“A gentle, well-mannered boy” – Kilo’s Happy Tail
September 1st, 2026
By Savannah Verdon, Development Manager –
It took months after being wrongfully terminated from his job for Frank to win his case against his former employer and start receiving unemployment benefits. His finances had been devastated in the meantime by the lack of income and stretching every dollar to survive. It had been a frustrating and discouraging experience that made having Kilo, his pittie, by his side more comforting than ever.
“KILO MEANS EVERYTHING TO ME. He’s my son. He’s a beautiful tri-colored pit and is such a gentle, well-mannered boy. He is my world.”
Frank adopted Kilo five years ago when the handsome pittie was just three years old. The sister of his girlfriend at the time wasn’t taking good care of Kilo and agreed to let him go so Frank could care for him.
As he looked for other job opportunities, Frank trusted his downstairs neighbor, Courtney, to watch Kilo while he was out. One day he picked Kilo up, and Courtney answered the door looking very concerned. Kilo had been playing with a toy, and now the toy’s arm was missing. She searched high and low, but the only thing that made sense was that Kilo had eaten the arm.
Frank was hopeful they would find the arm, or in the chance Kilo ate it, that Kilo would pass the toy on his own. But after a couple of days, it hadn’t appeared, and Kilo was starting to show signs of illness. He was lethargic, not keeping any food or water down, and wincing in pain when you touched his belly, all signs of an intestinal blockage.
He knew an intestinal blockage was an emergency, one he likely wasn’t going to be able to afford. But whatever he had to do to save Kilo and have more time together, he would do it.
The first veterinarian they went to did blood work and urinalysis and gave Kilo subcutaneous fluids, but never followed up with Frank.
The second veterinarian did the same diagnostic work, plus an ultrasound and X-rays, but gave Frank an exorbitant quote to remove the blockage.
Frank had spent all the money he had on those first two visits, but still took Kilo to a third veterinarian, hoping for a better outcome.
This third veterinarian was different. They were sympathetic to what Frank and Kilo had gone through, and so not only did they reduce the cost of their visit, but they also helped Frank find a much more affordable clinic to do the surgery. Frank could not stop crying from the stress of Kilo’s blockage just as much as from the kindness of the veterinarian, too.
Two weeks had passed since Kilo first swallowed the toy. Despite the odds, he was hanging in there, and his surgery would happen soon. Frank just needed help paying for the more affordable option. He already had about half of what he needed.
On the morning of the surgery, Frank applied for a RedRover Relief Urgent Care grant. As Kilo went under anesthesia, Frank got the call that his application had been approved. With a RedRover On-Call Angel ready to fund his grant, there was nothing left to worry about except how much to spoil Kilo during his recovery.
“Kilo has gained all of his weight back, and the staff and surgeon were UNBELIEVABLE. The surgeon said there were no complications, nothing was damaged, and he said he was shocked by how well Kilo responded, especially considering he’d had this blockage for more than two weeks. Thank you sooooo much!!”
Frank still had a lot of catching up to do financially, but after winning his case and almost losing Kilo, he was feeling much more confident about where they were headed.
No matter what they would face, they would face it together.
Keeping families together is what the RedRover Relief Urgent Care grant program – and the On-Call Angels – is all about. Thank you for keeping pets with the people who love them!
