Chemo Update

Hello, Lily here. I haven't posted for a while, mainly because there wasn't a lot to tell. Overall, I feel pretty darn good for a 3-legged dog with cancer.  I don't have a lot of unpleasant side effects from the chemo so far. However, today I had the "big chemo" treatment where my mom and dad had to leave me so I could be monitored during the treatment. My wonderful Dr. Torres, assured my pawrents that I will have some poops and upset tummy problems within 48 hours and they could last a few days.  I'm really hoping that isn't the case,  as is my momma and especially my dad.  He isn't a fan of cleaning up  poop and puke.

One of the positive side effects, if you can call it that, is that the prednisone makes me super hungry. I want to eat All.The.Time.  And I figured out that if I just stand there and keep barking, someone will give me food.  My fursisters don't get this luxury treatment (ha ha). I have really got my pawrents trained!

The problem I've had with my chemo is that my white blood count goes pretty low and it delays some of my chemo treatments. That has allowed some of my lymphoma bumps to return, which worries my pawrents.  We were all very happy that I was able to actually get the chemo today. We gotta kick cancers a$$.

My pawrents go out of their way to make sure that I get outside more often on walks and they take me more places - just cuz.  But they bring my fursisters and sometimes they just annoy me. Especially Annie...she's so hyper. Mavis is pretty chill, so she doesn't get on my nerves as bad.

I have lots of chemo left - so keep up the good thoughts and prayers.  Here is a picture of me and my sweet Dr. Torres from this morning.  I love all the people at Veterinary Internal Medicine. They treat me so good!  If you are sick...you should go there. Tomorrow, I go see Dr. Verna for some chiropractic work and a refill on my chinese herbals, which also help fight the cancer.

GO TEAM LILY!

Three Chemo Treatments in....

Hello, Lily here.

So far I've had 3 chemo treatments and the side effects have not been too bad. I haven't puked anywhere, which is good.  I hate puking and mom hates cleaning it up.

My last treatment was on Friday - and it was 3 days later than normally scheduled because Dr. Torres said my white count was too low.

I'm pretty much back to my old self - the only things I can't do are jump up on the couch or bed, but my pawrents help with that.

Here is a picture of me with Annie - one of my fursisters. She was bugging me while I was trying t look out the window, so I had to tell her to back off a bit. She doesn't listen to me very well. (You can't tell I only have 3 legs in his picture).

I do have some sad news to report.  Our old kitty sister, Callie, crossed the rainbow bridge on Tuesday.  She was very old and had developed a heart condition.  My pawrents are sad that it was her time, but they gave her a good home for 17 years. She's now healthy and hanging out with my pawrents other furbabies that have crossed the bridge, Max, Shelby, Critter, Chef, and Bits.  RIP Callie Sue.

One of the "perks"  (if there can be a perk with cancer) of being sick is that my dad feeds me stuff called Super Food. Super foods are high in Omega 3's and other nutrients that help me stay extra healthy during chemo. One of the foods he feds me is sardines.  Yes...sardines. My mom gags and runs away - but I like them. And they do make me feel stronger.

My next chemo is on Monday, March 20th. That is a big appointment and I'm a little nervous. I have to be at the vet all day and be monitored because it's a very strong drug that I will receive in an IV ( I hate the IV). But I'm going to be a trooper and I know I will be just fine.

Thanks for reading my blog.  And if you need help with a Tripawd or Dog Cancer, be sure to check out the links.

Remember - Cancer is a word, not a sentence.

30 days Post Surgery

It's been 32 days since I had my leg amputated.  My pawrents were really concerned about me.  Even though they read up on Tripawd dogs, they were worried.

Dr. B. told my pawrents to think of it as removing the pain - not the leg.  Dr. B. was right.  Once I healed from the surgery, I felt so much better! That leg was really hurting me and having it hang on me just made me feel bad.  Taking it was the best choice, especially since it had cancer in the bone. There is even a website about Tripawds.


Today, I can go up and down steps. Go on walks. I chased the rabbit in our yard the other day. I'm not nearly as fast, but I gave it my best shot. I sometimes like it when my mom will carry me up and down the steps and pretend I can't do it. She gets some homemade jerky my dad made and when I see that - I forget I'm faking it and run up for the treat! Who can turn down homemade beef jerky? My dad made it special for me. I still need help getting up on the couch, but my dad said he would make me a ramp.


Being a Tripawd doesn't suck - Cancer does.

 Next update I'll chat about my second chemo treatment.

Love, Lily

I'm not an only dog.....

I have fur-sisters.  Two of them.  Annie and Mavis.  My pawrents got me first and I'm definitely the alpha dog, aka The Sheriff. I don't put with any foolishness from the other two.

They are good pups, but just more silly than I think is necessary at times, so they need to be put back in their places.

Annie and Mavis have been pretty good since I've been sick, although Mom has to remind them to not knock me over. They always get all up in my business when I get home from the vet, probably because I have different smells on me, but really.....how many times do you need to sniff my bootie?

They are pretty cute, although I am by far, the most attractive of the pack, if I do say so myself.

 This is Mavis.  She just got here in January.  She is fitting in very well. She is very sweet and she loves to snuggle with my daddy.

This is Annie.  She's been here for a couple of years.  She's got a giant personality and she can jump really, really high.

This is a picture of me and my pawrents from September. Before anyone knew I was sick and I still had 4 legs.

Chemotherapy - Treatment Begins

Dr. Torres told my pawrents and me, that I had something called Lymphoma - and that to help me get better I would need medicine called chemotherapy. She told us that I would need 25 weeks of treatment and we needed to start right away.

So my first treatment wasn't so bad.  I just got a shot and we waited around for 30 minutes to be sure there was no reaction.  I didn't get sick or anything. I took extra naps, but that was it.  But Dr. Torres explained that the treatments would vary and some weeks I'd have to stay at the hospital all day for monitoring because some of the drugs can make me very sick, in addition to killing cancer cells.

Everyone is so nice to me at VRC-NOVA . They make me feel like a rock star when I come in.  I'm going to have my mom bake them something yummy!

Next up - Life as a TriPawd - How I'm getting around.

Learning about Canine Cancer

My mom has had to learn a lot about canine cancer really fast. Both my pawrents wanted to give me the best chance to beat cancer and live a long time.  I'm kinda glad about that.  I have lots more walks to take, balls to fetch, and love to share.

My mom has been reading books and online articles.  Once of the best books that she has been reading is the The Cancer Survival Guide. This book is pretty big and since I can't read, I've had to let mom take care of this part of my treatment. She uses a yellow marker and some little sticky pieces of paper to mark places she wants to go back to.  She spends time reading parts of the book out loud to my dad.

My regular vet, Dr. Dove, at Companion Animal Clinic, is the one who sent us over to Veterinary Referral Center. Dr. Bradley did my surgery and Dr. Torres is handling my chemotherapy. Since my mom believes in holistic treatment as well, Dr. Rebecca Verna at Paws for Holistic Pet Care, is handling my accupuncture and massage therapy which helps me handle the side effects from the Chemo. She also prescribed some things called chinese herbals and some other pills called Apocaps CX and K9 Immunity. These pills help my body become healthier and fight the nasty cancer cells in my body.  I have a great medical team assembled and we are all working hard to beat this disease. My mom also changed what I eat something called RAW - because what you eat really makes a difference when you are fighting cancer.  I'll tell you about the food another time.

In my next post, I'll tell you about my first chemo treatment.




 

My Leg Was Hurting

In early January, I started limping and not using my right rear leg.  It had been hurting for a little while, but I'm a tough girl AND the alpha dog in the house, so letting anyone see me in pain is not how I roll.  However, eventually it hurt to get on the couch and go up and down the steps.

My last night at home with 4 legs.

My pawrents thought it was my knee cap issue known as a luxating patella. So my mom took me to the vet.  They took a look at me and gave me some meds for inflammation and pain, but over the weekend I got worse. So mom called my doctor and made an appointment with a holistic vet. She thought since the chiropractor helps her, they could help me too.

Resting at home after surgery

I liked Dr. V. She was very sweet to me, but she was concerned about my limping and told my mom that I needed a sedation x-ray to see what was going on with my leg.  It took a week, but we finally got it. Dr. D. called my mom to the back for a talk and to show her my x-rays.  He told my mom that there was something bad going on in a bone called the femur and that it was either a bone infection or cancer. My mom was very scared.  I wasn't sure what they were talking about, but I knew my mom was upset.  My leg was hurting all the time now, but I knew my pawrents would do everything they could to make me feel better, cuz that's what your pawrents are supposed to do.  Dr. D. said that most likely, I would need me leg amputated! What the heck? I'm just a little girl who needed all my legs...I liked it that way.

My first day home.  I hated the cone, but I couldn't resist licking.

On February 1st, I went to another nice doctor office and met Dr. B. He came right up to me and talked to me and petted me. I liked him.  Then he talked to my pawrents and said that my leg was never going to get better and it needed to be removed. My mom and dad were very sad and concerned, but they knew that to make me feel better, that I would need to become a TriPawd doggie. So my mom and dad carried me back to the surgery area. Mom brought my blankie, so I would feel better while I waited for surgery. The people there were all very nice to me.  That was my last day with 4 legs.