Apply for Assistance

If your dog has cancer and you can't afford treatment costs, you are not alone. There are a great many people who are in this same situation. Magic Bullet Fund gets many applications and we have to make very hard decisions. We would like to help all of the dogs and all of the families who apply but we cannot.

MBF provides assistance for the following:

Tumor removal surgery

Including amputation for osteosarcoma
MBF generally does not fund post-surgery treatment (chemo or radiation therapy)

Chemotherapy for lymphoma and other cancers

Magic Bullet Fund does not fund treatment for relapsed lymphoma or recurrent cancers

Are all of the following statements are true? If so, keep reading. If not, MBF cannot help you.

You are the dog's primary caretaker or owner (or a shelter/rescue group).
You are the person who pays for the dog's medical care.
Your dog has been diagnosed with cancer and your vet said that surgery or chemotherapy may extend your dog's life by a year.
You cannot afford to pay for treatment.
Your dog is:

TEN or younger if less than 40 pounds
EIGHT or younger if 40-100 pounds
SEVEN or younger if more than 100 pounds

* It's not that we don't care about the older dogs! There is an age limit for 3 reasons.
It's difficult to raise donations for any dog right now, and much harder for an older dog. Sponsors donate generously for young dogs who may survive longer. They want their donations to make as big a difference as possible. We work to raise funding for the dogs we will be ABLE to raise funds for.
Second, when a dog is near the expected survival age for his size and breed, we should think twice about cancer treatment. Does it make sense to compromise the last chapter of a dog's life with chemo or surgery? It might make sense if we knew for sure the treatment would be successful, but cancer treatment is always a roll of the dice.
Finally, we are a very small fund and simply don't have enough eyes and hands to receive hundreds of applications.

Before you apply read THIS PAGE

APPLY for Magic Bullet Fund Assistance HERE

Submit your application form online, and fax your tax info to 914-206-4301. We will not look at the application until we also have your financial information. The instructions are on the application form. Once we receive your application and financial info, we try to do all of our work and get an decision to you within a week, but the timing depends on our ability to reach your veterinarian and receive the medical review and billing estimate.

Shelters and Rescue Groups: Apply for Magic Bullet Fund Assistance HERE
You are invited to apply for assistance if a dog under your care has cancer. The application must be filed by an officer or manager of the group (not a foster family).

* If you are looking for a shelter for yourself and your pet
To find safe sheltering for you and your pet, click here to find a listing of shelters that will accept your pet.
If you cannot find a shelter in your area that houses pets on-site, click to see off-site housing options for your pet.

Do you need financial assistance for veterinary care, transportation and boarding to enable you and your pet(s) to leave an abusive home? United Animal Nations offers financial assistance for victims of domestic violence and their pets through their Crisis Relief for Individuals grant program.

Apply for Assistance from Other Organizations

Find and apply to other organizations that help people in need of financial assistance for their dogs' medical treatments. A partial listing follows.

IMOM - helping all pets in need of medical treatment. "To better the lives of sick, injured and abused companion animals. We are dedicated to insure that no companion animal has to be euthanized simply because their caretaker is financially challenged." At this time, assistance is available only for emergency life-or-death situations.
Canine Cancer Awareness Financial assistance for canine cancer treatments
The Pet Fund - helping dogs needing medical treatment, several week waiting period. The Pet Fund assists owners in covering medical costs beyond the normal expenses of vaccination, spay and neuter surgeries, food and routine veterinary care.
Angels4Animals
Helping Pets Fund
The Picasso Fund in New York City only. Pays for lifesaving medical treatment for sick and injured animals transferred from NYC's AC&C to other Alliance Participating Organizations (APOs) for adoption.
The Acme Foundation helping dogs in treatment at Clearlake Veterinary Clinic, in Lake County, CA
Labrador Harbor helping labs only in CA only
Brown Dog Foundation helping dogs in TN only
Special Needs Dobermans helping senior and special needs Dobies
Frankie's Friends new site, application must be made by a veterinarian
Zach Memorial Fund Financial assistance for canine cancer treatments in North Carolina.

Do Some Fundraising!

Apply to CareCredit www.CareCredit.com
Apply to the Citi Healthcard www.healthcard.citicards.com
Have a tag sale / garage sale
Sell all that stuff you no longer need on Ebay (etc.)
Apply for any grants or donations you can find
Start a campaign at www.wishuponahero.com
Ask your veterinarian! Many clinics maintain a fund through which they help clients in need of financial assistance for their dog's medical care
Find more fundraising ideas here: The Senior Dogs Project
Or here: www.imom.org/fa/others.htm