Sassy's Tripawd Journey

We made it to your birthday.  What an amazing feat 🙂  You are doing so great and momma loves you.  I can’t believe 7 years ago you came into my life.  Love you lots and lots.  This journey has made me realize it even more.

So we want to share a bunch of our birthday party pictures with you all  🙂

Sassy’s Family Her gma Marilee in the top, Gabe (cousin 1st cupcake) Me & Sassy (I hate my picture) Sassy’s uncle Marty (my brother) & Cousin Grace.  Then the cake & the steak was her dinner a Sirloin steak and a few with her brother Bosch.

Well, it wasn’t even quite 2 weeks and Sassy started having more problems.  We went to took urine in to have a urine run to see if any blood.  Dr Boyer called back & said there were a few cells but what was in the normal range.  She wanted to consult with the oncologist & have a bladder tap with ultrasound done.  So right after work Sassy & I flew (drove as fast as we could) to the vet’s office so we could get that done and have a culture on there.

Before we got there Dr Truax (the dr who did Sassy’s amputation) had talked to the Oncologist because Dr Boyer had the afternoon off.  Well, they wanted us to immediately stop the Cyclophosphamide.  I convinced them with the mets to let me do every other day until we got the new drugs.  He was fine with that.  So we won’t have the culture results back until Monday.

Found out that the correct dose for Sassy’s size of Chlorambucil will be 6mg.  So my guessing was right and it will cost $80.00 at Apex pharmacy  for 30 tablets which is higher than the Cyclophosphamide.  that for 30 pills was 56.70.  We got prices at several pharmacies  Diamondback Drugs for 30 pills of 6 mg was 94.50.   So we will probably go with the Apex pharmacy.  Thanks to Jackson’s mom Katy for giving us this information in her post.    We will also still be doing the NSAID (Rimadyl) with it.  We will be monitoring white cell counts a little more close as I was told this one was a little harsher on white blood cells.  So blood will be checked weekly for the first few weeks.  Then every 3-4 weeks like we do now.

Otherwise we are still doing great.  No coughing etc yet.  She feels good.

So hopefully by midweek next week we will be starting our new drug protocol.

Hugs

Michelle & Sassy  

Got the call this morning blood work came back all great.  Dr Boyer said ” Blood work came back excellant” .  See you in a month.  Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy such a relief.  🙂   I always hold myself in reserve just because we never know until we get the results back.

Today July 14, 2013 I feel we have hit a huge milestone.  Who says a dog with Osteo can’t live beyond the odds.  Especially one who has had mets for 5 months.  This is so great.  I treasure every day I have with her.  Although some days I am sure she is ready to trade me for someone else.  LOL.   I give her the pills, make her take her food & yogurt.  But we have some great time with snuggles & getting to go for rides.

Looking back, I always wondered deep in the back of my mind if we would reach this milestone.  Yeah, I was trying to stay positive & say we would but there is always that little spot in the back of your mind where you don’t really know.  I am so greatful that we keep proving the stats wrong and hopefully will continue to.  Every appointment that we go to we continue to get good news about how her lungs still sound clear and that she is doing great.  Blood work looks good, urine tests back to normal.  Only a slight set back with that small uti but it was just that and not caused by the Cytoxin.  Which can be a side affect in female dogs especially.   One word AMAZING.  That is what Dr Boyer keeps saying.  She is just amazing.

So we thought we would share some pictures and if I can figure it out a small video

We hope you enjoy these

Everything still is going good but one slight backstep.  My baby girl started to get a uti.  I caught it early enough by knowing her peeing habit.  She is on a leash or i am with her at all times.  So when she started peeing a lot more than the normal 1 time or 2 times I started to wonder.  Then today it was 3 times and the last time nothing came out.  Positive notes though, lung fields still sound clear, no other lumps or bumps, felt tummy no lumps there either.  So that’s an A+

Called the vet before I had to work and got the only open appointment this weekend.  I think they squeezed us in knowing she is on cytoxin & a cancer patient.  Well they took the urine sample.  Did the strip test (for blood) nothing showed up.  When they spun the urine down there were very few red blood cells, lots of white cells & bacteria.  So needless to say Ms Sugar Bear is on antibiotics.  Clavamox/combo with something I can’t remember what but I can tell you it was $90.00.  We will recheck next week at our scheduled Metronomics appointment.   The good thing is that so far Dr Truax (Dr Boyer’s day off) he did Sassy’s amputation thinks this is a normal uti and not from the Cytoxin but we will discuss further if no improvement by next week.

So not only added the Clavamox right now but I added a cranberry pill to the regimine.  Cranberrry is good for uti.

Hugs

Michelle & Sassy

HOPPY 7 MONTH AMPUVERSARY BABY GIRL.  You are my sweet pea and Sugar Bear.

Wow, I honestly can’t believe its been 7 months.  It seems just like yesterday I was sitting at home while working waiting to hear how Sassy was doing.  I kept wondering if she would be ok.  What it would be like to have a Tripawd.  This journey to say the least has been amazing in itsself.  We are continuing to beat odds that we thought we would never get the chance to do.

Every day that I have with Sassy is a HUGE Blessing.  When we got the met diagnosis I was sure I would only have a few weeks but she PROVED ME wrong and continues to amaze me every day with the things that she does.  Yes, don’t get me wrong there are days we are tired and if its hot & humid it really bothers us but we continue on.  We just don’t spend much time outside.  Long enough to go potty and right back in.  Days its cooler & not so humid we walk the yard and sit outside for awhile.

Sassy is still eating her hamburger, Goats milk & Yogurt diet.  BUT, She did eat some dry Merrick the chicken, pea & brown rice kind with a little hamburger on top & some canned grain free foods from Natural Balance.  So maybe we can kinda slowly get her back on dog food LOL.  I know I am kidding myself though.  She is pretty spoiled.  She probably will always get her hamburger & goats milk.  I know the yogurt she has always had.

Can’t believe we are over 1/2 way to a year.  We will make this  🙂  I am going to keep the positive thought coming and Sassy and I will do our parts and God willing we will make it to a year.  And all those guardian angels will help out.

So I am going to enclose some pictures of Sassy today.  I will probably add more later since I didn’t have much time to take some of her & I together only a few.

Also I never took a picture of the necklace I had Rene make me that the only time it comes off is to sleep & shower.  I wear this thing every day.  I did forget to add we ordered it, the US Mail took the long way around like to Nevada and this necklace showed up the same day as we had our diagnosis of Mets.  So we consider it our good luck charm on this part of our Journey.

This is how she spends her day while I am working

Just lounging on the bed  Bosch in the front & Sassy towards the back 

This is this morning after I got of the shower   Happy 7 month ampuversary Baby  

Well Sassy had her 3 months on Metronomics.  Everything looks good.  White cell count was a little elevated and we took a closer look with that with a blood smear slide.  Cells looked fine and nothing indicating anything major to worry about that way.  Dr Boyer thinks that it is caused from the mets being there and so it did elevate the white cell counts.  NO  blood in the urine which is good.  Lung still sound CLEAR.  They are all amazed that Sassy is doing so great.  Next Friday is our 7 month ampuversary.  The clinic is just amazed at how well she has adjusted and is continuing to do so well.  So we know we have some great guardian angels that are helping things along.

Just to let everyone know the heat/humidity does slow us down a little but we are still running & chasing squirrels & deer.  🙂   So as long as we are doing all of the above and eating our hamburger, yogurt, & goats milk things are going good.    We are trying to add a few new things in there too.  I got Sassy to actually eat some dog food it was some canned food (Natural Balance grain free stew) mixed in her hamburger but she did eat it.  I feel some what better if I can continue to get her to eat.  🙂

Bosch also had an appointment.  He had a follow up to his blood in his urine.  Good news there no blood in the urine.  We are going to continue with another 5 weeks of antibiotics since he is responding to the treatment.  Dr Boyer feels that it was a prostrate problem.  Which doesn’t seem like good news but to me it is as he has that small cyst on his kidney that could have been causing the problem.  With the responding to the antibiotics just means that wasn’t the case.  Yay.

Yay, I finally got the portrait picked up.  Now just to find the right place on the wall.  I think I have one but I will have to move another picture around to put it there but that is ok.

This is Taylor Burkum with Sassy he is the one who drew the beautiful picture

This is the picture in the Studio when I went to pick it up

Things are good with Sassy still.  She is enjoying the day with mommy.  Big brother Bosch had to go in for a procedure for a Ultrasound & urine tap.  Well, no stones in the bladder, prostrate gland looks good for him.  But still found blood in the urine and also a cyst on his kidney.  The cyst could be what is causing the blood or still a UTI.  The urine will be sent out for a culture.  We should have those results back late Friday or Saturday sometime.  Considering antibiotics so he can get the infection that he has on his foot under control.    We will recheck the cyst in 3 months to see if it has grown or not.  Dr Boyer said it doesn’t look bad but we want to keep a good eye on it.