Wednesday, April 7, 2010

And in other news... insert sad face here :(

I wanted to mention this in my previous post, but it just became too long. I really wanted to share why we had been so busy lately.

This past weekend, while visiting family in Blacksburg, VA, our dog became very sick. She was very lethargic and weak, so we took her to a local animal hospital. They did blood work and decided she had auto immune disease. They sent us home with meds and said she should be better after a long stint on steroids. Well, after two days, she just seemed worse, so on Monday, we took her to her regular vet. They also did blood work, which showed elevated white blood cells, and low red blood cells and platelets. With this information, and because of some previous issues she had, they decided to do an abdominal x-ray, and found a tumor on her spleen. We were told to take her to a local surgery center for an ultrasound, which not only confirmed the diagnosis, but also shows the tumor was perforated and she was bleeding internally. As a result, she was rushed into surgery yesterday.

Both my husband and I are very stressed and sad over this situation. We were told they got the whole tumor, but had to remove her spleen. They will be biopsing the tumor to determine if it is malignant, and if so, she will likely have to start chemo treatments, since it could have spread on a microscopic level. There is no guarantee this will not come back.

My husband is especially upset by the news. He found Layla at 4 weeks old and had to bottle feed her. They have a bond that I have never before seen, and he is literally torn to pieces over it, especially being struck by the realization that she may not be with us much longer. We are praying and hoping for the best, but also expecting the worst. He is especially sad that our babies may never get to know her.

So please keep our baby girl in your thoughts. She truly is a big part of our family, and we really hope she improves soon.

5 comments:

  1. Oh Lindsay I am so sorry to hear that. We have 4 dogs, all of which are currently on medication and I cannot even begin to tell you how many thousands we've spent on them in the last year but it is worth it. They are part of our family and we love them so. I totally understand how you and your hubby feel and I will absolutely being praying for her to recover from this. Please keep us posted.

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  2. Believe me, I know what you mean about spending thousands... along with this surgery, she's also has some bumps on her skin removed, plus two doggy ACL repairment surgeries. Something happens at least once a year with her, but like you said, she is family and worth it 100%. I am just hoping for the best. I'm sorry to hear about your puppies too and I hope they are OK!

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  3. I am so sorry to hear about your poor little doggy. I am such an animal lover and this story especially pulled at my heartstrings because your Layla looks exactly like my Lacy! I will keep you and your vets working on your dog in my prayers!

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  4. I am SO sorry to hear about your little baby doggy! We just had to put our dog to sleep at the end of Feb after a grueling year. I held on to him as long as I could. I am sorry- geesh I am crying again for you and for my Reese.

    Lots of good prays for your baby doggy!

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  5. Oh no! Poor girl! As you know DH and I are HUGE animal lovers, and I can't imagine the sadness and stress you both must be feeling. I hope she makes a fast recovery so that she can sleep on the couch and protect your twins when they make their way into the world. You're in my thoughts!

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