Baby Carter can't breathe. At least, not without a machine to help him. And his mother says if he doesn't get more help, he won't survive much longer.

Carter Heard was born at a Texas hospital four months premature, dangerously undersized, underdeveloped and in need of surgery moments after he arrived in the world. He weighed one pound 11oz. at the time, and parents Brittney and Joshua Heard were afraid he wouldn't survive.

Carter is now almost 10 months old and still fighting for his life in hospital, where he's spent his entire short life on ventilators to help his underdeveloped lungs breathe.

"He's just struggling so hard to breathe and it breaks my heart to see him like that every day," Brittney Heard said.

Carter's mother says she's been overwhelmed by the support she's received from well-wishers around the world, after a video of Carter struggling to breathe went viral on Facebook.

The Heard family has launched a crowdfunding campaign and accepted more than $3,000 in donations to help pay the sky-high medical costs required to support Carter's fight.

Supporters are also spreading the word about Carter through social media using the hashtag #TeamCarter.

"I never expected it to be this big," Brittney Heard said.

The Heards hope to have Carter transferred to a hospital in Houston soon, where he'll have access to some of the best lung doctors in the area. They're currently waiting for their insurance plan to approve the transfer.

"He needs the best of the best," Heard said.

The Heards try to be with their son as often as possible, and take their six-year-old daughter to visit him in the hospital on weekends.

Brittney Heard says Carter is often in pain, but he has his good moments.

"When he does smile, it helps," she said.