Felix can’t walk or talk, but he has a dog named Zelda that makes him happy, and now Zelda needs surgery to remove oral cancer.

 

Felix has had challenges 

Felix has Cornelia de Lange syndrome. In his case it means that he’s been at the developmental stage of a toddler for over 10 years, with the added challenges of being nonverbal, not being able to walk on his own, being fed by g-tube, and having a seizure disorder. During the 2020 pandemic, Felix had a GI emergency which included sepsis and a collapsed lung. He was in the ICU for six weeks and despite the odds, he made a great recovery. As he gained his strength back last year, his parents decided to do something extra special for him.

Felix meets Zelda puppy 

Last year when Felix was 14, his parents got him his first dog, Zelda, a golden retriever puppy. His family hoped to make her a companion dog or seizure alert dog. Zelda has a long way to go in training because of her excessive positive exuberance, but she’s already made a huge difference in the lives of Felix and his family. Zelda makes Felix smile and laugh. She’s still young and full of energy, but she has always been extra gentle and sweet with Felix – even though she tackles every other human she’s ever met as if they are friends returning from a very long journey. She has learned how to retrieve toys that Felix loses under his hospital bed, and she warns Felix’s parents when he knocks over his IV pole or his feeding machine beeps with errors at night. One of her jobs is bringing in the mail from the mailbox each day, which she does with gusto and flourish.

Zelda has cancer

Two weeks ago, Zelda had surgery to remove and biopsy what looked like a benign tumor on her gums above her front teeth. It turned out to be papillary squamous cell carcinoma. Her family took her to the MSU veterinary school clinic to have the oncology team evaluate her. They said they can do a second surgery to remove all the cancer, and that she has a great chance of having a fully normal life after surgery. However, that surgery along with staging, additional imaging, and post-op care would cost $5300-$6500. Felix’s family cannot afford that after already paying for the first surgery.

 

Friends for over 35 years

I am creating this fundraiser because Felix’s mom and full-time caregiver, Julie, has been my friend since our first day of high school.

 

This is urgent

Without surgery, the MSU vet oncologist estimates that Zelda will just live for a few more months and she suggests not to wait more than a week or two before scheduling removal so that it doesn’t spread too far. I think if we all give a little bit, it will help with the cost of surgery so that Felix’s family can move forward. Without assistance they cannot commit to this surgery.

 

There is hope

Felix started back to school part-time last month, for the first time in two years, and he’s been smiling much more. He even got dressed up for their special needs prom last week. Zelda is still in training. She has learned how to go to her “place” and she’s working on how to “say hello” without exuberant jumping. Now, Zelda meets Felix’s school bus without jumping on anyone at all (almost.)