Truly, America loves its celebrities. Even ones with wet noses and four legs. Asked to name a few, you might list Rin Tin Tin and Lassie. Maybe Checkers or Benji. Oh yes, and Zelda.
Who's Zelda? A canine star for today's generation. A doggie diva who has made the talk show rounds, appearing on Oprah, Good Morning America, the Today Show, Martha Stewart, and more. A survivor who has outlived cancer, not to mention her own life expectancy.
This sassy English Bulldog rose to fame as the star of Zelda Wisdom, a wildly successful business venture by Zelda's owner, Carol Gardner. Combining Zelda's costumed poses with Gardner's funny, heartwarming captions, the company designs greeting cards, calendars, books, figurines and dozens of other items. "I think there have been close to 200 Zelda products," Gardner exclaims, "It's pretty amazing."
Zelda's high-profile image has given her the opportunity to help raise awareness for worthy causes such as the Delta Society and Pet Peace of Mind, both organizations that promote the power of animals to heal human suffering.
In September 2008, Gardner had a lunch date with a representative from the Morris Animal Foundation, well known for its Canine Cancer Campaign. She recalls that Steve Strand, CFO of Pets Best Insurance, had urged the two to get together. "He said 'you've just got to meet them because the work they're doing on cancer is extraordinary.' The irony of it was that Zelda didn't have cancer at the time."
Just a week before her lunch date, she discovered a lump on Zelda's leg. It was a mast cell tumor, a common form of cancer in Bulldogs. "All of a sudden," says Gardner, "Zelda was a cancer victim. I don't like to use the word 'victim,' though, because Zelda is tougher than that. She's a survivor."
Zelda's tumor was removed, but several weeks later, Gardner says, she discovered another one. "They removed the second tumor and did an entire search of her body and they checked her spleen, her bone marrow, everything," to be absolutely sure that the cancer had not spread.
Treating cancer in dogs can be very expensive, but the good news for Zelda is that she was covered by a Pets Best health insurance policy. Pets Best covers all kinds of cancer treatments, including surgery and medicine such as Palladia, a new prescription drug that has been proven to fight mast cell tumors like Zelda's.
It was a frightening ordeal, but Gardner, who can find a silver lining even in the blackest cloud, found relief in the fact that Zelda was insured. "Pets Best was right there. It was extraordinary how quickly our claim was taken care of. Zelda had her surgery, I sent in the claim, and I swear within two weeks a check was in our mailbox."
Now, nine months later, Zelda is fully recovered and cancer-free. And Gardner is an enthusiastic supporter of both Pets Best and the Morris Animal Foundation. "I brag about them to everybody," she says.
Though Bulldogs rarely live more than 10 years, Zelda celebrated her 13th birthday (that's 91 in dog years!) on May 1st, 2009, with a star-studded media event in her hometown of Portland, Oregon. She presided over the festivities sitting on a throne, wearing a tiara and a high Victorian-style lace collar.
Zelda loves the limelight, Gardner says, "because that's when she's in her element. She just adores the attention." She's more popular than ever, with 15 books in her canon and a steady stream of newly licensed products-her image appears on everything from dog beds to frosted sugar cookies.
People relate to her, explains Gardner, because "there's a little Zelda in all of us."
"She's a good model for all dogs. To look at her and go, 'you know, you go through some tough times, but you give it your all and you keep on woofing.'"
