Post by snappinsami on Jun 29, 2014 22:48:00 GMT
Here's the back story... The last few months have been so hard... DH was laid off, got another job, found out we needed to relocate, and had to put our cat down. In the middle of all that, Molly, our Lab, started drinking WAY more water than usual. We took her to the vet, thinking she might be developing diabetes. Her blood work came back OK, but in the subsequent grooming, when they expressed her anal glands, the vet found a mass. She did a biopsy on it, but it was inconclusive. Her thoughts were that it could either be completely benign or a very aggressive form of cancer. We knew we wouldn't do any drastic treatment on her, so decided to wait until after we moved (which we did last week) to find a new vet and get a second opinion.
We left for Costa Rica on Friday (planned and paid for LONG before we knew we'd be moving, etc.) and took Molly to the new kennel on Thursday. Today (Sunday), we got a call from the kennel that Molly was very lethargic and had peed herself in her run. They wanted to take her to the vet, which of course we OK'd. At first, the vet said that she thought Molly was just dehydrated, and they were going to give her fluids. DH told her about the tumor just as an FYI. We got a call about an hour later that Molly had started throwing up and that her blood work came back "all out of whack," including the tests on kidney function. They're trying to stabilize her and still trying to get her hydrated, but at this point, it really doesn't sound good.
We feel so helpless... We're 1,500 miles away from home and in a foreign country. She's in a strange place where she's never been before, and obviously not doing well. The vet seems to think that it all might be related to the tumor, but without doing extensive tests (around $1500 worth) we won't know for sure. And again, we won't do anything heroic for the cancer. But to be so far away, it's just so hard.
I just needed to vent... We're all so sad and don't want this to ruin our trip, but it's so hard not to think about it...
UPDATE: We got an update last night that Molly was doing somewhat better. The vet said she'd stopped throwing up and seemed like a completely different dog than the one that was brought in. This morning's update was also positive - while her appetite still hasn't returned completely, she was wagging her tail, which is always a good sign. They were going to do another blood panel to compare it to yesterday's and will keep her through today at least, but when she does go back to the kennel, it'll just be for R&R - no playtime, etc. She's not out of the woods... The vet feels that it was brought on by the tumor/cancer, so we'll definitely have some tough decisions in our future, but at least we're pretty confident that she'll be there when we get home.
Thank you for all of your kind words and thoughts. We may have a new home, but the power of the peas definitely lives on!
TUESDAY UPDATE:
We had a message from the vet this morning that Molly was released from the hospital and taken back to the kennel. They didn't leave any information on the test results, but we're assuming that they had improved enough for her to be released. We'll obviously need to keep an eye on things when we get home, but at least she'll be there when we do.
Thank you again for your positive thoughts and words. They have lifted my spirits so much during this difficult time.
We left for Costa Rica on Friday (planned and paid for LONG before we knew we'd be moving, etc.) and took Molly to the new kennel on Thursday. Today (Sunday), we got a call from the kennel that Molly was very lethargic and had peed herself in her run. They wanted to take her to the vet, which of course we OK'd. At first, the vet said that she thought Molly was just dehydrated, and they were going to give her fluids. DH told her about the tumor just as an FYI. We got a call about an hour later that Molly had started throwing up and that her blood work came back "all out of whack," including the tests on kidney function. They're trying to stabilize her and still trying to get her hydrated, but at this point, it really doesn't sound good.
We feel so helpless... We're 1,500 miles away from home and in a foreign country. She's in a strange place where she's never been before, and obviously not doing well. The vet seems to think that it all might be related to the tumor, but without doing extensive tests (around $1500 worth) we won't know for sure. And again, we won't do anything heroic for the cancer. But to be so far away, it's just so hard.
I just needed to vent... We're all so sad and don't want this to ruin our trip, but it's so hard not to think about it...
UPDATE: We got an update last night that Molly was doing somewhat better. The vet said she'd stopped throwing up and seemed like a completely different dog than the one that was brought in. This morning's update was also positive - while her appetite still hasn't returned completely, she was wagging her tail, which is always a good sign. They were going to do another blood panel to compare it to yesterday's and will keep her through today at least, but when she does go back to the kennel, it'll just be for R&R - no playtime, etc. She's not out of the woods... The vet feels that it was brought on by the tumor/cancer, so we'll definitely have some tough decisions in our future, but at least we're pretty confident that she'll be there when we get home.
Thank you for all of your kind words and thoughts. We may have a new home, but the power of the peas definitely lives on!
TUESDAY UPDATE:
We had a message from the vet this morning that Molly was released from the hospital and taken back to the kennel. They didn't leave any information on the test results, but we're assuming that they had improved enough for her to be released. We'll obviously need to keep an eye on things when we get home, but at least she'll be there when we do.
Thank you again for your positive thoughts and words. They have lifted my spirits so much during this difficult time.
