Hi I'm Kaitlyn, Griffinn's mom! I rescued Griffinn on March 10th, 2019. He was found with his mom and 3 other siblings in an abandoned house in Kentucky. Powell Animal Welfare Society located in Columbus, Ohio went to rescue them and brought them back to Ohio. Not long after he was being fostered at Passion Four Paws, I was able to adopt and bring him home! Griffinn is 6.5 and is the sweetest dog you'll ever meet. He is always smiling and always wants affection from everyone he meets. He loves to go for runs, play fetch but his favorite activity is going swimming! If he is at the beach with his favorite frisbee, he is go go go!

While I occasionally have him stay with my partner, Jeffrey, or my parents while I do seasonal sea turtle work, Griffinn has moved with me from Ohio to Florida and has traveled with me to many states! He is always up for new adventures with us.

Jeffrey noticed Griffinn having abnormal bowel movements and took him to the vet about two weeks after he noticed some slight changes in Griffinn's behavior. The vet felt a mass in his anal gland, took a sample of the mass, and two days later he was diagnosed with Apocrine Gland Anal Sac Adenocarcinoma (AGASA), or cancer of his left anal gland. He recently had a successful surgery to remove the entire anal gland, but due to the size of the tumor, we were advised to consult with a veterinary oncologist for additional radiation and chemotherapy. We hope that by completing these treatments, Griffinn with continue to live a long, happy, and adventurous life with us.

We have taken time off work to take Griffinn to the vet, care for him after surgery and will continue to do so for his future treatment. We are asking for help to cover current and future vet/oncology bills. This will help Griffinn get the best care possible without creating a financial burden on us. Hopefully with further treatments to minimize the spread of the cancer, he will be cancer free.

I have dedicated my career to help protect endangered marine species, and I’m hoping to receive some help caring for my own animal.

If you are unable to donate, please be wary of and pay attention to any changes in your pets behaviors. Early intervention is always best when trying to fight and beat cancer. If we had not caught the cancer as early as we had, it likely would have metastasized to his lymph nodes, which would have greatly reduced the success rate of any intervention. Thank you for taking the time to read this and for any donation you can make. We truly appreciate it.