Sophie Girl

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So much time has gone by since I last posted… the first walk, the many fall-less climbs up and down the stair and finally the staples have come out. Sophie is so happy now that the cancer leg is gone, she is actually trying to sprint out to her favorite bunny spotting section of the yard. She hardly slips anymore and is so excited when we come home that she looks like she’s about to jump up into our arms. It is quite thrilling that she is so freshly excited for her life.

We did meet with the doggie oncologist and she was very honest about Sophie’s prognosis. She reports that she is quite the healthy puppy, other than having bone cancer. It turns out that because she is so young, her life expectancy is even shorter than an older dog. The cancer in young dogs is much more aggressive and there is hardly a chance that she will live to be a mature dog. These are all things we read about in our research, but it was a reality check to have that conversation with the specialist. We will be giving her the best life we can in whatever time is left… I’m sure many dogs here in the tripawds community are equally as spoiled. Sophie is getting so many new stuffed animals to cuddle and squeek. We actually received a get-well package with two animals for her to choose! She went for the dinosaur (her favorite). I think she is trying to break down her dad slowly night after night so that she can sleep next to him in our room instead of on the couch. I think he’s close to giving in, but he is just a stubborn as she is.

Tags: oncologist, prognosis, spoiled, week two

Tripawds is a user-supported community. Thank you for your support!

I saw this on Toby’s blog and I’m reposting because it pulls in so many ways at my heart. Hope you enjoy reading:

Fifteen Minutes of Fame
By Marty Becker

I dashed out an exit at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago and ran towards a waiting cab. I was greeted by a cab driver with a three-day-old beard, an old baseball cap and arms the size of tree trunks. As he tossed my bags into the trunk, he spotted my luggage tags and said, “What kind of doctor are you?”

“A veterinarian,” I said. Instantly, his grizzled face broke into a smile. This happens to veterinarians all the time, as people love to talk about their pets.

The doors slammed, he put the car into gear and hit me with this opening salvo, “My wife claims I love my toy poodle Missy more than I love her. Just once, she wants me to be as excited to see her as I am Missy. But Doc, it ain’t gonna happen. Ya see, when I get home from a long day in the cab, dead tired, I open the door and there are the two of them looking at me, Ma and Missy. Ma has a scowl on her face and is ready to tear into me. Missy, on the other hand, is shaking all over, she’s that happy – her face is grinning so wide, she could eat a banana sideways. Now who do you think I’m going to run to?”

I nodded my head in agreement because I understood his point only too well. He loved his wife, but he simply wanted permission to savor his fifteen minutes of fame.

Everybody gets fifteen minutes of fame once in his lifetime. We pet owners get our fifteen minutes every time we come home – or even return from the next room.

A few days after I saw the cab driver in Chicago, I returned home. I was tired from my travels and looking forward to seeing my family. Pulling into the driveway, I peered through the windshield, straining to catch a glimpse of my loved ones. My two children, Mikkel and Lex, are very close to good ol’ dad, but I didn’t see their faces pressed against the window looking for me. Nor did my beloved wife, Teresa, come running in super slow motion across the yard, arms open wide ready to embrace me.

But I didn’t despair. I knew I was still wanted, a Hollywood heartthrob, hometown hero to my two dogs: Scooter, a wire haired fox terrier, and, Sirloin, a black Labrador retriever!

As soon as I exited the pickup, Sirloin and Scooter charged to meet me. Their love-filled eyes danced with excitement, and their tail turbochargers whipped them into a delighted frenzy of fur.

Was this affection-connection routine, or ho-hum for me? Was I cool, calm and collected? Heck no. I turned into a blithering idiot as I got out of my truck and rushed to meet the hairy-princess, Scooter, and Sirloin, the fur-king.

There I stood, all these false layers stripped away, masks removed and performances canceled. It was my true self. Extra pounds, bad-hair day, angry people, travel strains, no matter. Scooter and Sirloin came to the emotional rescue and allowed me to drink in the sheer love and joy of the moment. I was drunk with contentment.

I was glad this took place in the privacy of my own home. What happened next might have spoiled my polished professional image. I immediately smiled, and raised my voice an octave or two, exclaiming, “Sirloin, yuz is daaaaddy’s boy, aren’t ya?” And, “Scooter have you been a good girl today? Yeah, you have, you’ve been a goooood girl!!”

They responded by turning inside out with delight, pressing themselves against my legs and talking to me. I felt as if I could tap directly into their wellspring of positive, healing energy. Gee, it was great to be home!

I bounded up the steps to find the rest of the family, heart open, stress gone and spirits restored by my fifteen minutes of fame.

"sitting pretty!"

Sophie had a very good day today, she seemed much less bothered by any stump pain and had only a minor trembling episode. She is much more confident in the backyard and has learned to slow herself down when descending the staircase. This evening she was actually sitting by herself and was doing an awesome job looking balanced. She’s tired now and I hope that her recovery will continue to have more good days ahead.

Tags: recovery, sitting, staircase

I have seen lots of tripawds on this site wearing a t-shirt. Does this really help? I wonder if anyone has traded the cone-o-shame for the t-shirt with luck… is this possible? Or does it mostly depend on the individual dog? Thanks so much for the advice!

Tags: t-shirt

Our journey with bone cancer begins in early November when we noticed that Sophie was limping around the house as her rear leg seemed to be hurt. We shook our head at this newest injury as our The Sophster was always getting in to trouble. She bolted out the balcony door too fast slamming her tough Rottie body along the frame as she went… or was it the 15lbs of dog food she ate one night that landed her in the vet promptly the next day… or the gash she got from the lawn edging during the April snow storm… this was just another one to mark on the list. But this time, it didn’t go away. She limped for two months, had three sets of X-rays done, a joint tap to check for infection, blood work for Valley Fever and finally the dreaded bone biopsy. Results were in: OSA had invaded her rear left leg. One final set of X-rays to see if it had spread and we had prepared ourselves for the worst. Had said our goodbyes and waited for the appointment. But it didn’t…the lungs were clear and we amputated right away. Now our Sophie girl is hopping around on three legs and seems to be healing up very well. She goes up and down stairs, hops around outside and even plays with her old toys. The worst parts now are the phantom pains and the trembling. She looks around like the stump has a life of it’s own and is confused when the pain arrives. I hear that the first two weeks are the worst, and this is only day 5…

Tags: amputation, OSA, phantom pain