Tofupup: Saved!

May 2009

Dear Friends,

This is Tofupup, aka Tofu or Tofey to my closest friends. I’m here with an update on my cancer and I’m happy to report a mostly positive outcome. Thanks to all my friends, my luck has taken a turn for the better, and after completing the bulk of my chemotherapy, I’m lookin’ good!

I’ve got a few lumps here and there, but the doc says I just need to come in for monitoring every few months and if I stay the same I should be okay!

Props to My Homies!

I’d like to give a special shout out to all my homies who donated to the Save Tofupup fund (in alphabetical order) and made my recovery possible:

You will all have a special place in my heart forever!!!  (p.s. special props go to Scott H., who wins the Platinum Donor prize.)

More Fun to Come!

Now that my cancer is pretty much under control for now, all I have to worry about is the progressive, incurable blindness in my left eye and the advanced degenerative arthritis in both my hind legs (courtesy of the inbreeding that caused me to be born with luxated patellas, a.k.a. kneecaps on the sides, not the fronts, of my knees).

But hey, neither of those will kill me, and maybe a little bit of crippling pain and blindness is just what I need in order to quell my bloodlust and impulse to kill!

And the Winner Is…..

For those of you who’ve been dying to know who won the Sticky Fingers Bakery raffle, I am happy to announce that the winner is…..

Casey, a fantastic campaigner for Farm Sanctuary, who’s toughing it out in the artic-cold winter and sweltering, sticky summer temps of upstate New York. Casey, may your custom-made, Sticky Fingers Bakery cake of deliciousness help warm your body and spirit, while I continue basking in the sunlight of warm Santa Cruz, California.

Prequel to this story

I’ve left the prequel to my story pasted below, for anyone wishing to review the origins of my struggle. Remember to contact me at tofupupland@gmail.com for more info or add me to your myspace: www.myspace.com/tofu_pup !

Xoxoxo,

Tofupup!

Cancer Sucks
You see, I was recently diagnosed with cancer—mast cell tumors, to be exact. In a grand F-U from the Universe, this diagnosis came just 2 months after my dim-witted owner/caretaker/prison guard/whatever-you-want-to-call-her, Ariana, cancelled my cancer-coverage health insurance.

All is not lost, however. Doctors say that with proper treatment, my chances at recovery are good. (I’m only 8-ish years old, after all!) That’s why my friends are holding a raffle to raise money. Just a $4 ticket will buy you a shot at winning a fabulous, vegan, 9-inch cake from Sticky Fingers Bakery—a $45 value! Buy your ticket today!

Of course, depending on your love for me, for vegan cakes or for spending money, you can buy two, three, or even twenty raffle tickets. Get crazy, like me!!  Raffle winner will be announced in early October.

MY STORY:

Although the details of my puppyhood are hazy, I do remember the day that my fate took a turn for the better one crisp fall day in 2001. That day, I was running through traffic on the rough-and-tumble streets of Baltimore. After being scooped up by a good Samaritan, I was transferred into the hands of Ariana (aka sucker) and the stellar pup, Chloe. 

My New Life!
Covered in crap (literally!) and disgusting scabs, I eventually recovered from my inauspicious beginnings and launched into a life with Ariana and Chloe. We soon moved to California, where I whiled away the days developing my skills at chewing on aluminum cans, busting out windows and digging holes in furniture. I became especially adroit at embedding foxtails in my paws, ears, eyes and nose.

After my best friend Chloe passed away from cancer in 2006, Ariana purchased health insurance, including cancer coverage, for me. Unfortunately, in 2008, that numbskull made the ill-advised decision to cancel my cancer-coverage health insurance. Two months later, I was diagnosed with cancer. (Thanks again, Universe!)   

The Lowdown
My cancer is a stage 2 mast cell tumor, the most common type of cancer in dogs—and also one of the most deadly. However, because my cancer is not yet at stage 3, it is still curable with proper treatment.

To date, the cost of my tumor-removal surgery and related veterinary treatments has exceeded $4,000. Credit cards have been maxed out, bank accounts have been drained and the formerly-friendly people at Care Credit (now known as UnCaring Credit) refuse to raise my credit limit.

The Last Leg
I now need to raise just $1,600 to pay for my final treatments. I’ve come so far and have so much potential, with many years of shoe-shredding, window bashing and stress-inducement ahead of me; I can’t stop now! You can help me!

What You Can Do:

If you live in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, you can enter into the Raffle to Save Tofupup to win a delicious Sticky Fingers Bakery cake! 

If you don’t live in the Washington, D.C. area and you still love me anyway and want to see me live, you can also donate via the PayPal button below:  

All proceeds from the raffle and donations will go directly toward my cancer treatments. Also, more raffles for fantastic prizes to Save Tofupup will be forthcoming, so stay tuned! 

Have questions about my raffle or want updates on my progress? Send an e-mail to Tofupupland@gmail.com.  

TofuPup's Dogster Page   ●   Chloe's Dogster Page   ●   TofuPup's MySpace Page

Website Design, Hosting and Maintenance by User-Friendly Computing
505 River Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060  • Tel:  (831) 423-9653
Copyright (C) 2008.  All Rights Reserved.