was not routine. Franklin has two masses in his abdomen. After an ultrasound, full bloodwork, and multiple chest x-rays, the vet determined that Franklin has one "aggressive-looking" mass in his small intestine and one more mass in his spleen. The "angry" mass in his intestine is most likely the one making him skinny and pale in his soft tissues. The possibility that he has cancer won't be confirmed until they "get in there" surgically. The vet's recommendation is straightforward: Franklin is healthy enough to have surgery to take out the bits he doesn't need. So let's take them out!
This funding page is to support Franklin's surgery in hopes that he can just grow old on his own. He's only six. He's had no big medical problems, and he's been happy and healthy until now! We have been given a rough estimate from the vet that the surgery to remove Franklin's mass in his intestine and to remove his whole spleen, would be between $7000-$9000. We would pay that a hundred times if we had the means---OR even the credit! As 'new' Americans (yes, even California-born me) we cannot get approved for a credit card to pay for this essential surgery for Franklin (even though we have great credit in Australia). The specialty vet hospital does not have payment plans. We've already paid nearly $900 for the 'regular' vet work thus far. We are making financial sacrifices already to cover this first round, but we need to ask for the help of Franklin's friends for the big one.
There's a great probability that this will get rid of the problem, and Franklin has everything else in his favor inside him. There's no cancer in his lungs, his heart looks good, he has no escaped fluids in his abdomen.
He's still feeling good right now, a little slower, a little skinnier, but still Franklin.
We will start with a consultation at Blue Pearl Specialty Pet Hospital in Brooklyn the next week and get a concrete estimate of what the bill will be. We will update the page to reflect that cost. Blue Pearl takes payments in full at the time of surgery. Our vet has recommended getting the surgery performed within a month, so that's our timeline.
Luke and I like to sort things out ourselves, but for Franklin, we're asking for help from friends, family, and friends we haven't met yet.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Love Bentley, Luke, Franklin, Gracie, and Grizz
He is a six-and-a-half-year-old wolfhound cross, rescued as a pup from Pets Haven Shelter in Woodend, Victoria Australia. He is Mr. Personality and has touched the lives of so many people, dogs, and a cat or two. He helped his sister, Gracie, become the sassy rescue greyhound she is today, and he makes everyone smile.
Today, Franklin needs your help.
Those who know us (Bentley and Luke) know that Franklin is not just a dog that's part of our family; he is our family. Along with Gracie and Grizz the cat, our fur family has been on the move for the last year and a half in order to be closer to my American family after spending the last eight years in Australia.
Our journey began when we departed our home in Melbourne, Australia, moved to Honolulu as our first stop for seven months, then Denver for six months, and now we're settled in New York City. All animals in tow, of course---but at great expense. On top of our moves, we've had a lot of big changes: We had a wedding in Hawaii, I turned 30, we lost my mom to cancer, we had epiphanies about moving to new opportunities, we had success and made many new friends, and spent all our money moving our animals with us---with no second thought. Now, settled in New York for barely two months, me with my dream Museum job (the reason for this move), we're starting to get our heads above water financially by starting to pay off our Aussie credit cards and small family loans. Things are finally settling down for the BirdWorth family. . . until now.
This past weekend, a routine vet visit for Franklin has shaken us to our cores. Franklin went into our new vet just down the street in Brooklyn for his annual exam and shots, but what they found was not routine. Franklin has two masses in his abdomen. After an ultrasound, full bloodwork, and multiple chest x-rays, the vet determined that Franklin has one "aggressive-looking" mass in his small intestine and one more mass in his spleen. The "angry" mass in his intestine is most likely the one making him skinny and pale in his soft tissues. The possibility that he has cancer won't be confirmed until they "get in there" surgically. The vet's recommendation is straightforward: Franklin is healthy enough to have surgery to take out the bits he doesn't need. So let's take them out!
This funding page is to support Franklin's surgery in hopes that he can just grow old on his own. He's only six. He's had no big medical problems, and he's been happy and healthy until now! We have been given a rough estimate from the vet that the surgery to remove Franklin's mass in his intestine and to remove his whole spleen, would be between $7000-$9000. We would pay that a hundred times if we had the means---OR even the credit! As 'new' Americans (yes, even California-born me) we cannot get approved for a credit card to pay for this essential surgery for Franklin (even though we have great credit in Australia). The specialty vet hospital does not have payment plans. We've already paid nearly $900 for the 'regular' vet work thus far. We are making financial sacrifices already to cover this first round, but we need to ask for the help of Franklin's friends for the big one.
There's a great probability that this will get rid of the problem, and Franklin has everything else in his favor inside him. There's no cancer in his lungs, his heart looks good, he has no escaped fluids in his abdomen.
He's still feeling good right now, a little slower, a little skinnier, but still Franklin.
We will start with a consultation at Blue Pearl Specialty Pet Hospital in Brooklyn the next week and get a concrete estimate of what the bill will be. We will update the page to reflect that cost. Blue Pearl takes payments in full at the time of surgery. Our vet has recommended getting the surgery performed within a month, so that's our timeline.
Luke and I like to sort things out ourselves, but for Franklin, we're asking for help from friends, family, and friends we haven't met yet.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Love Bentley, Luke, Franklin, Gracie, and Grizz
Organizer
Bentley Bird
Organizer
Brooklyn, NY
