Help Moyo Dance Again...

Written by my Mom, who is my GhostyWriter

This is me, Moyo. Dancing with my Dad. Before my foot hurt So Very Much.

So. Some of you already know me, Moyo. And about my Cecil. Cecil is my Travel Buddy and VBFF. Cecil goes where I go. Always. I also have two other Main friends. Mom calls them The Bastards. Because they like to Nearly Remove her hands whenever she has to give them their Cat-Chill-Medication. They also like to grow extra legs which they then use to Maul Mom with. This phenomenon of rows and rows of teeny, tiny, razor sharp teeth and Extra Legs with Extra Claws on them is a well-known but seriously under-documented Cat Fact. And my Mom knows All About This Phenomenon. She has the Scars to Prove it.

Anyway, about five years ago I was born. Me, Moyo. I was born a Roly-Poly Little Black Faced Girl (with some apology in the general direction of Paul Simon…) and I’ve grown into a Roly-Poly BIG Black Faced Girl. In fact, Mom was moved to admonish the vet (over whom she had been suffering the Most Embarrassing Crush at the time) – when he told her I was TOO FAT? Mom said: Dr? You NEVER say that about a girl. Not Ever. You Couch Your Words. Always. Too FAT is Just Rude!

That vet looked a tad astonished, but nothing daunts my mom. She said What you ACTUALLY say is “Oh! You are Beautiful…in Magnificent Abundance!” And if you can’t quite stretch yourself that far, Doc? You say “Oh! You’re quite the Most Marvellously Plump Creature Upon Whom I’ve Ever Had The Good Fortune to Lay My Eyes!” – and, speaking of which, Doc? Said my Mom. Yours are quite positively Far Too Close Together AND I’ve No Longer Got a Crush On YOU!

That vet looked a mite Taken Aback with that. He stammered and tried again. Mom, he said. Mom? Your Moyo is Quite Positively Far TOO ROUND!

So, I joined a Pet Weight Watchers. And Mom joined, too. And once a week, we would hive off to that vet and stand upon his scale. Guess who won each week?

Not Mom. Just saying.

Anyway. Most of you will also know that I am a VIP. A Very Important Pooch, me. I am South Africa’s Very First Officially Recognised and Registered Emotional Support Animal. True Story.

There has even been an article about me in The Sunday Times Newspaper in South Africa. I had to have a Test. It was as Long as Forever, but really only about four hours. And I had to do all sorts of Completely Unnatural-to-a-Labrador stuff to pass that test. No eating Anything. Not even when its Just Laying there in the ground. No Even Looking At it. No playing with the Other Dogs (and there were five of them, all running and jumping and playing Silly Buggers to try and distract me from my test) …Not Even when THEY eat the stuff laying Right There. No barking at Horses. Or Cows. No chasing of Guinea pigs and rabbits. No Begging at the table in the restaurant. Climb this thing here. Sit and wait on that thing there. Lie here and wait to be called, even if Mom takes 400 years to call me. Stuff like that. And I passed. With The Most Flying of Colours. And I got my shiny tags and my special Red Harness.

Heres the Newspapery Story about me, Moyo.

I am Very Important to my Mom, Kerry. And not just because I am her ESA. It’s also because I Just Am. Mom loves me. And I love my Mom. I work hard for my Mom. (she has C-PTSD, which you can read about on my website it you want to know more about this and the work I do with my Mom. But, mostly, my work with my Mom means that my Mom has fewer Terrible Panic Attacks and there’s a Whole Lot Less of that Shivering and Shaking going on when I am with my Mom.)

Now. I have to tell you something.

Two weeks ago? I wanted to play Fetch That Stick with my Mom. But it was hard for me because I had a Terribly Sore Foot. I Hobbled and Limped.

My Mom had a Good Look at my left, front foot. And there, on the underneath of it, she could see it was all Swollen. So, she put on her glasses and she got a torch and she got Right Up close to my Sore Pad and she looked and looked to see if she could see what might me causing me such pain.

She could not see anything – just a Big Lump. And that Big Lump makes me have a Big Limp.

So, after two weeks of that and it not going away, Mom phoned a vet here in Canada where we are now and she asked him if he would agree to allow her to pay in instalments for his services in looking at my foot. (A little backstory here: I came to Canada with my Mom and my Dad last year. I even flew in an airplane on the floor in front of my Mom’s legs. Because I am a VIP. That was Great Fun. What is Not So Much Fun is that Mom and Dad are still waiting for their application for permanent residence in Canada to be approved – and they are Not Allowed To Work until they have permanent residence. Now some people may find that hard to understand – why can’t they just get a work permit, they might wonder? It’s not allowed under the programme under which Mom and dad are applying for PR – and believe me, Moyo – if it was, they would be working like Mad.

So. Not being able to work at anything – Mom was even told she could not have her Etsy Shop where she was trying to sell some art) – we are as Poor as Church Mice. Probably Even Poorer.

We do have our Noahbago – an old Winnebago, that we live in and we are boondocking on a farm in British Columbia, eking out an existence and getting through our days as best we can until we can do stuff like work. To Earn a Living. And that day WILL come.

But until it does it means that we are like those Church Mice. Mom says she is the quintessential Trailer Trash Queen, even – her sofa in the little outside spot Dad made for her? It’s the back seat of an old abandoned car. And now Mom even has a GNOME! It was painted on a rock for her by a friend – so that Mom can have the Perfectly Fitting Garden Ornament for her Impecunious TTQ Existence.

What that also means is this:

The vet Mom took me to yesterday? He said there is a “growth” under my pad, which is big and terribly sore. He knows Mom can’t afford to do anything about it, so he suggested she just watch my foot. Keep an Eye On It, he said. Try to keep Moyo quiet and at your side, he said.

Mom said But what could it be, Doc?

And he said It may be Nothing At All. But it could Also be a Mast Cell Tumour.

Which has thrown my Mom into the Hugest Panic.

Oh, Moyo she said to me. Oh, my Most Precious Moyo. Why? Why do the Fine and The Innocent have to Suffer?

Even IF it’s not a Mast Cell Cancer, Moyo she said. Why do you have to be in pain? I HATE that you’re in pain, my Marvellous Moyo.

Doc? Said Mom. Tell me what you would do if there was an Abundance of Cash to Pay for Stuff…and he said Mom? I would do a BIOPSY on that Moyo Foot. I’d cut that Offending Lump right out.

Then I would test it to see Exactly What It Is and then I would Treat The Most Magnificent Moyo Accordingly.

If it’s a Nothing Lump (even if a Painful Lump) then it will be Out and Gone and we will sew That Foot Right Back Up and All Will Be Well.

IF it’s a Nasty MCT lump? Well, then, Mom he said – the sooner we Know and Do Something About It the Better it Will be for Moyo.

So. That’s what this Long Story is All About.

Mom said Moyo? Don’t you worry, my girl. I’m starting a Magnificent Moyo Go-Fund-Me Right NOW!

Here’s the thing, People –

The Vet has given Mom this breakdown of Anticipated Costs:

A. Surgery to Remove Lump: +/ CA$800.00

B. Biopsy of Lump: +/CA$155.00

C. Treatment After Surgery in non-threatening case: +/CA$350-$500 (includes all meds, post-op care, collar to stop removing stitches etc)

D. Treatment After Surgery in case of MCT: anywhere to CA$ 5,000 (but we are NOT going to worry about this one Just yet!!!)

So, to Start Off With, I am asking for donations to Reach a Goal of CA$1,500.

Doc says he will Discount Wherever He Possibly Can….

Mom’s aiming at first to Ask for Your Donations for the first three Instances (A,B,C)– we’re going to Hold Out Hope that it’s a Nothing Lump and that I can be Back Doing my Duties and my Playing in No Time At All….

IF it’s a Threatening Lump, (D)then we will address that next…

Mom says that this is what she is going to do. When the Target for A, B and C has been reached and its NOT THREATINING she will then donate Whatever Extra has been reached to a Charity. She will also then Hold a Lucky Draw…

Four Donors (Randomly selected) will then receive a pdf copy of the new book Mom is working on for me, Moyo. (an Advance and autographed copy)

IF it IS a Threatening Lump then any extra will be put towards my treatment, and Mom will also extend the end-goal of this Go-Fund-Me, Moyo– AND again, Mom will hold another Random Lucky Draw and send four people advance, autographed copies of my new book.

(Mom would love to send autographed paintings to Lucky Winners – but she worries about the cost of postage, given the situation – but Maybe, she can do an Overall Winner at the End and send one Autographed Painting.)

Thank you, Each and Every One of you who has read My Story and to those of you who give something to help with this – a Million More Thank Yous.

Please also feel free to Share my Story and Go-Fund-Me, Moyo – the more people I can reach the sooner we can achieve our goal and the sooner Mom can arrange for the Necessary Surgery and Stuff.

if you would like to donate towards a surgery/biopsy on my foot, you can do it in one of these ways:

1. Right here on my website through PayPal

2. Through PayPal itself... my email is moyoandcecil@gmail.com

3. Through my Facebook Fundraising - Help Moyo to Dance Again

4. Through my GoFundMe fundr-also called Help Moyo Dance again

or

5. You can donate straight to the Cheam Valley Vet in Young Road, Chilliwack, British Columbia... please note it for MOYO RADLOFF

Thank you with all my heart xxx