Molly Moose

Good morning!

We are happy to be home, and happy that this part of the journey is “over” (although- the recovery is just beginning). I hoped to write an update yesterday… All we did was lie around so Molls could rest, but any time either of us slowed or stopped petting her, she’d wake up and nudge us to start again. 🙂

So far things are going well. It was such a good feeling to pick our girl up from the CSU Animal Cancer Center yesterday — she nearly dragged our surgeon and veterinary student out from the back when she saw us. The ride home was tough, as we live in the mountains and have to drive about 45 minutes up a very winding and curvy canyon. All Molly wanted to do was stand up and stick her head out the window but for obvious reasons couldn’t, so she was pretty angry with Jordan (who was keeping her down and calm) by the time we got home. We made it inside without too much excitement and then Molly was conked out for most of the afternoon. Here are a few pictures of her resting (heads up — there is a shot of her amputation site below. The incision is bandaged so it’s not too graphic, but just in case anyone is weak of stomach…):

Not great quality, but right after we picked her up. Ready to go home!

Hanging onto my arm with her paw – MUST. HAVE. PETS.

No major bruising yet… On the lookout for seroma but so far, doing well.

Using her “baby” as her pillow while she snoozes.

She had a great appetite yesterday and drank lots of water. I have an awesome video of us taking her outside to pee for the first time — I’ll get that uploaded later. Never thought I’d be so happy to see her squat! We’re still waiting for a BM but we’ve read and been told that the pain meds can delay this process a bit, so we’re trying to be patient. Nervous for how that will pan out, though. We did leave the house for about two hours last night and even though she hasn’t been going after her incision at all, we put the “cone of shame” on just to be safe. She was so tired that she didn’t really care.

 

When we got home, she had moved spots (from her big blanket to her bed) so we know she got up on her own. We’re still using the towel under her hips for any movement around the house or outside, and I’d imagine we’ll continue that for at least a few more days. Other tripawd families: how long did you use your sling?

Last night was pretty tough. She peed at around 9 and then we tried to get her to go one more time at 10:30 but she had no interest. We all fell asleep quickly but then Molls woke me up (glad she did) at probably sometime between 1 and 2. I could tell she was a little anxious. I moved to the floor and dozed next to her for the next couple of hours, then woke up Jordan at 4 so we could take her out to pee. She whined and grumbled for the next hour-and-a-half so we figured she must be ready for a BM, but when we took her out again, she just wanted to walk around for 15 minutes. That’s why I think she’s constipated — wants to go, but can’t yet. At that point we figured we were up for the day and anyway, Molly was antsy for breakfast and her pain meds, so we’ve all set up camp in the family room (Jordan and I with large cups of coffee). 🙂

Such a long update! It’s helpful to write everything out, and we keep returning back to the Tripawds forums and “must read” list for good info and tips. Grateful to have this community.

Love,
Kirby, Jordan, & Molly

Yep, Molly has officially joined the club. Her amputation is done and went very smoothly! I had a moment of panic when we didn’t hear from the surgeon 90 minutes after they called to let us know they were starting, so I was ‘that crazy dog mom’ who called and talked to a surgeon nurse during the procedure. Whoops! The only unusual thing that they found was some bruising in the deep tissues of the muscle. They didn’t plan to examine her leg after amputating (since the fine needle aspirate already confirmed osteosarcoma) but after seeing that bruising, they send the entire leg to the lab, along with two bone biopsies. We won’t hear any results from those until Monday, but when I asked if it could be anything that would change our plan for chemo, they said no. So, stay tuned!

We dropped her off this morning at 7:30 and between last night snuggles and this morning lovins, I knew that she knew she was going to have something special happen to her. She was giving me that soul-penetrating look but it wasn’t the kind that made me feel guilty for putting her through such a significant surgery… It seemed so wise and knowing that we were (/are) trying to do what’s best for her. She is the smartest dog and we are so lucky to have her.

Last night we took her swimming (her FAVORITE activity) for the last time as a four-legged. We were nervous because she likes to sprint across the rocks on her way to chase the stick out in the water, but we found a spot with a deep hole that kept her from tweaking that right leg. She wasn’t expecting it the first time and did a total underwater dunk, which cracked us up and delighted her (she loves to be underwater). Here are a few pics:

Derpy.

Gotta get that stick!

Rolling in the rocks.
Rolling in the grass.

Wants the stick!

Beautiful mountain puppy!

We get to pick Molly up tomorrow morning at 9:30. Can’t wait to get her home and on the mend!

We’re almost an “official” member of the Tripawd crew! I can’t say it’s a club that we were planning on joining, but it’s a club that we are proud to join because it means we are amongst other huge pet lovers who want nothing but pain-free time for their dogs (and cats)!

Molly is our 7 year old golden retriever and she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in her left distal femur on Monday, June 1, 2015. A few weeks before that, she stopped putting weight on her knee altogether so we took her for a few rounds of x-rays at our local vet’s office. Right away, our vet warned us that it could be a bone tumor and we are so grateful she acted with urgency. I have read so many stories about misdiagnoses and/or suspicion that the animal’s behavior was due to muscle tweaks or tears. We sent Molly’s x-rays to a radiology lab right away, and they recommended that we do a second round with Molly under sedation so that they could review different angles of her knee, as well as get a shot of her chest. In the meantime, we made an appointment with the Colorado State University Animal Cancer Center, which is luckily only about an hour’s drive from us! Their first available appointment was more than a week out, so we kept Molly on a pain pill regimen (Rimadyl and Tramadol) and waited impatiently.

On June 1, we took Molly to the Cancer Center for a full day evaluation that included physical exams, more x-rays, an abdominal ultrasound, and a fine needle aspirate. Molly was beat by the end of the day and we were too. We found out that the tumor on her knee was definitely osteosarcoma, although it was slightly unusual in that her bone walls had not been “infiltrated” by the cancer yet. Her leg was still very strong in structure. Most importantly, we were so hopeful that the films of her chest would not indicate pulmonary metastastis, but we were crushed to hear that there were at least two solid black nodules displaying in the films.

(I have to pause for a brief moment to sing the praises of the staff at CSU. O M G. They are just amazing. So kind, knowledgeable, informative, gentle… Just fabulous. The facility itself is incredible, too. I brought work down with me and was able to be relatively productive thanks to their wifi, mobile workstations, volunteers who brought around coffee and cups of M&Ms… Working was actually a much-needed distraction, so I was grateful to have all those tools available.)

We received four options for treatment, classified into Definitive Intent and Palliative Treatment:
Definitive Intent – Amputation of the left hind limb and chemotherapy, or stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT). SRT is very highly focused radiation therapy that would help alleviate the pain in Molly’s leg.
Palliative Treatment – Palliative radiation therapy (+/- chemotherapy) or simple pain management.

Obviously, we decided to move forward with amputation. Molly is an adequate candidate for amputation — not “good” because she has a partial tear in her right ACL that has resulted in some scar tissue and arthritis. We were a little concerned about how this leg will hold up, but all four vets we have spoken with (including the surgeon who will perform Molly’s amputation) have advised us that with physical therapy and close care, her right leg should be strong enough. Our surgeon actually made a really great point in that Molly has already started her own physical therapy over the past few weeks because she has been putting little to no weight on her left knee, so her right knee is getting stronger and she is already in the mindset of being a tripaw!

Her surgery is tomorrow at the CSU Cancer Center, and we’ll be able to pick her up on Saturday morning. We’re nervous but hopeful that this will offer Molly the pain relief we know she needs and deserves. Please send good thoughts and wishes our way!

Kirby, Jordan, and Molly