Operating Procedures

How Magic Bullet Fund Works

When the Magic Bullet Fund is accepting new applications, those in need of assistance may apply on the Apply page after reading the parameters on that page to find out whether or not their situation is one for which MBF offers assistance.

MBF receives an application along with the applicant's financial disclosure, If it is a case that we can offer assistance for, MBF contacts the treating veterinarian to gather medical information. Applications are reviewed within a few days, depending on our ability to contact the veterinarian and on our backlog of applications. The dog's family is notified.

Funding is given for dogs who are in chemotherapy for lymphoma or who are having surgery to remove a tumor. Occassionally we assist for radiation therapy. Applications are reviewed to find the families in the greatest financial distress and the dogs with the best chance of survival. MBF pays the clinic direclty for cancer treatments as well as certain treatments and services necessary to provide the primary treatment. MBF funds are not available for past due balances, treatment for health issues other than cancer, palliative care or euthanasia.

MBF's application review board makes very difficult decisions about the fund's ability to provide assistance for some dogs and not others. The most important criteria are:

Degree of financial need: This is established according to tax returns, pay stubs, social services statements, foreclosure notices, and debt information, etc.
Prognosis: MBF helps when there is a reasonable chance, according to the treating veterinarian and current statistics, that our assistance will add at least a year of quality time for the dog and family.
Triage: Funds currently available and current applications in review.

When a dog is accepted, MBF sets the fundraising goal and provides a launching gift - a donation from the General Fund to help each family begin fundraising for their dog. The fundraising goal is set as the cost of treatment, minus a discount that many clinics provide because we are a non-profit, minus what the family can afford to pay. In addition to the launching gift plus the results of MBF's other fundraising efforts. we expect and require that the family (the dog's owner) will work to raise more funding into their dog's campaign. During the campaign, information about each dog and the names of donators to that dog's campaign are listed on the Funding Needed page. The total donations raised so far and the amount still needed are shown. MBF creates a folder for each dog in the MBF Forum, where the families post updates about their dogs. In the forum, MBF friends and sponsors can communicate with the families or just read about the dogs and decide when to make donations.

MBF provides guidance and opportunities to help the families raise funds. MBF promotes each dog's fundraising campaign:

On the MBF web site
In an Email blast to our subscriber list for sponsors
On FaceBook and other social networks
In MBF press releases to the local media where the dog lives
Requests from MBF to other organizations we network with, to help if fundraising is slow
Most clinics provide a discount or allowance for their services for MBF dogs

Each donator receives a receipt and a thank you note from MBF. Donations for a dog are held on reserve and contributed to that dog's cancer treatment fees. Names of all who donated for a dog can be seen on the Dogs Need Funds page of the MBF website, until the campaign is completed. Payments are made only to veterinary clinics, pharmaceutical companies or drug stores and only to pay invoices for a dog's cancer treatments or the drugs used in those treatments. MBF oversees treatment schedules and payments for each dog in the fund and maintains bookkeeping for all funds coming in and going out.

Each MBF family receives a copy of the book "Help Your Dog Fight Cancer" by MBF administrator, Laurie Kaplan. Laurie provides these books as a gift to help the families become knowledgeable and become better advocates for their dogs. Laurie is available to MBF families for guidance regarding their dog's treatment plan, diet, supplements and general health care. Laurie offers the same guidance for a small fee, to families who are not in the fund - see www.asklaurie.us.

The fundraising campaign usually ends after 30 days. When the fundraising campaign is closed, the dog moves to the Dogs Funded page of the web site and in the Forum. For dogs in chemotherapy, MBF continues to contribute to each treatment in the protocol until the protocol is over, until the funds are depleted or until treatment fails.

Donations made specifically for an MBF dog's treatment are held on reserve for that dog. Funds that cannot be used for that dog are redistributed to General Fund to help other dogs. Redistribution occurs when treatment ends before funds are depleted, when treatment fails (funds are not used for palliative care) or when a case is closed because the family does not complete the tasks they agreed to at the time of acceptance.