Hey everyone,

We’re Andy and Mellisa, proud dog parents to Nova, our 8-year-old Australian Shepherd. A few weeks ago, Nova had a mass removed from her mouth along with a tooth extraction. We were really hoping it wouldn’t be anything serious, but unfortunately, the results came back, and it’s an oral tumor called canine acanthomatous ameloblastoma.

The good news is that this type of tumor doesn’t spread to other parts of the body. But if it’s not removed, it can grow further into her jawbone, which would cause her a lot of pain and discomfort. Thankfully, it’s totally curable with surgery! Nova’s oncologist is confident that removing a small portion of her jawbone will mean she can live a long, happy, and healthy life. And if you know Nova, you know frisbee is life – so we want to give her every chance to keep doing what she loves.

We’ve decided to go ahead with the surgery to give her the best shot. We know a lot of you love Nova as much as we do, and if you’d like to chip in for her surgery, we’d be so grateful – but there’s absolutely no pressure. We just wanted to share what’s going on and say thank you for all the love and support you’ve already given us and Nova.

Much love,

Andy, Mellisa, and Nova