Help Save Melvin

One of the best things about the Seattle vegan scene is our ability to come together to help each other and the animals. This town has heart. No lie. I don't even know John Raftery, but some of my raddest friends do. So when I was asked to help Johns dogfriend Melvin. I didn't even hesitate.

Lets meet Melvin.

Melvin is a 6 year old pitbull that has lived with John Raftery Heather Flanders since he was 8 weeks old. He's a vegan pup who enjoys watermelon, sniffing butts, tug of war, and long walks on the beach. He's a loving, social, and playful sweetheart, and deserves a chance to enjoy the rest of his life.

Melvin recently developed a trigeminal nerve sheath tumor in the left side of his head. He has massive muscle loss in his chewing muscles because the nerve the tumor is attached to is connected to them. It isn't causing him any discomfort yet but if it goes untreated it will kill him in a few months.

The treatment he needs is a type of radio-surgery called Cyber Knife, it's a single session dose of concentrated radiation to the tumor. Cyber Knife is not a surgery but is called 'radio-surgery' because it's almost as effective as surgery which he is not able to have because of the tumor's location. The cost of the treatment is $7,800.

Here's what you can do:

Make a Donation
Also visit melvindog.blogspot.com for updates on Melvins condition.

Get a Tattoo
John is a badass tattoo artist at Dare Devil Tattoo in New York, focusing on pre-war style American traditional tattoos. He moved to NYC in May, but before that he was inking Seattle vegans at Emerald City.

John will be a guest artist at Under the Needle Tattoo in Seattle on the following dates:

2/23/2011
2/24/2011
3/1/2011

Email John at rafterytattoo@gmail.com to book an appointment (you know you want to!)

Buy a Button
You can find these adorable Melvin buttons at the ButtonMakers.net store at 6012 12th Ave S in Georgetown. You may also see them at shows. If you do, definitely buy one. 100% of the money you give goes to Melvin.

Go see Parasitic Skies on their upcoming tour

Parasitic Skies is John's vegan straight edge hardcore band. (hell yeah!) They're planning a west coast tour. You can find the aforementioned buttons, vegan baked goods, and other fund raising activities at their shows to benefit Melvin. Here's the tour info:

2/23/2011 - The Black Lodge, Seattle WA
2/24/2011 - The Red Room, Tacoma WA
2/25/2011 - The Black Rose, Portland OR
2/26/2011 - Brae's Place, Moses Lake WA
2/27/2011 - The Northern, Olympia WA