30 Days for Thumper

Surgery Went Beautifully!

2009-12-16T20:00:00.000-05:00

Thumper received his tumor removal surgery last Wednesday, Dec 9th. And it went beautifully.
The report stated that the surgeon removed not only the three tumors and surrounding muscular tissue, but he also had to remove a small part of Thumper's 13th rib and a piece of his spine. The surgeon, Dr. Greenberg was very happy with how the surgery went, stating that he was able to remove all tissues he had hoped to remove.

Thumper stayed at the vet hospital for one night and then came home to recover. He was sent home on a Fentanyl patch (pain med), an anti-nflammatory and another pain med. Of course he hates the meds...and we have battled over the pill which is not coated and must taste so bitter. But, as expected, he is doing great and looks very cute with his "lion cut".

We are still trying to fundraise to finish paying off our bills. If you would still like to donate please visit our chipin page to the right...

Blessings,
April & Thumper

Cat Scan Complete; We Still Need Your Help!

2009-12-07T04:00:00.000-05:00

This past Friday, 12/4, Thumper had his cat scan done at the vet's office. They sedated the little man and then completed his scan. I came to the office to see the scans and to pick him up. I was in shock at the size of the tumors. One of the three tumors comes very close to the spine, therefore during the surgeon will also need to remove a small portion of his spine. This sounds scary but the vet assured me that his prognosis post-surgery looks very good.

We have created our 3rd and final ChipIn fundraising page for Thumper. Our 1st and 2nd ones "timed out", as our original goal was to fundraise the necessary amount in 30 days. We have already raised $1100 towards our ultimate $2000 goal! As I posted previously, we came into the great fortune of being offered a grant from Frankie's Friends Hope Fund which will cover his surgery, but we are still fundraising to cover his diagnostic veterinary bills, specifically the cat scan he needed to identify the size and depth of his tumors. So, please consider donating to our fund so that we can pay off Thumper's vet bills. We have $900 to go!

Without everyone's help, we would never have gotten this far. We greatly appreciate the generosity and kindness of our contributors!! And as promised the design for our tees is almost done and we hope to send all contributors of $50 or more their tees in the new year!

GREAT NEWS! (which means we only need to raise another $1200! PLEASE Help!!)

2009-11-18T17:52:00.001-05:00

GREAT NEWS first:

We only need to raise another $1200 to assure Thumper's surgery! That's almost 1k less than I was trying to raise!
Through some of my recent research, I read of a new fund created by a generous donor called the Hope Fund of Frankie's Friends which has been developed to assist owners with surgery and care for their pets who have cancer. If we can cover Thumper's cat scan, this fund will cover his surgery!!! Please read below for the Full Story!
And please, please pass this along...since Thumper's tumors have gotten very large the vet would like to do the cat scan by next week and follow up with the surgery immediately following.

Full Story:
Today Thumper and I made our way over to the Queens NYC Vet Specialist office. There we saw the lovely Dr. Marc Greenberg. We were there to get another exam of the tumors and to determine if a cat scan is needed (which was going to cost an additional 2K!). After palpating the tumors, Dr. Greenberg decided that Yes, a cat scan is indeed needed. These kind of tumors spread by sending out little tendrils into the surrounding tissue and before surgery can be done, a very clear idea of how deep these tendrils go is necessary and will provide for the most effective surgery and best prognosis for Tump-Tump.

I got an estimate from the vet which blew my mind, doubling my original estimate of 3k. The surgery is actually going to cost roughly 4k and the CT scan is roughly an additional 2k! And we have only raised $1050!

SO, of course I was discouraged, but not for long because Thumper is the quickest cure for pessimism!

I was waiting for this visit to be complete before taking the next step in my plan: to contact the Hope Fund of Frankie's Friends about being considered for a grant. I gave them a call and to my surprise and relief they said that they would cover Thumper's surgery if I could cover his cat scan!! Not only did this make me feel hopeful, but it also made me realize that I could lower the amount I had been trying to fundraise!!

As an endearing bonus, Dr Greenberg also made several unsolicited comments about how healthy and happy Thumper looked for his age, 14. He said if he didn't know Thumper's age, he would have pegged him for a 9 year old! Go Bubba! That's my little man...amazing as always! This made Greenberg even more optimistic about Thumper's prognosis post-surgery. What an encouraging day!!

PLEASE PASS THIS ALONG to anyone you know who might be willing to help us reach our goal as soon as possible! Thumper has started to get uncomfortable about these things hitching a ride on his back! He's been growling at the other cats and acting a little more ornery...poor thing. I just want this episode of his life to be behind us!

Does Thumper need a Cat Scan?

2009-11-17T22:17:00.000-05:00

So tomorrow morning, Wed, we have an appt for Thumper for the vet's to take a look at his tumors again and decide if he needs a cat scan before we send him in for surgery. If the tumors seem to have "tendrils" that dip deeply into his muscle tissue, they will need to do the cat scan to make sure they have a clear idea of how deep the tumors actually are.

Cross your fingers for us...

Sending out Applications to Other Organizations...

2009-11-07T02:20:00.000-05:00

I wanted to let everyone know that lastnight I spent hours looking up organizations that might be able to assist us in our quest for Thumper's surgery.
I sent out an application to the United Animal Nations for their LifeLine Grant. I also posted a "wish" on a really interesting site called Wish Upon a Hero.
If you have any suggestions for me along these lines please let me know...

And keep spreading the word for us!

Best,
April & Thumper

YOU CAN STILL DONATE!!!!

2009-11-03T20:45:00.000-05:00

If you are only now happening upon our site to Save Thumper, please know that although we have passed our 30 Days mark, we are definitely still in need of and able to receive donations for the little guy...

I plan to take him into NYC Vet Specialists this week to set a date for the surgery. Which means we still need to raise 2k...I refuse to give up on my best guy!

Thank you for visiting our blog and please continue to pass it along!!

April & Thumper

We are now 1/3 of the Way to our Goal!!!! Only $2000 to go...

2009-10-29T21:52:00.000-04:00

As of today, we have raised $1100! We are 1/3 of the way there! Keep it coming...keep spreading the word!

We thank you...Thumper thansk you especially.

We are 1/4 of the way there!!

2009-10-13T14:58:00.000-04:00

Today a few more generous donations came in helping us break our $750 goal!! We only need to raise the remaining $2250!
THANK YOU TO ALL!!!
Keep spreading the word...

Update on the Thumper Fund...

2009-10-13T04:07:00.000-04:00

I just wanted to write a quick update to all...we have currently raised $620 towards Thumper's $3000 surgery. So thanks to many of you, we are clearly on our way!!! Once we hit $750 we will have raised 25% of our goal. And we still have 1/3 of the month to go...

Please feel free to forward our blog to anyone you may know..and please remember that every little bit can help.

Thank you,
April & Thumper

Thumper's Story...

2009-10-01T12:00:00.002-04:00

Anyone who knows me, knows about my little man, Thumper. Also known as Bubba or Tump-Tump, he was my introduction to the world of rescue.

I was raised with dogs and my only experience with cats was when, as a child, my ankles were attacked by a litter of kittens at a slumber party. I knew nothing about cats beyond how sharp their claws were until Thumper showed up. On a sunny Florida afternoon in 1995, a little 5 month old tabby cat peeked out from behind a line of bushes in my apartment complex. He kept coming out, seeking attention, only to scurry back into the bushes. Finally he rolled over on his back, to which I replied by petting him. And so began our lifelong friendship.

Thumper has travelled with me from apartment to apartment in Florida and New York. He has spent the last 14 years of his life sleeping in the crook of my arm each night. And in my loneliest hours he has been my comfort.

***

In December of 2008, I noticed a lump about the size of a black bean on Thumper's spine. I took him to Animal Kind in Brooklyn, our regular vet, and they suggested we have it removed right away and sent off to be analyzed. Thumper went into Animal Kind for surgery over the holidays, during which the surgeon, Dr. Helen Spiegel, made a small incision in the skin adjacent to his spine and excised the small mass. While I waited for his results with much worry, Thumper had a smooth and uneventful recovery. Dr. Spiegel reported back that the lump was a fibrosarcoma, a type of tumor that is vaccine associated, and advised that I seek a consult at NYC Veterinary Specialists to evaluate him for further surgery (to cost approximately 3k) to remove any remaining tumor cells.

Since his first surgery, we have visited NYC Veterinary Specialists and Animal Kind once more. He has received near-perfect evaluations from both. These types of tumors usually are more locally invasive and have a low rate of spread to other tissues. The place where tumors often spread to is to the lungs, but thankfully Thumper's chest x-rays from both January and July came back normal with no signs of metastasis. As well, his bloodwork came back normal and his heart strong. Back in January we were told to wait and see if the tumor returned and then decide upon surgery. Unfortunately, he has since developed two tumors in exactly the same location. The surgery he needs requires that the lumps be removed as well as a 2 centimeter margin of skin around the site of the tumors. And so now we prepare...

***

Why your help is needed...

As many of you know or will come to know, I direct a non-profit animal rescue called Mutts & Mitts of Brooklyn here in NY. We are relatively new, in operation a little more than a year, and yet we have saved a sum total of 250 cats and dogs! As most would imagine, I have personally funneled a tremendous amount of my own finances into the organization. And as many businesses are struggling in this economy, so is MMOB. At this time, I am not able to afford Thumper's surgery. So, since I can no longer prolong it, I am now reaching out to the community for your help.

30 DAYS FOR THUMPER begins today, October 1st and continues through the 31st. I am praying that by the end of the month we will have raised the money necessary to fund his surgery and he will soon be on his way to recovery. Your donations for his surgery can be processed through MMOB and therefore be tax-deductible. If you donate, please be sure to earmark (whether on the paypal page or your check) that your donation is for THUMPER.

If you'd also like to know more about Mutts & Mitts, please check out our blog: http://www.muttsandmitts.blogspot.com/

I THANK YOU ALL IN ADVANCE, for reading this and for considering donating for Thumper!