Hello!

I just wanted to post a brief update to let you know what I know so far.

Mac’s surgery was yesterday, around 4p, and as of today he seems to be doing well. The surgeon’s assistant told me he wasn’t very hungry last night, which is normal, but he ate his kibble this morning that we gave them. Yay!

It is unfortunate that the hospital has waxed concrete floors, which was slippery even when Mac had 4 legs. So that is a struggle, but they said he is ‘figuring things out,’ and doing well.

He is still on injectable pain meds, which is also normal and frankly good! I don’t want him to be in ANY pain. They want to keep him another night, which I am also happy about. I would rather him be closely monitored with his pain meds than come home prematurely.

(Also, selfishly, we missed our bed so much. Our air mattress is great, and all, but there is nothing like our bed!!!)

We will visit him tonight around 7p after we get off work and will try to post a pic of how he’s doing.

I feel so much better today. The deed is done, so there is no more debating to be had. I still am full of anxiety because I want to see him so badly, but I know his is in great hands. They said everybody loves him and are taking great care of him.

Ah, I can finally breathe easy!!

Thanks, as always, for all of your kind words and support. It is priceless to me.

Love,

Jamie and Mac

Today is the big day. We dropped Mac off this morning at the animal hospital for his front right leg amputation.

Needless to say, this has been a roller coaster of events. Just 2 weeks ago, I woke up excited and ready to meet this orthopedic specialist to finally figure out what was wrong with Mac. Excitement turned to horror and devastation when the doctor came in and broke the news that Mac most likely has bone cancer, and she suspected Osteosarcoma.

Filled with emotions and questions and confusion, we immediately scheduled the suggested bone biopsy for the following day to confirm our suspicions. There was a small glimmer of hope that it might be this fungus that presents itself in the same way that bone cancer does.

We made an appointment the following week with the oncologist that is right next to the animal hospital.

At this appointment, we got the results of the bone biopsy, which concluded that Mac most likely has Chondrosarcoma. This is slightly better news, as Mac’s odds of beating the cancer have increased 30%.

Before this news, when we thought it was Osteosarcoma, we were very sure that we would just let Mac live out his life until the pain becomes too much. With this news, that it is probably Chondrosarcoma, a whole new decision had to be made.

Cost aside, Mac is a member of our family. Though this will be tough financially for us, he had a crappy life before we adopted him last June, 2014. He deserves this. This isn’t about us – we look into his eyes and see a dog not defined by his age, but by his spirit. His energy, sheer strength, love of life and excellent health has all been a factor in our decision.

Today, Mac will undergo this amputation. I dropped him off this morning, and am still waiting to hear when he is going in. I know this will be tough, but I also know that he is still so full of life and if there is any ‘old man dog’ that can overcome this, I know it is Mac!

We took him on his last 4-legged walk last night (and he LOVES walks), and he was running full-speed ahead. What is normally our short route proved to be a little too far for him and he slowed down at the end. This morning, I felt sure of our decision when I saw Mac and how much pain he was in from that short walk.

I’ll update later with more news!

Thanks for listening.

Jamie, Connor and Mac