I will be shamelessly plugging my new and forth coming  fiction Ebooks * which I have recently published on Amazon Kindle Book 1 LUKE ADAMS  series a full length detective mystery and thriller with a psychological  theme, it is both character and plot driven and suitable for both sexes, it is quite pacey with twists in the plot.

There will be versions for Nook, Kobo and other ereaders shortly

A lot more is to follow

It’s still raining & we are over it! I’ve been having sleepless nights, as I listen to the rain persisting down & fret about the lambs. I should know better, in the morning as I peer blearily out, I see the gang of lambs, somewhat muddy, but obviously fine, as they do that magic thing where they spring, all four legs at once, straight up in the air, like mini ejector seats. Even in the depressing greyness & mud we laugh at their antics. Why do they love even the smallest mound of dirt, leaping up & down like mad things, & just what do they find to gnaw on the gate post?  More curiously, how do these bright, lively creatures turn into sheep?

Geoff & I have both been struck down by the bug that is doing the rounds. It could be flu, both worse than a cold, more debilitating & not so awful in the sneezing, fluid department. Gross anyway, although in a way the weather has been on our side, making the choice to camp in the living room, by the fire, an easy one. If it was fine we’d be tempted to drag ourselves out into the garden.

As well as plenty of rest, herb teas, hot soups etc, we were advised to take Blis Throat Guard tablets, & I think they have helped to keep the cough at bay, for me anyway. Geoff didn’t like the taste so wasn’t so diligent at taking them, & his cough is worse than mine. I’m inclined to asthma, & will do anything to keep my lungs happy.

Along with the ‘flu’ & grey & mud, we had some sad news about our lovely dog, Rifkin. She has a lump on her throat, which is a Lymphoma, cancer.  Luckily she is happy & lively at the moment, still keen to play soccer or chase soft toys, but prognosis is not good. We are going to try homeopathics, & lots of love, cross our fingers, pray.

It’s a special time for being with her, she is such a neat dog, with a big smile & a way of getting  so dirty & strewn with debris, you wouldn’t believe it. This of course gets dragged into the house, where we grumble as we sweep it up. No more, I shall be grateful for the dog hair on the carpet, & the twigs & dead leaves. All kind thoughts, most gratefully received. XX

Imagine if our liver and kidneys were as visible as our skin.  Would we not try to improve its appearance, even if it was only for vanity’s sake?  Our organs are out of sight, but they should not be out of mind.

I have been pondering this for two reasons.  Firstly, I am involved in a writing project regarding kidney transplants, and secondly, my delightful dog, Bella, has cancer and is on chemotherapy.

As the regular readers of my blog will know, Bella was diagnosed with a lymphoma just before Christmas.  The cancer was very aggressive and took hold very quickly, so we put her on chemotherapy.  With dogs, it is usually without complications, but she very nearly died.

She suffered from Tumour Lysis Syndrome, which can happen when the cancerous cells dissolve into the blood stream and are not dissipated quickly enough.  It was touch and go for a week, but thankfully she pulled through and is now back on chemotherapy and doing excellently.

Dogs with lymphomas are never truly cured and often die from organ failure.  So I have put together an assortment of remedies to keep her in full working order.  These are  her supplements for two days.

She has turmeric, garlic, kelp, Q10, calcium, omega 3, multi-vitamins, arginine, glutamine, red clover, dandelion, milk thistle, ginger, ginko biloba . . .

No wonder she has the vitality of a pup!

I wonder if my organs are as clean.  I very much doubt it.

I feel lucky right now.  If you’ve been following my posts, you’ll know my dog, Bella, has cancer – a lymphoma.  She’s had one hell of a fight.  Not only with the cancer, which is one of the most aggressive as far as lymphomas go, but after having a very rare and life-threatening reaction to the chemotherapy.

She came through it, and so we decided to try again with the treatment.  If we didn’t, more than likely, her cancer would return and she would die within weeks.

My heart was pounding and clarity in my head replaced with fuzz, as I waited for Bella to return home from a 40-minute chemo session.  After the last treatment, she had to be hopitalised and didn’t eat voluntarily for a week, so I had every right to be worried.

So how would she cope?  Would we lose her this time?

Hell no.  The first thing Bella wanted to do, when she rushed into the house, was eat.  Yes eat!  And she did exactly that.

No side effects, whatsoever!

So I feel pretty lucky.

Maybe next time I’ll write about a one-eyed cat I once found.  His name was Tingle, he was feral, and he lived under the floorboards.

Bella, my 8 year old dog has cancer.  She responded brilliantly to the first treatment and her tumour dissolved entirely, but after the second treatment, she succumbed to the harshness of chemotherapy.  She couldn’t eat or drink and was unresponsive to my voice.  It was agony watching her, but I wasn’t going to give up.

For almost a week, I had to syringe small quantities of liquidised food into her mouth.  I felt wretched with guilt.  Should I have ended her pain and misery?  Was I cruel in persisting with the chemo?  I had to follow my gut, and it told me she would pull through.

She did.  Now, two weeks after her last chemo treatment, she is eating huge amounts and is energised and happy, constantly wagging.  It is such a transformation, it is difficult to believe it’s the same dog.  Even the vet seemed surprised and asked, a second time, if she was eating for herself.  Yes, yes, I cried.

And, to top it all, neither her tumour nor her swollen lymph nodes have returned.  Finally, we are getting somewhere, and the oncologist is happy to continue treatment next week.

I’m sure it’s not always going to be smooth sailing, but I like to believe she has got over the worst.  It certainly is a roller-coaster journey.

Isn’t that what makes life interesting?

]]> http://honoradawson.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/difficult-decision-a-dog-with-lymphoma/ Thu, 19 Jan 2012 10:17:52 +0000 Honor A Dawson http://honoradawson.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/difficult-decision-a-dog-with-lymphoma/ There are times when we all agonise over making the right decision, and it drives you to self-destruction.  If you are like me, your mind never stops whirring, and within minutes, you can change from being entirely certain you have done the right thing, to being certain it was wrong in every respect.  I have been having many of those moments over the last week, as I watched Bella, my 8 year old dog suffer from both cancer and chemotherapy.

 Bella was fine during the first week of treatment, and as well as all of her lymph nodes normalising, she had a healthy appetite, eating cooked minced chicken, potatoes, egg, and liquidised vegetables.  But as soon as I administered the second drug, Cyclophosphamide, she stopped eating and looked decidedly ill.

 The following day, she moved continuously, obviously suffering major discomfort, and by evening couldn’t keep down food or water.  She had to be hospitalised.  My guilt rocketed.

 Why was I doing this?  A couple of weeks ago I looked deep into her eyes and saw a passion for living.  By nature, she is a happy dog – always wagging, always exuberant – and she wanted more time.  I also justified trying the chemo by reading that dogs don’t suffer the way people do.  I am starting to wonder how true this is.

 Bella has an inflamed pancreas, a condition that is normally treated with a diet change consisting of low fat and high fibre.  Did the Cyclophosphamide cause it?  I am assuming it did, as she has never been overweight, nor had fatty meals.

It has been a difficult week, and I have found great comfort by reading about other people’s experiences.  Rarely do we suffer unique experiences, and with the aid of the Internet, it is easy to find someone who has been there before.

Please pray for Bella’s good health.  I will keep you updated.

Without treatment, dogs have 6-8 weeks to live, and with treatment 1-2 years.  But even though we had the diagnosis, we couldn’t start chemotherapy until more tests had been completed.  A test that normally would take 1 day took a week, due to the holidays, so whilst everyone else was enjoying the festivities, I was watching poor little Bella grow weaker and weaker, and praying that her cancer didn’t reach the point of no return.

It’s an absolutely horrid disease, and my deepest sympathy goes out to anyone who has had cancer, or experienced it through a family member.  What I found the mot difficult was not being able to see what was going on, as the symptoms are not always that obvious.  In Bella’s case, she had a fever and a tumour, but that was all.  How fast was it spreading?  Had it spread to her other organs?  Had it reached the bone marrow?  There is no way of knowing except via tests, and if you let it, it will destroy you mentally.

My advice is focus on something else, anything.  Unless worrying leads you to asking someone a relevant question, or helps solve a problem, it serves no purpose.

I’m lucky, I am a member of a tennis club, and play, on average, three times a week.  I have many wonderful friends, and whilst I choose not to use them as a sounding board, I do use them as a distraction.  I think this is essential for anyone suffering similarly.

Get out and distract yourself.

So, back to Bella.  By the first week of January we had an appointment with an oncologist, and despite her cancer being one of the most aggressive, the prognosis seemed reasonable.  Finally, I could start to relax.  She had her first treatment, Vincristine, and she responded very well.  After five days, the tumour had gone and all of her lymph nodes were back to normal size.  I was elated.

Could it possibly run smoothly?  Week 2 proved to be a nightmare.

More later.

He is the sweetest dog and has been a joy all around. Given several choices, we, as a family, have decided for Bruno to undergo a therapy of prednisone. We know that his days are counted and he will stay with us for maybe a month. He seems happy, and he can still run in the backyard with his brother, Nero. He is still chasing squirrels, bunnies, and the rare joggers who wander in the trail behind his territory.

I am dreading the moment when Bruno won’t eat anymore, because it will be the moment we have to take the final decision for him. And I don’t want to.

When the people things take care of our health with nutritious meals, daily walks, annual checkups, and lots and lots of playtime, puppies can grow into vibrant, healthy adult dogs. Unfortunately, a number of dogs may still end up with cancer. One of the quality organizations that is trying to help cure cancers like lymphoma in dogs is the National Canine Cancer Foundation. These guys are really good people things, who want to help find a cure for different types of cancers in dogs. I give them one big woof for putting together so much effort, time, and money into such a wonderful cause. Canine cancer research is a great way to help sick puppies and dogs fight and hopefully one day, win the battle against cancer.

One of the main reasons why the National Canine Cancer Foundation is able to conduct the research and do the good work that they do for us puppies and dogs is through generous donations of kind and thoughtful people things, who want to help us beat cancer as much as we do. As the first puppy, I know how important it is to raise awareness for the rest of my dog citizens. That’s why I’m hoping that one day soon I’ll be able to work hand-in-hand with the National Canine Cancer Foundation to make a difference in the lives of loving people things and dogs everywhere.

Please part of the solution now, and take a few moments now to give a generous donation to the National Canine Cancer Foundation.  Or click on the logo below to find out more about the National Canine Cancer Foundation today!

*Learn more about how you can get your own exclusive Bo, the First Puppy Watch today. And if you’d like to acquire any other Obama watches or inaugural watches, please look at my website owner’s online watch catalog of exquisitely-crafted timepieces.

Yesterday my Fiancee Jana and I took our dog Brittany into the vet because Jana felt lumps on each side of Brittany’s neck. Being her first year in nursing school, I thought she was just trying to play doctor by giving the dog an exam. I thought she was silly and over-reacting but I agreed to take Brittany in to get looked at.

After the vet took the Britanny into the back to do some aspirations of her lymph nodes, the assistant asked us to come back into the room. I knew we were in for some disappointing news when I realized that we had been lead into the vets office and not an exam room. The vet told us all of Brittany’s lymph nodes were swollen. They looked at some of the aspirations under the microscope but could not tell with any certainty wether or not it was dog cancer. The vet did say that she saw some cells that were cause for concern but she wanted to have the slides sent off to get a better opinion. She also said that it didn’t look good for Brittany. I guess it is a good thing that they couldn’t tell right off the bat if it was cancer, which leaves a little hope.

The vet also told us that sometimes the lymph nodes will swell if the dog is trying to fight off some sort of infection. But she said that since Brittany was an indoor dog and showed no sign of infection that it was most likely not the case here. She did draw some blood and had a panel done but the results won’t be back until tomorrow. I’ve prayed to no end for it to be some sort of infection, but the reality of things tends to make me fear for the worse.

My Fiancee Jana noticed the swollen lymph nodes in Brittanys neck a few weeks ago; which scares me because the vet said the prognosis is usually about 2 months from diagnosis. Brittany has been acting fine, not loosing weight, has a great appetite. One would never guess in a million years that she may be sick.

It crushes me in the worst way to look into her eyes and know that she has no idea of what is happening. As stupid as it may seem, I try and talk to her and tell her it will all be ok. I promised I would do everything I can to help her get better. I changed her diet tonight and order K-9 Immunity and K9 Transfer Factor, as well as, the K9 Omega.

There is no way I could ever afford chemo treatment. Surviving on 1 job and paying for nursing school has us stretched to the max. I also don’t know if I could put Brittany through all of it.

I will do everything in my power to get Brittany through this. In the end however, I know two things.

1. If dogs do go the heaven, Brittany will be at the front of the line. 2. She will have lots of friends up there to take good care of her until I get there.