So, wow... what a few days this has been. Swiss has left for South Dakota, someone has to be there to accept our household goods so he left this morning to head West. My new boss has been nothing shy of wonderful, they have let me postpone my start date until next week so that I can be with Fletch for his surgeries and take him home with me.
We still don't know much more about his diagnosis. Nothing has changed from what we last learned. Right now we are scheduled for an oncology appointment tomorrow and that will dictate surgery dates and give us an idea of what to expect. I know our little guy won't ever look the same, but I know he will bounce back and he'll still be the handsomest little stinker in my eyes. I think Swiss and I are coming to terms with the fact that we won't have Fletcher for nearly as long as we had hoped... it is still a shock to the system and it still breaks my heart, but we have already started spoiling him rotten and ensuring that whatever time he has with us will be full of love and pampering and frolics in the woods... and plenty of treats. I think we figure if we only have a limited time with him, we are going to have to cram in a lifetime of love in the coming months and years.
Our current dilemma is this. Do we stick with the local surgeon that seems competent (if a bit young) or hit the road and have the surgery done up at the University of Wisconsin's highly renowned Vet center? I mean, like my Dad said, do you want to look back a few years from now and wonder what if we had just gone to Madison? Realistically, with the diagnosis given, I don't think either one of them are going to be able to make this thing go away forever... but what if it is the difference between one year with him and two years? What would you do?
In any event, please send more puppy love and wishes Fletcher's way. He definitely still needs it and says thanks for all the kind thoughts and prayers you've already been lobbing his way. I'll keep y'all posted when we know more (hopefully tomorrow).
2 comments:
All the best to you and your little furry Fletcher! I hope the oncology appointment went well, and you have more information and plan for the course of treatment.
Hugs from Alaska!
Hi. I found your blog via Tsoniki on Twitter. Your Heartbroken post made me cry. My bulldog, Julio, was diagnosed with cancer eight weeks ago. Since then it has been a whirlwind of vet visits, hospital stays, pills and more pills and lots of tears.
He has T-Cell Lymphoma of the skin. It's rare and aggressive. Surgery is not an option, radiation at this point is not an option either so we are doing chemotherapy. His prognosis is 8-10 months.
Looking back, I think he's been fighting this cancer for about a year. We just didn't know it and the handful of vets we consulted didn't spot it. It pains me to know that he was fighting it on his own for so long. I've already thought about what I could have done or should have done differently. Cried about the wasted time, etc. I just keep reminding myself that I can't change what's happened, I can only do my best to make sure he gets the best care I can give him and pray that he enjoys the time he has.
For whatever reason, it was discovered after my husband deployed. The hardest part of it all was telling my husband. We have had Julio since he was two months old. He has been a huge part of our lives and seven years has not been enough time. No where near enough. We have another bulldog who has spent his entire life with Julio... it breaks my heart that one day he will lose his brother. :(
But we're not going to worry about that now. For now, we will enjoy the time we have and we will kick ass and fight this cancer for as long as we can. We have way too much to do and see once Daddy comes home. And Julio deserves to be surrounded by love and happiness, not sadness and regret.
I wish you and Fletcher lots of happy and healthy days together. We will add you both to our prayers.
Take care.
Angela
PS. There are two books on Amazon Kindle that you might find useful. One is called 42 Rules to Fight Dog Cancer and the other is Help Your Dog Fight Cancer. They both recommend keeping a log of treatments and notable events, which has already come in handy for us. Oddly, keeping track of what he's taking, how he feels, etc. has helped me feel not quite so helpless. O.o
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