Four animals suffered neglect. Trumbull Animal Group is trying to help.

“TAG does great things for us, and they really help a lot financially,” said Animal Control Officer Lynn Dellabianca. “If we had to cover the cost of these surgeries, it would destroy our budget.”

On the fundraising page, posted by Trumbull resident Tara Figueroa, the group explained the high cost.

“These procedures are ... necessary to provide these animals with a pain-free existence and better quality of life,” Figueroa wrote. “It will allow them to be adopted to loving homes that they so very much deserve.”

“It really isn’t fair to someone to ask them to adopt a pet, and then have to spend thousands of dollars more in medical care,” said Dellabianca.

Dellabianca said some of the animals already had the surgery performed and any funds raised would be used to reimburse the animal control budget.

Despite their pain and neglected backgrounds, Dellabianca said the four seemed to have retained gentle dispositions.

“One of the dogs had an ulcerated eye that had to be removed,” she said. “His other eye already had been removed, and this one was infected and painful. The vet said he already doesn’t see out of it, so it was best to remove it.”

The dog, an older Shih Tzu that the staff has named Biggie, also suffers from advanced arthritis but still seems to enjoy life, she said.

“He gets up every day and he wants to eat,” she said.

Cali, a calico cat, also needs eye surgery. Her left eye is missing and without surgery to stitch the socket closed, it will continually get infected, Dellabianca said.

Tanner, a male pit bull that Dellabianca described as having a “sweet, sweet” temperament. Came into the shelter with serious abscesses in his front leg joints. He also was seriously underweight, possibly due to the fact that he had several broken teeth that required surgery to remove.

But having had dental surgery, Tanner has rapidly gained weight in the shelter, she said.

The last dog, Romeo, is a male chihuahua who came into the shelter with advanced dental disease that required the removal of all his teeth. Dental disease, if left untreated, can cause an animal’s teeth to rot and is a common problem with the breed, Dellabianca said.

Those wishing to contribute to the animals’ care can donate through gofundme.com (search Trumbull Animal Group). Donations also can be mailed to Trumbull Animal Group, P.O. Box 110090, Trumbull CT, 06611.

Dellabianca said with the holiday season beginning this week, she was optimistic that the high fundraising goals were attainable.

“This time of year people look for a good cause,” she said. “There’s always people willing to help out with animals.”