On April 20, 2021, my family and I received the devastating diagnosis that my best friend, our beloved four-year-old chocolate lab named Maverick, has cancer.  He is a fiercely loyal, protective companion and would literally do anything for his family. Simply put, Maverick is the center of our universe! It all began when we noticed a lump on Maverick’s upper jaw near the gum-line of his back molars. We took him to the veterinarian and surgery was performed. A biopsy confirmed that Maverick has a mast cell tumor in his oral cavity. While mast cell tumors are common in dogs, occurrences in the mouth are rare. Never in our wildest dreams did we think such a young, active vibrant dog could be sick with cancer.  As of now, it has not spread to his organs. Maverick has had to endure several blood draws, needle aspirations of lymph nodes, ultrasounds and the removal of a lump on his ear.  Thankfully the lump on his ear was a benign cyst. However, the lymph nodes near the original tumor site show some cancer cells and he also has developed a small lump on his neck which will need to be removed. Maverick has also been prescribed several medications for pain, infection prevention and anxiety. In the continued efforts to save Maverick’s life, we decided to take him to a specialist. On May 11, 2021, we took Maverick for a consultation with a veterinary oncologist. After examining Maverick and reviewing his case, she gave us two options. We could do chemotherapy that may only give a 40% to 50% chance of attacking the tumor or we could do another surgery called a partial maxillectomy to try and get clean margins and remove all of the tumor. The veterinary oncologist said that the surgery would probably be the best option if clean margins were obtained because it would have an 80 to 90% success rate. This gave us hope! Needless to say, we have already incurred enormous costs with what Maverick has been through so far. Between all of the tests, prescriptions and vet visits, currently the total is roughly $4000. The veterinarian said that with the surgery, the CT scan he will need and follow up care, our costs could easily exceed $9000. We are a hard-working family; however, these additional unexpected costs are beyond what we can afford. We do not have pet insurance or any other way to pay for Mavericks veterinary care. We want to do everything we can to save our precious boy! We are hoping to raise funds for Maverick’s fight against cancer.  He has so much fight left in him! I don’t know what I would do without him by my side! We will be truly grateful and would very much appreciate any assistance you can provide! Thank you so much for taking the time to read Maverick’s story. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers and if you can, please help Maverick beat cancer!