New York Nonprofit Helping Cancerous Dogs In Texas
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - At the Huzarvich house in Fort Worth, most things revolve around a seven-and-a-half-year-old English bulldog. Her name is Chloe.
In September, the family discovered that Chloe had Lymphoma, a form of cancer.
"One look at that face, and we couldn't give her up," Walter Huzarevich said, thinking back to when they first got the dog. "We got her when she was a baby."
They have a few options to battle the disease.
"A serious of shots and pills would have brought about six months," Huzarevich said. "Or a chemo treatment. That should allow her to live out her life."
He pushed for the chemotheraphy, but because Huzarevich is unemployed and disabled, he worried about the cost: To treat Chloe, chemo would take more than $7,000.
The family couldn't afford it, so they turned to the Magic Bullet Fund.
"To replace someone you love and she is family - totally and unconditional love given by her that is just something I couldn't live with," Huzarevich said.
The New York-based nonprofit helps give dogs with cancer a fighting chance to survive. It's named after founder Laurie Kaplan's own cancer survivor, Bullet. Kaplan also has published a book, entitled "Help Your Dog Fight Cancer."
The organization said there are about 64 million pet dogs in the U.S. today. Half of those are expected to have some form of cancer during their lives.
The Huzarevich family is also receiving financial assistance from Canine Cancer Awareness, another nonprofit organization that provides resources and information about canine cancer.
"Without that help we wouldn't have her," Huzarevich said. "We applied for the financial help and we qualified. We were very lucky."
The Magic Bullet fund has helped more than 100 dogs through cancer treatment, officials said. It relies entirely on donations.
