Hello everyone, this guys name is Brutus. My husband and I found him on Craigslist in 2013 and made him part of the family after meeting him. He's been a great dog then and since we had a first born in 2014. He super chill and loves attention and affection. He's an definitely irreplaceable part of the family.
We noticed a lump forming on his hip area not long after we got married and not long after we got him. Having just got married in May that year and discovering we were expecting in August we just let it ride hoping this lump wouldn't get bigger but it did. By the time my son was 3 months old we knew we had to do something about it. After getting an estimate for the surgery I sold my nice digital piano to pay for the surgery as we still couldn't afford the surgery then. That was 2014 and it has since grown back and with the vengeance. It's double the size and I would say about as big as my 3 year olds head if not slightly bigger. Though it doesn't seem to affect him or hinder him, it's become very clear that this thing is not done growing. However, he's not a large dog only being maybe 35lbs and I can imagine it has to be uncomfortable. After taking him for his shots at his vets they examined the lump and gave me another estimate for the surgery which is 3 times what the first surgery was. Without a biopsy we won't know what it is or why it's there to begin with. We didn't get a biopsy the first time either because of the additional cost. Now, at this point, it doesn't matter what it is. It's getting bigger and could at any point burst at the point if bumped too hard or lacerated on something.
So here are my options: put him down probably sooner than later or pander to the unknown out there for help funding his surgery. If it comes down to putting him down then so be it so long as I know I tried everything before I did. $1,400 is simply money we do not have and the time it would take to gather those funds I think we'd have a huge mess on our hands. It's pretty time sensitive unfortunately.
If anyone has additional questions or would like a better picture of this God awful lump let me know. I also have a copy of the estimate the vet gave me if you would like a picture. We thank anyone and everyone for whatever they can contribute in advance. Thank you for reading.
