My lady and I were incredibly moved by the many expressions of concern we received over our incapacitated Hell-hound Bella, and by the donations for her recovery.
As it turns out, although she does have a lump on her stomach which appears to be a tumor (probably cancerous), her current problems do not appear to be the result of a spreading cancer. The X-rays and blood work both told a story of surprisingly normal dog innards. So her current problem may be gastroenteritis, possibly worm-related.
We aren't out of the woods yet. The doctor wants to have the tumor surgically removed within the month, so we are saving up for that procedure. And that's what the donations will go toward. We were moved to the point of tears by the help offered by Cannonfire readers. I have a reputation as a crusty, unlovable old crank, so please don't tell the world that I get all choked up over a quadruped.
What is it with love, anyways? Why do we let ourselves love anything or anyone? When we give our hearts, we assure laceration marks all over our souls. The cuts don't come right away, but they do come, through loss and illness.
I never had children. If a child of mine had to go through something like this, I'd be so frantic I'd forget how to breathe or walk. You who are parents -- my god, how do you do it?
Well, this day is a lot easier than yesterday. "Thankful" is too small a word to describe how I feel toward all of you. Happy Independence Day.
5 comments:
So sorry to hear this, Joe. Been there, done that with puppies. And a near miss with one of my kids. It's awful. With dogs this is the downside--they wear out before we do. And it's always heartbreaking.
Threw some coins into the donation pot. Hope you and Bella have some extended time together. Fingers crossed.
Peggysue
I've cried and mourned a heck of a lot more over the loss of one of my dogs than I have over the loss of any human in my life.
I think one of the reason it hurts so much is because it's your job to protect your dog.
They depend on you and trust you so much that when your dog gets sick or hurt you feel like you've let them down,
You think: I waited too long, I didn't have the money, I should 'a, I could 'a, and you beat yourself up over it, and it makes you feel bad on top of sad.
It hurts so much to lose a dog you curse god for killing the things you love and swear you'll never get another dog cause you can't go through the pain again.
But after Ralph, Nick, Rebel, Arlo, and Erma, I got Anna.
Turns out, the joy of having a dog is worth the inevitable pain of losing them.
I am so glad Bella is better!
Give the "Hell Hound" a hug and a "Good Girl" for me.
Whenever onme of my cats had cancer, the blood work was abnormal. I'm no vet, but good blood and X-ray results are a promising start. I had a cat that had a tumor on his lung and the only way he could survive was to be placed in an oxygen tank 24/7. I had to do what no pet owner wants to do and that was terrible because he looked fine sitting in his tank. My prayers to you and Bella.
Oh, I do hope Bella does well. Some cancers are cured when the tumor can be completely removed. Hope Bella HadesHound will be able to bound and course many a year yet.
I now have a feline who has small-cell lymphoma which was throughout the intestine -- surgery didn't help too long -- she's had a year to continue annoying and delighting us. The love of and from animals is a wonderful thing in this world. (sniffle, mop eyes, toss a contribution in...)
--NW Luna
Dogs are so much better than people. Those who have never had dogs don't understand how great they are. A dog will break your heart only once, and it hurts more than anything in the world. It took me eight months before I could get a second dog after Tony died three years ago. Duffy has helped fill that void and helped the other dog, too.
My sister just spent $3600 to have a growth removed from the mouth of one of her dogs. Last year she spent over $2,000 for cancer surgery on the other dog, who is still doing well. She'd do it again.
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