Amazing News

Yesterday morning I had an appointment with Oncology at the University of Illinois Veterinary Medicine Hospital.  It was a consultation with a specialist because of the pretty bad news we got last week from my regular vet about the tumor they removed from my hiney.

But guess what???  We got AMAZING news from the specialist!

Turns out that there was  little miscommunication about my tumor and diagnosis.  Last week they said that this type of tumor will metastasize within a year in 50 to 90% of cases.  Yesterday we found out that this type of tumor only spreads 4% of the time.  And, considering how long the lump was on my hiney, the vet said that if it was going to spread, it probably would have already.

And you know all of those tests we did this spring on my liver?  If the cancer had spread, those tests would have picked it up!  All of those tests came back fine, though.

The pathology lab said that they found mast cells in the margins after they re-evaluated the tumor.  BUT the vet yesterday said that those types of cells are produced by my body normally because of my skin allergies.  I've probably got 'em all over.  So the cells the lab found are probably nothing at all to worry about. The tumor was probably encapsulated after all.

You know how the vet yesterday said to treat my cancer?  He said to make sure I get a good all-over check-up every six months.  And he told Mom that's normal for any dog my age.

So that's it!  No more vet visits in our near future.  YEAH!

My Aunt Katie visited us yesterday and went to the vet with Mom and me.  She brought her fancy camera with her and wanted to take some pictures of us, too. All of the pics in this blog post are from Aunt Katie.

Mom made me wear my bow for one picture.

And we took pictures in the park by our house, too.

Mom thinks the fire hydrant poop bag holder she's got dangling from her hand here is a nice touch:

Aunt Katie rocks.  And getting GOOD news from a vet for once rocks.  Mom & I are definitely doing our happy dance today!  And thanks to all of you for your prayers and good thoughts through all of this. You rock, too!
   

Another Vet, Another Opinion

If you've been following along, then you know that I've had some health issues going on for the last few months. Way, way, way back in February Mom took me in to have my teeth cleaned and my big lump removed, but the vet said my liver was wonky and we couldn't do that stuff.

So since then, we've been trying to figure out why I'm wonky.  Lots and lots of tests.  I've been poked, prodded, x-rayed, ultrasound-ed, and poked some more.

On Monday, Mom took things to a new level.  We went to the Veterinary Hospital for another opinion.

I was anxiously watching people coming around the corner to the lobby. Mom took this picture right when a vet student came out to say "hi" to us.

The student got all of my info and talked to Mom for a while. Then she listened to my tummy and gave me some pets and looked in my ears.

When the student left, I hid under Mom's chair and refused to come out.

I stayed put under that chair, even with the student returned with the vet.  Mom rudely pulled me out from under the chair so that the vet could examine me.  RUDE, Mom, RUDE.

Anyway, I went into the back of the hospital with the vet and the student, and they did more poking, prodding, and examining back there.  Eventually, they brought me out to stay with Mom in the lobby.  I promptly hid under the chair there, of course.

So, here's the scoop on what the vet hospital thinks...

My liver is wonky.  The tests proved it's still wonky.  The vet said, though, that we may never be able to figure out why it's wonky like this.  I'm not showing any signs of problems...just an elevation in my blood work.  So, the vet said that Mom didn't need to worry about it anymore.  If I start to show signs of problems...then we'll look into possible causes again.  Until then, though, Mom's just supposed to keep and eye on things and give me extra toys and bacon.  (O.K., so maybe I added in that last part...)

The only real downside to the visit was that the vet put me on antibiotics.  The vet and the student took me back to recheck my blood pressure.  When we came back out the vet told Mom that I had infected anal glands.  She said she'd never seen that shade of neon green come from a doggie's anal glands before. Mom said she wants to know how they checked my blood pressure...

I told her that what happens at the vet hospital stays at the vet hospital...
       

Liver Not-News

The vet called with the results of the blood work from last week. And the news was really not-news. We got nothing.  My thyroid is fine. My cholesterol and triglycerides are a little high, but not high enough to do anything to my liver.

Yes, it's wonderful that everything is o.k.  The problem, however, is that we still don't know why my liver is being wonky.

The vet is out of ideas, too.  So, our options are:

1. Have my vet do a very-expensive, very-invasive liver biopsy. (Mom says it's not an option.)
2. Go to the local university animal hospital for another opinion. (They're very expensive.)
3. Have the vet research and find a specialist to go to in a big city.  (Expensive, plus lots of travel.)

Mom's got some stuff to think about now.  

On a completely unrelated note, please enjoy this photo of me, drenched from poopin' in the rain, attacking a massive caterpillar...

         

Vets and Tests

It's been a little while since I've updated you on my liver issues. So, here goes...

Back in February I was supposed to have surgery to take off my butt lump, but my blood work came back wonky. One of my liver enzymes was too high.  The vet did lots of tests that week, but couldn't figure out why the level was so high. So, we decided to just try a new medicine to see if that helped.

I took the new pills for a little over a month, and then Mom took me back to the vet to see if they helped.  Unfortunately, the results weren't so good. Instead of going down, the liver enzyme level went way, way higher.

Mom talked to the vet and they decided to do an ultrasound on my tummy. So I went to a different vet's office for that.  They shaved my entire belly...did the ultrasound...and even took "samples" of my liver with needles.  OUCH.

With my allergies and the shaved fur, I scratched myself raw over the next few days.  You can kinda see one of the red spots on my side here:

And I did my best to be super, duper pathetic.  One time, Mom even brought me breakfast in my doggie bed!

After all of that, you know what the ultrasound told us?  NOTHING!  That's right...we still have no idea why my enzyme level is high.

This afternoon I have to go back to the vet for some more blood work. Mom says we're going to check my cholesterol, triglycerides, and thyroid.

Unfortunately, Mom also decided that I had to be CLEAN to go see the vet. That meant a bath...

Here I am waiting to be freed from the bathroom....with a couple of toys nearby, of course.

Plucking on a squirrel while Mom attempted to blow dry my furs:

I plucked like crazy once the squirrel and I were liberated from the bathroom of torture.

Then I actually fell asleep with the squirrel in my mouth.

Squirrel butt.  (HE HE HE)

This morning, Mom refused to give me any breakfast.  She put away all of my bully sticks, too.  So, naturally, I tried to insist she bring out the goods.  I barked nonstop for a while.

Then Mom got out the spray bottle and squirted me.

The woman just doesn't understand...

Mom says we won't have any of the test results until later this week.  We're both tired of tests and waiting...
   

Liver News and Allergy Pills

It appears that I have neglected to update my blog in quite some time.  I blame Mom, of course.  After all, if anything goes wrong around here, it's always her fault.

So, I was supposed to have surgery last month to take the lump off of my hiney.  Well, the lump's still there.  The vet postponed my surgery until my liver enzyme levels are better. One of my enzyme levels is way, way, way high.

The vet did lots and lots and lots of tests on lots of different days, and they couldn't figure out what's wrong.

So the vet gave us three options.  We could do a liver biopsy to see if that gave us an answer. Or we could go to a vet at the vet hospital to have more tests. Or we could stop trying to diagnose the issue and just treat the problem with a medicine to see if it helps.

Mom told the vet that she didn't want me to have to go through any more icky tests like that. (I whole-heartedly agreed!)  So, I started on a new medicine.  I'm supposed to take the new pill every day for a month, and then the vet will check my enzyme level again.  That will tell us if the medicine helps.

While I was having all of those tests, Mom stopped giving me my secondary allergy pills.  I get one main allergy medicine every day, and then the secondary ones when my itchies are bad.  I haven't been as itchy, so Mom stopped that second med to see what would happen.

BUT she was not expecting what happened...

The reappearance of CRAZY BUTTONS!

Mom thought I'd calmed down over the last year because I was getting older. What she discovered, however, was that it was mainly the allergy pills!

I've been dumping over the trash again regularly.  And I'm rolling on toys and playing a lot more now, too. And of course I'm into stuff again.  'Cause that's how I roll.

Mom says the secondary allergy pills are being put away for as long as possible.  She's tired of picking up the garbage after me, but she loves my crazy side way too much to let the garbage bother her...

Of course she loves my cute, sleepy side, too.  But in all honesty, who could resist THAT?!
   

Visit to the Special Vet

On Monday, Mom decided to take me to see a special vet because I'm still having some tummy problems. Seemed like it took forever for the vet to come into our little room. I sat in the window while we waited.

Did a lot of people-watching out the window, too. There were a lot of people out there!

The special vet did lots and lots of tests. It wasn't very fun, so I'm not divulging info on those. What happens at the special vet's office, stays at the special vet's office.

Here's how I felt by the time I got to go home HOURS later...

The good news is that the tests didn't show any icky bad stuff. Bad news is that we still don't know what's wrong with my tummy. But we're trying some new things to see if they help.

Mom's been putting this yummy powder stuff on my food this week. She said something 'bout the powder being for any sneaky bugs that might be hiding in my tummy. If my tummy gets better this week, then I'll get another week of powder later on. If the powder doesn't help my tummy, then Mom says we'll try something else. So, we'll see!

I finally recovered from all of the icky tests, though. Mom and I went to see our neighbor tonight and she gave me some squeaky fries! They're super loud, too, so I LOVE squeaking 'em.

Yeah, Mom and I couldn't decide which of those two videos we liked the most so we showed you both!

Anyway, I rolled and squeaked until I had to take a break in my couch.

It's been quite a week, you know.