This Service Dog Inspired Her Owner To Become A Certified Dog Trainer And Now Her Owner Is Fighting To Help Her Beat 4 Types Of Cancer
Palmdale, California. You may have heard about Tye Friis and his life goal of rescuing animals. Tye is the founder of two rescue organizations: Reversed Rescue, a non-profit dog rescue, and Rescue Like A Boss, another non-profit rescue organization that focuses on broader genres such as animals that “have been illegally bred or have no other option but euthanasia.”
Born and raised in a small town in Iowa, Tye grew up training dogs with his father. And after he left home around age 15, Tye had done many different jobs to pursue many of his passions and dreams.
But, while he was in one of the industries, he witnessed how badly humans could treat animals, which led to the path of starting his rescue organization.
“When I got my first dog, MayHem, I had no idea what bad people did with dogs out here,” Tye explained in an interview.
“Backyard breeding fight and bait dogs, fight rings. Here’s what happened that led to the start of my dog rescue.”
“Sometimes you come across bad people out there not following the rules and profiting into bad spaces,” Tye pointed out.
“It crushed my soul but lit a fire that had only been sitting as a pilot light inside me for so many years.”
Tye has been on this rescue journey for years, and one dog has always been by his side–Lucy.
GoFundMe; pictured above are Tye and Lucy
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Lucy is a retired service dog and the one that had led Tye on his path to becoming a certified trainer and CGC instructor. Eventually, Tye was able to bring Lucy into programs to start helping other humans and animals as well.
With a bubbly and loving demeanor, Lucy has just as big of a heart as her partner Tye. “Lucy’s been there for every rescue dog brought into RR,” Tye said.
“She’s been their mother dog when they’ve been abused and abandoned by humans. She’s sat aside recovering addicts and helped calm them through compression.”
However, unfortunately, now Lucy is also in need of others to fight for her life.
Lucy has been sick for a couple of weeks and has been in the ER since May. The initial checkups (X-rays, ultrasounds, etc.) done by her regular vet showed Lucy had a mass on her spleen.
Although a splenectomy was scheduled on May 6, Lucy started uncontrollably shivering before then. Knowing deep down in his gut that something was wrong, Tye drove Lucy down to VCA LA, where Tye had taken many rescue dogs before from his organization.
After even more X-rays, ultrasounds, fluids, and pain meds, the doctors had quickly discovered Lucy had issues in her Liver, Bladder, and Intestines.
“Her intestine is perforated with a mass and has started to release fluid into the abdomen. In addition, there’s a mass showing in her bladder and liver,” Tye wrote on a GoFundMe page.
Lucy was put into surgery on May 2 to resect the masses, suture the intestine, and a possible blood transfusion.
On the other hand, while Tye was getting Lucy all the treatments she needed, he faced a significant barrier: the high cost of those medical expenses.
It was worse that the Attorney General wouldn’t allow Tye’s rescue to provide financial aid for him as they saw it as self-benefiting.
But Tye had decided to view the situation positively and be proactive. His only priority is to save Lucy’s life.
“Lucy has always been the rock in my life. She is why I rescue so many dogs now and never give up,” Tye said.
“She’s given me more in life than I could ever repay, so my only goal right now is to get her stable and be able to see her again no matter what path this leads us down.”
As of June 1, the most recent update Tye had on his GoFundMe page, Lucy was discovered to have four different types of cancers: Urinary Bladder Transitional Cell Carcinoma, Well-differentiated Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Mast Cell Tumor, and Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor with Regional Lymph Node Metastasis.
The information may sound discouraging, but Tye has never stopped believing that his girl is a big fighter.
“She’s meant to be in this world and be a beacon of hope and light for others who see her triumph through this,” Tye added.
Lucy made it through her surgery on May 3 as the medical team successfully removed the intestine mass and small intestines, sutured the large intestine in place, and removed the liver mass.
Lucy started radiation after June 7 for her cancer treatments, and Tye will continue to drive her to Los Angeles every day for 5 weeks until the treatment completes.
You may visit Tye’s GoFundMe and his social media if you want to follow up on Lucy’s recovery journey and cheer for her.
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