Thursday, April 14, 2011

Sequoia update (April 14, 2011)

Bad news. It's the tumor coming back for Sequoia. 3 weeks to 6 months is the outlook.

The tumor can grow a different way than the way it grew the last time. So it can go around his windpipe or into his lungs which will make it a shorter time frame. Or it can stay on the surface and make it a longer time frame. His foster mom had heard him rasping to breath a few days in a row a few times throughout the day but not constant. It could be the tumor of just a little hay fever. The vet has given us a list of signs to look for. He lost 2 pounds in the 2 weeks since his last visit.

He's on pain meds and antibiotics. So we will just hang out and chill with each other until the end is near.

In rescue work you meet so many dogs and some you click with and some are "meh- just ok". His foster mom says, "He is a great dog that is right up my alley. Thank you for letting him come to my house and letting me get to know him." Thank you to Molly LaMountain for spotting him at the Fulton Co. Dog Pound and alerting PPI of him. She drove him the vet and got kisses from him that first day. It was a sure sign he was a great dog.

But ultimately it's just about quality of life at this point. We're hoping the pressure doesn't burst his fresh skin where the incision was and fillet him open. We plan on enjoying the sunshine together. At this moment life is pretty good as long as we are enjoying the moment. And that's what the love of a good dog can do- make you enjoy the moments.

3 comments:

  1. Ohhh this is just not what we were hoping for when we brought him in. But I'm glad we did. I'm glad he's had time with someone who cares about him, someone who cares FOR him. So the time he has left is spent in love. That's gotta count for something.

    But still breaks my heart. :(

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  2. They're all special of course but some dogs really do pull at your heart more than others. Sequoia won me over at the pound. In spite of how much discomfort he was in, and he didn't like being kenneled there either, he took the treats I offered more gently than any dog I've ever met, especially considering his size. Then he laid them all right down on the floor, as though he were too polite to say no, even though he didn't really want them.
    I'm sad he won't have a long happy life with a new family but I know he's had the best of care, and has been and will be very much loved. That's all any dog could ask for. And when his time comes, I know he'll be waiting for Nikki at the Rescuer's Rainbow Bridge. Thanks for being a part of our lives, Sequoia. We'll always remember you.

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  3. Even from a distance of many miles I have been following Sequoia's journey and know how much time, love and attention Nikki and PPI have put into him. I'm so thankful for all of you and I know Sequoia is too. He is a true rescue and indeed, he will be waiting at the bridge whole and well and ready to play hard with that ball!

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