Dawg Update

It's not going to be a happy ride, but ride we will.

The test results from the aspirated lymphnodes came back yesterday. It has been diagnosed as "immune high grade malignant lymphoma", which in lay people's terms means "it sucks and is spreading quickly".

We started him on the prednozone Friday night. We were told to watch for excessive drinking and urinating, along with laboured breathing. If we saw any of that, the dose was too high and we'd have to adjust. So far, a little more drinking than usual but nothing to be concerned about. He's still making it through the night without having an accident in the house.

What sucks is that if I didn't know he was sick, I would never know he's sick.

He's eating like a horse. He's a little slower on our walks, but his coat is beautiful, and for the first time since we've had him, he's not drooling nearly as much as usual.

He's loving the extra attention and treats. I'm curling up on the floor with him regularly. He lays his head in my lap and cuddles in.

We are going to switch him to a low protein diet tomorrow. The vet consulted with the food company we've always bought from - there's some research out there that says a higher fat diet that is lower in protein and sugar doesn't give the cancer the energy it needs. I'm completely into stealing cancer's energy. Completely.

I'm trying so hard to focus on the good days and nights. I'm trying to enjoy the minutes, hours and days we're having together.

Then something happens like HB walks into the house, like he did last night. And Big Dawg goes bounding over to him, tail wagging, so delighted to see his dad. And they wrestle a bit.

And I see the sole tear sneak out of HB's eye.

And my heart breaks.