Visit to Santa Rosa

Today Monty had a busy day. She and Torsten went down to Santa Rosa to visit Ute and Olov. They took some cute pictures to share. Monty enjoyed showing off how well she gets around and of course, enjoyed lounging in the sunshine in their yard. Monty is still able to do her "footsaline" (sorry for butchering that German word Ute!), which is the trick she does to shake her paw after hearing the German word. Yes, Monty is tri-lingual...English, German and dog! When they got back to Sacramento, Monty got a walk...down to the park and around and then back home. She's eating good and taking all her medicine. We're enjoying her good days!

A Windy Sunday

Today would have been as nice a day as yesterday was, but the wind was blowing like crazy! Monty came out to the barn with me (her first ride in the truck) and we took her for a walk to the park. She is getting along really really good as you can see in the pictures! She ate her breakfast all up this morning too, so it looks as though she's going to handle the chemo just fine. Today we are adding Flax Seed Oil and Fish Oil to her diet, both of which have a lot of natural benefits. Tomorrow Monty gets to go down to Santa Rosa to visit her "grandparents!" She LOVES to go down there and gets spoiled every time:-). I know she'll be excited to show off how well she's getting around on three legs, it really is pretty amazing!

Scroll down and check out more pictures! There are multiple posts because I was playing around with photobucket and resizing them!

Montana running

More pictures below! Scroll down!

Montana

Duplicated picture!

Montana running again!

More pictures below! Scroll down!

Montana running up the hill:-)

More pictures below! Scroll down!

A Windy Sunday!

That's all for today!

Saturday Check In

Monty had a great day today, mostly hanging out with Torsten. They went to Petsmart to pick up some cat litter and Monty was very popular with everyone. She loves going to Petsmart, except when she has to go to the groomer inside the store. She picked at her kibble this morning so we boiled up some chicken for her tonight and she ate that right up. She also wanted to play with her toys tonight so that was fun. Right now she's outside sleeping out on the grass. We've noticed that since her surgery she likes being outside more and more. Before the surgery, she was much more content inside. Not sure why, just something we've noticed. Today we started Monty on 500 mg of Vitamin C to help her immunity during Chemo.

On a sad note, Seanne, who has been so incredibly helpful to us on this journey, lost her beautiful German Shepherd, Wrigley today. She posted on tripawds that the cancer spread to her neck and from what it sounds like, it paralyzed her. We were both very sad to hear about Wrigley's passing. This cancer is a crazy thing and it affects each dog differently. It reminds us that we need to take advantage of each and everyday we have with Monty and enjoy it to the fullest.

Chemo went well

Torsten got home yesterday to a happy, bouncy, tail wagging dog. She really does miss him when he's at work and with his new schedule, he's always gone for two days at a time. On the way to VCA, Monty was very happy to go for a car ride and to go visit the vets. She had her chemo treatment and came out of it really well. It was a two hour procedure and she got the drug Carboplatin. She has to go back next week for a CBC and then in three weeks for another chemo treatment. She came home and was feeling really good, but didn't want to eat her dinner. She slept in a little longer this morning and then came down on her own. She didn't eat her breakfast either, but loss of apetite seems to be normal. We're both home today so we'll be able to keep an eye on her.

The day before Chemo

Monty has had a good couple of days. Yesterday, my friend Kristin came over and she thought that Monty looked really good. She has a Masters in Animal Science so she knows her stuff! Monty loved having a visitor. I have decided that walking her on a leash does not work. She goes way too fast and you can't ask her to slow down because she is just more comfortable going faster. I have been taking her on short walks by myself these past two days since Torsten has been at work. We made it to the end of the street down to the park tonight so that was good. She's also eating really well and doesn't seem to be any slower since she's been off all her pain medication.

Tomorrow we start the adventure with chemo. There is a small chance that it will make her sick and we're hoping that she is able to handle it okay. I'll make sure to update tomorrow evening after it's all over and done with.

Treatment #2

Today Monty got her second treatment at IVC. Dr. Stramm and Dr. Stevens were both really pleased with how she has progressed. She is going to have her third treatment in 2 weeks. Dr. Stramm thinks that she won't need acupuncture for her back, but we're going to have her work on some "immunity" points since Monty will start her chemo this Friday. She is doing really, really well. She is continuing to eat every morning and again at night and today was her last day of Tramadol. We weighed her today and she was at 59.9 pounds, so she is maintaining her post-surgery weight that everyone feels is ideal (prior to surgery she was at her heaviest of just under 70 pounds!). We also talked with Dr. Stramm about the changes to Monty's diet. She is liking her new food a lot and Dr. Stramm said it was okay for her to still get the treats she likes even though they have sweet potatoes in them. She's not supposed to have carbs anymore, but she said it would be such a small amount it wouldn't hurt---that's how picky Monty is, even with treats!

I forgot to mention yesterday, but we've started taking Montana on short walks. Yesterday, we went down about 8 houses and then back. I was cracking up because we were literally having to power walk/jog to keep up with her. Her new gait is FAST! Torsten took her down a little farther today. She definitely still loves her walks, but gets tired quick from going so fast.

Tomorrow, Monty will be home alone, but the weather should be good, so she'll probably sleep all day:-)

Monday was a great day!

Montana continues to have good day after good day! We are thrilled! She is moving around better and better each day. She is also eating well (for the first time in her life she doesn't get free choice food since we have to watch her weight), and this morning was her last dose of Tramadol. Today she gets to go see Dr. Stramm and Dr. Stevens for another chiro/acupuncture treatment. I think they will be very pleased in the improvement of Montana!

Back on track!

Monty is definitely feeling more and more like her old self everyday. She did great this weekend, even went on two errands with Torsten. Because she has her stitches out, she can now wear her Ruffwear harness which helps us help her in and out of the car and up and down the stairs. I think it will come in very handy. We decided that Monty was doing well enough to sleep upstairs last night. Since her surgery one of us has been sleeping downstairs with her so she wouldn't get lonely. It hasn't been fun! Torsten also caught some pictures of Monty sprawled out on her back. She is definitely feeling good! She ate all her food today along with her back support herbs and one Tramadol this morning. She seems to be enjoying her new food, Taste of the Wild. Not too much else to report, enjoy the pictures!

ETA...I forgot to mention that Torsten took Monty for a short walk today as well...just a few houses down and back:-)

Kind of back to normal...

Well, things are finally getting somewhat back to normal, which is really nice! Torsten and I went out to dinner for the first time in over a month, since before this all started. Yea! Monty is continuing to improve each day. She is sleeping more comfortably (like she did in the past-on her back, lounged out or wherever she feels like it!), but occasionally will twist into a really weird position like I took that picture of last night. Today I picked her up a new food that was on Dr. Stramm's list, Taste of the Wild. She seems to really like it, so that's a huge relief. I've also been researching some of the supplements that she suggested and trying to figure that all out. There's a lot to learn, but luckily there are some very helpful websites like www.tripawds.com. Right now, Monty is sporting her Ruffwear harness and playing with her toy, just like her to get all hyper when it's about time for bed! Monty also came out to the barn with us today, but she had to stay in the car. She's acting more and more like her old self which is very encouraging:-)

No news is good news:-)

Torsten reminded me last night that I didn't update the blog last night. Well, in this case, no news is good news. Monty did fine again by herself yesterday. When I got home, she not only came out as the garage door was opening, but did a lap around the car. After I parked, she came with me across the street to get the mail. So she was moving better and more willingly than yesterday. We hung out for a bit in the back yard and then I realized there were a few weeds I wanted to pull in the front yard, so I made her come out there with me. She ate her dinner really well and a few treats too. She is definitely feeling much better. Yesterday was her first day on only one dose of the Tramadol. I'm going to give her one pill for the next couple of days and then she'll be off all pain killers and medication completely.

I had to get up early this morning because I'm covering Saturday School today. I went upstairs to get ready, and before I knew it, Monty had made her way upstairs. She is not supposed to be climbing the stairs and we have them blocked, but I think she's determined to get back to her normal routine. In the mornings that means, waking up with me and hanging out with Melvin in the bathroom until its time to go downstairs. I helped her down the stairs because I can't carry her, and she did just fine. Hopefully when she gets her treatment on Tuesday Dr. Stramm and Dr. Stevens will say it's okay for her to climb stairs. She has improved so much in such a quick time, it really is amazing!

Just a couple of pictures

I wanted to add a couple of pictures because people have been asking about how her incision is doing. Her hair is coming back in and its all healing very nicely! The picture of her body is just weird to look at. Remember, her left leg is amputated! She's been lying very strangely lately, my guess is that it helps make her more comfortable.

Monty ate a great dinner tonight and her appetite seems really good. She's home alone again tomorrow, but it should be a really nice day again:-)

First day alone

Today was Monty's first day home alone. She seemed to do just fine by herself and my guess is that she sunbathed all day. We left her the garage with the mattress just in case she wanted to get "in." When I came home and opened the garage door, she was ready to stick her head out. It was awesome! She seems a little slower than yesterday...she probably would have done good with a second acupuncture treatment this week, but with Torsten back at work today and tomorrow, it just wasn't going to fit. She is scheduled to go back on Tuesday and if she needs a second treatment next week, it will work. Torsten scheduled her chemo treatment for next Friday so we'll gearing up for that. We're also doing a lot of research on how to change Monty's diet. She needs a high fat/high protein and low carb diet and even though Canidae is a good food, she's going to need something different. Hopefully we can find something that she'll eat, it was so hard to find a food that she liked in the first place!

A great day is always fun to report!

I called Torsten at lunch today not knowing that he had excitedly left a message on my cell phone. Turns out, Monty had a GREAT day! When I called Torsten to see how Monty was, he said “It's like having the old Monty back!” She was doing SO well since her appointment yesterday! Apparently, when Torsten picked up his keys to go out for a bit, she got up and went to the front door and whined at him–a good whine, like “Hey, don't leave me!”. She went on some errands with him today, and had her head out the car window the whole time. She ate her chicken tonight and just seems generally more alert. We did take her off the Metacam today and she only got her Tramadol 2 times. We're going to wean her off the Tramadol over the next few days. We also started an herbal supplement that we got from Dr. Stramm, that's supposed to provide some nutritional support for her sore back. Needless to say, we are THRILLED with the improvement since her acupuncture/chiro work. Torsten even took her out front for a bit while he took out the trash and came across two of the neighbors. Monty was alert and excited to see them. It was a good sign.

Tomorrow will be Monty's first day alone since before her operation since Torsten has to work. I'll come home right after school and hopefully she'll get along okay without us. The weather is supposed to be really nice, so our guess is that she'll spend most of the day out on the freshly mowed lawn sunbathing!

Things are looking upside down???

Sometimes, upside down is the best way! For the first time since her surgery, Monty laid on her back and it was a great sight to see! We're so used to seeing her on her back, it's been weird these past few weeks that she hasn't slept like that.

Today, Monty got to visit a whole slew of vets. Thank goodness this dog likes going to the vet! We first took her to The Integrated Vet Clinic to be looked at by Dr. Stramm, a vet who specializes in alternative methods. She took Monty's history and looked her all over and thought that she was sore in the middle of her back versus the area closer to her tail. She thought that acupuncture and chiro work could definitely help her problem and she didn't think it would take too much to get her comfy again. We were thrilled! Dr. Stramm did the acupuncture, mostly using acupuncture points and hollow needles. She did inject some diluted B12 into the sore area of her back. After she was done, Dr. Stevens, the chiropractor, took a look. He worked on her for a bit and agreed that she was more tender in the middle back region. During all of this, Monty acted like she was on the verge of sleep! We decided to give this method of treatment a try and see if a couple of these sessions will help and right now we're pretty hopeful!

After the visit to this vet, we headed up to VCA to meet with Dr. Gabby. Dr. Gabby took out Monty's stitches and agreed that chiro and acupuncture could definitely help her out. She told us that we could start chemo at any time, although the sooner the better, since she has the least amount of cancer in her body right now. Torsten and I decided that we want to wait at least a week if not two before starting the chemo. We want to make sure that we can get her comfortable enough that she has a good quality of life.

It's so crazy through all of this...one day is good and you get so hopeful and then there's a bad day. Right now, we're on a good day so it feels good. We just want Monty to enjoy life and be happy:-)


(If you look closely in the pictures you can see the pink acupuncture needles._

Appointments galore!

Yesterday, Monty rested most of the day. I wrapped my magnets around her whenever she would let me, but she didn't really like being all bundled up. They, along with the rest, seemed to help. Torsten said when he came home this morning that she was standing up, wagging her tail...so that was a good sign.

I called Sac Vet Rehab first thing this morning and scheduled an appointment for Monty for Tuesday. Our appointment will be with a vet, but Dr. Stevens, the chiropractor, is only in the office on Tuesdays so it will work out well. To make this work, we had to bump her appointment at VCA until later in the day. We're going to meet with Dr. Gabby and have Montana's stitches taken out and talk a bit about chemo. We're also going to meet with a surgeon to discuss surgery. Right now, Torsten and I really want to try the alternative therapy before putting her through an additional surgery. We're really hopeful that some accupuncture or chiro work will help her become more comfortable.

No appointment yet...

Seanne, this lady we "met" on www.tripawds.com forums referred us to this vet hospital: http://www.sacvetrehab.com I called this morning to schedule an appointment for a consultation. Unfortunately, they aren't open on the weekend, so we'll have to wait until Monday to even set this up. The cool thing is that the chiropractor I've used on Dacquiri and Gunner works out of this office. He did great work on the horses so I feel really good about this place. He is also married to the woman who oversees student teachers through UC Davis, so it's really a small world!

We upped Monty's Tramadol to 3 times a day since it's a pretty good pain killer. It kind of zonks her out, but she at least seems comfortable. She slept good last night, so hopefully we can keep her comfy until we can get her into Dr. Beebe at Sac Vet Rehab.

Not the news we were hoping for...

Torsten and Monty headed to the vet today and didn't get good news. They went back to VCA, but did not see Dr. Gabby nor Dr. Valverde. I can't remember the name of the vet they did see, but his opinion was that Monty has a bulging disc in the area right in front of her tail. He based his opinion on her pain and her lack of movement. He said that to be absolutely sure he would have to do an MRI and then if that was what it was, she would need another surgery. Needless to say, we are very bummed.

Right now, we are not sure what we are going to do. Monty is in a lot of pain and we hate to see her like this. For the moment, we have decided to postpone her chemotherapy (which we were going to start on Tuesday) and see if we can make any progress on her back. I have left a couple of messages with animal chiropractors/accupuncturist and hope to get her seen ASAP. I've had great luck with this type of treatment with the horses, so I'm thinking we should try some alternative therapy first. We'll keep things updated, but there probably won't be anything new to report over the weekend. We'll just try to keep her as comfortable as possible and do what we can for her.

Sore, sore, sore

Today Monty was very sore...she has an appointment with the vet tomorrow at 10. She is whiny and doesn't really want to move around. We put a hot pack on her shoulder and then flipped her over and put one on her left hind leg. Her hind legs are all cramped up and are just super tight. Hopefully the vet can advise us tomorrow.

Wednesday Car Ride:-)

Torsten decided to not take Monty to the vet yesterday. He felt she was doing okay and actually checked in with Dr. Gabby on the phone. He scheduled an appointment for next Tuesday to have her stitches removed and to start her chemo.

Today, Torsten was going to go out for a few hours and hit golf balls. When he picked up his keys, Monty perked up and acted like she wanted to go with him. He decided the car ride wouldn't hurt, so he took her out to the 4Runner. He put the tail gate down so he could help her in and before he could lift her up, she loaded herself up in the 4Runner! It was definitely a good sign!

She's still kind of mopey though...we think it's mostly due to the medicine she's on. It was a good day today though:-)

Tuesday Laugh

Last night Torsten was nice enough to sleep with Monty...the lack of sleep is killing me! When I came down this morning, I asked him how things went last night. He mumbled something about offensive moves and defensive moves. I'm not sure if he was talking about battling Monty for the covers or dreaming of Patriots football. He's not a morning person! He was going to see how she felt and then decide if she needed to go to the vet or not today. We'll keep you updated!

Monday Report

Sorry about no check in earlier this morning...the daylight's savings plus the restless nights made for a crazy morning. Monty slept last night until about 2 in the morning. When she woke up, she was panting and just kind of restless. I thought she might want some water, so I sat up so she could get by me. She didn't actually want water, just my spot on my make shift bed on the family room floor. She's such a stinker!

This morning she was pretty whiny and continued to be like that throughout the day. She slept outside on the lawn for most of the day and didn't move around too much. Starting today, she only gets her Tramadol twice a day instead of three times.

When I got home from school, we did a hot pack and she seemed to enjoy that. Torsten might take her into see the vet tomorrow depending on how he thinks she is. We pretty much think she's just body sore, but she was moving SO much better the day after her surgery compared to today, that we might have her looked at.

The picture I posted is one we borrowed from Nola's website. This was the day Torsten took her to Nola's for a fun day of dock diving. She didn't love the dock diving, but she did love playing in the pond. Hopefully, she'll get steady enough on her feet to be able to play in the water again.

Sunday evening...doing better:-)

Montana slept almost the whole day today...most of it outside. In fact, she's still outside right now laying in the lawn. I had to come in to get some work done, so I stuck the cats in the garage so I could leave the door open so she could come it when she was ready. Everytime I check on her she's sound asleep. She is still definitely sore...wimpering as she moves. It appears that it's just muscle soreness though as her incision still looks pretty good. There's bruising, but it's not excessive and there is some fluid build up but it's not inflamed. She does enjoy having a heat pack on her though, so we do that 3 times a day. She did eat a whole chicken breast this morning which was great. I only intended to feed her half, but she ate that quickly and then looked at me like she wanted more, so I gave her the rest. She's always been a picky eater, and I think the medicine's been a little hard on her stomach. Today was a better day than yesterday though...I have a feeling we'll have more of these ups and downs as she heals.

Sunday morning

Monty was up until about midnight last night and then slept the rest of the night. I just put a hot pack on her...she actually likes it (as opposed to the cold pack). I think she thinks she's getting a spa treatment:-). We're waiting for the grass to dry so we can go outside. Monty is ready for her morning sunbath, but not on wet grass. She took her medicine like a champ this morning and even ate a few treats. She didn't have much of an appetite yesterday, so hopefully she'll feel more like eating today.

Saturday afternoon

I'm sitting outside with Montana right now. It's become clear that she overdid it yesterday or just in general since her surgery. She's definitely worn out and sore today. Her walking if very hoppy. I've been doing a lot of reading and chatting with other tripawd owners on www.tripawd.com and it seems like this happens sometimes. We have to work harder at keeping her calmer and resting I think. It's hard because you want her to be her old self, but she has a lot to adjust to right now. I also did some reading and it seems like panting is a side effect of the Tramadol. It's not constant enough to call up the vet and see about trying something else, we were just worried that her panting meant she was in pain somehow.

Monty and I spent most of the day outside. She seemed to enjoy sleeping on the lawn in the sunshine. I pulled weeds while she slept just enjoyed looking over at her enjoying the sunshine.

What saddens me the most about bone cancer in dogs is even with the ampuatation and chemo, the cancer will come back...there's no stopping it. As I was reading stories on the discussion board on tripawds, it was sad to see the owners reporting in on their pets in various stages of the disease. That, in addition to Monty not having a great day, makes today a little harder than the previous ones. It makes me realize that we have a long road in front of us and need to take advantage of every moment we have with her.

No pictures today as there weren't many action shots...maybe tomorrow.

Saturday morning check-in

Last night Monty stole all the covers again. She is such a cover hog! She slept pretty good until one point where she stood up and I think was disoriented. She tried to walk over me which of course she couldn't and fell on me instead. She let out a big cry, but I think she was just scared and it probably hurt her to land how she did. I just held onto her for awhile and she fell back asleep.

This morning she was panting quite a bit which was weird. Right now she's resting peacefully out on the tile. I'm not sure why she wants to be on the hard ground, but that's where she wants to be so I'm not going to try to move her. She's just dozing off out there.

Some pictures from today...

Here are a couple pictures from today. Monty had a good day but seems a little depressed this evening. She ate her dinner, but wasn't too excited about eating. Hopefully, she's just a little tired...we'll keep an eye on her.

Monty's doing well:-)

Monty had a great night last night. She slept all night except to go out once. When I woke up this morning, I switched duties with Torsten. He sat down with Monty while I got ready for work. As I was getting dressed, I felt something staring at me. I turned around and there was Monty...upstairs! I called downstairs to Torsten and he was using the bathroom. She made it up all the stairs on her own. We were shocked and I think Monty was a little surprised as well. We were worried about her stitches, but they were all good and she was just a little bit out of breath. We helped her downstairs and called it good. Even though she managed on her own without incident, we have to try to keep her off the stairs because it's not good for her stitches. I'll post pictures later on tonight!

Monty's new toy

Torsten decided that Monty needed a new toy, so she got two! When I got home from school, Torsten let Monty out into the garage and she hopped over to greet me as I got out of the car...just as she always does everyday. She continued to have a good day, except Torsten noticed that she got somewhat anxious after getting her new medication. In might have bee in part to him getting ready to head out for a couple of hours, so tomorrow, we'll see how she does without him leaving. Monty also decided that she wanted to lay out in the sunshine for a little bit, so he sat out there with her. She has always loved to sunbathe on the grass:-).

Montana's first night

Montana did great for her first night home. We put the e-collar on her and I think that hurts her feelings a bit. It is embarassing! At about midnight, she hopped over to me (I was sleeping downstairs on the couch). I decided to take that thing off her and put her t-shirt back on. I decided to give up the comfy couch and just lay down on the floor with her. She is definitely a cuddle bug...but don't let her cuteness trick you...she's also a huge cover hog. We made it through the rest of the night pretty comfortably, although I had to grab another blanket:-).

The first night home

Monty's doing really well so far. We boiled up a chicken breast and she ate that and some of her kibble. She also has eaten a bunch of her new favorite treats and drank some water. She even went outside and did "her business" and then hopped back in the house. She's mostly resting, but is very peaceful. The pictures look a little gruesome, but that's in part due to the bruising of the muscles around the incision.

I know I said it before, but it is SO great to have her home:-)

Monty's Home:-)

We had a surprise call today from the vet...Monty was doing so well, that it was time to come home EARLY:-). Torsten called me at work and I was shocked because she wasn't supposed to come home until tomorrow. She was very happy to see us and we were of course, very happy to see her. She is walking like a champ...she will definitely get the hang of this. Marvin and Melvin were very curious and wanted to sniff her, and Monty was glad to see "her" cats. Of course Torsten had to be a brat and tell the cats "Watch out, this is what happened the last time Monty got out of line!" When we got her settled on her pillow, we took her E-collar off and put a t-shirt on instead. She'll have to wear the E-collar anytime we're not around and during bed time. I'll update in a bit and maybe post some pictures. It is SO much better to have her home:-)

That was hard

Torsten and I just got back from visiting Monty. It was very hard to see her how she was. The attending vet told us it would be better to not disturb her because she was kind of restless and she needed to stay quiet. We just watched her for a bit...Torsten is going to see if he can visit her tomorrow during the day and then we'll both go back tomorrow evening.

Even though we couldn't disturb her, the vet assured us that she is doing just fine and everything is normal.


I decided to post one of my favorite pictures of her because it always makes me smile when I see it. This was taken at Nola's where Monty gave Dock Dogs a try. She decided she likes creek swimming better.

Out of Surgery:-)

Torsten called just a bit ago and said that Monty's safely out of surgery. She's on morphine right now and we're going to go and visit her tonight. I'll update more after that. Yea :-)

No news yet...

Torsten just called at lunch and Monty's in surgery right now. No new news to report at this time, but I'll update when I know more:-)

Monty left for her surgery...

Well, Torsten just took Monty back over to the vet hospital. She was all excited to go for a ride in the car even though she doesn't look it in the picture. Hopefully all will go well today.

Monty's last 4 legged walk

After Monty's appointment, I had to go back to school to finish up some things since I left at lunch. Since Monty got a pain killer shot to get her x-rays, she was walking out of the vet clinic pretty good. As we loaded her up, I told Torsten he should take her for a walk when he got home. She hasn't had a walk in almost a month and if they took it slow, she'd be okay. He took her out to the park near our house and texted me this picture. The pain meds have wore off, and she's pretty sore right now. She's just hanging out...waiting for tomorrow.

Meeting Dr. Valverde

We just got through with our appointment with Dr. Valverde. It was a little nerve-wracking because as Dr. Valverde was examining Montana, she thought she found some pain in her hips. They quickly x-rayed her to see what was going on and luckily, it was nothing. Big sigh of relief there! When I met Torsten and Monty at the vet, I noticed that the nails on Monty's left paw were painted. Torsten read about this online as a way to make sure the vet took the right foot off. I appreciate Torsten's care, but I certainly hope he doesn't quit his day job to become a manicurist!

Monty is home tonight and then goes in first thing tomorrow morning for her operation. She'll have to stay at the hospital until Thursday.

Today we meet Dr. Valverde

We have an appointment today with Dr. Valverde at 1 o'clock. There's a saying on Jerry's website (www.tripawds.com) that says "It's better to hop on 3 legs then limp on 4." Monty's limp has gotten worse over the weekend. She has pain pills 3 times a day, but the limp is definitley noticeable. It will be much better when this is all over.

Monty's graduation day

So we were at Torsten's parents house last night, helping Ute celebrate her birthday. They have this picture that we had taken when Monty "graduated" from dog class. I think this was the intermediate class because she's too big from when it was puppy class. What's funny about this picture (other than the obvious) is that one day Steve Binz, who Torsten works with, was at Petsmart and found this photo in the album they have advertising their classes. He decided to steal the photo and razz Torsten about it at work. Of course, we were thrilled to have a second copy to share with the "grandparents"!

How it all happened...

On January 21st, Torsten took Monty to dog agility class...one of her favorite things to do. This is where she gets to play: http://performancedogsinaction.com/index.htm. She gets to go whenever Torsten's schedule and the weather co-operate. Torsten and Monty had a great time at agility, but few days later, Monty had a slight limp.

January 28th rolled around and Monty still had a slight limp. Nola, her wonderful trainer, checked her out and agreed it was probably a strain or a sprain. Since Monty really wanted to do class, they did, and just took it a little bit easier than normal. Monty didn't seem to be getting any worse, but she wasn't getting better either.

So on Monday, February 16th, we took her to see her vet. They checked her out and agreed that it was most likely a sprain. They prescribed Rimadyl, twice daily and total bed rest for another week. Keeping Montana on bed rest is not easy an easy thing to do! On February 23rd, I took her back to the vet for a re-check...even with the medicine, she really hadn't improved. The vet looked her over again, and she thought she felt something in her shoulder, so they wanted to take x-rays. She said that it might be a bone chip or arthritis, but since it was in her front leg, they should do the x-rays. This was because dogs get bone cancer in their front legs and she wanted to make sure it wasn't that.

We scheduled x-rays for that Wednesday, February 24th, hoping to find our answer. On Wednesday, we did get our answer, and unfortunately it was the worst answer we could get...it was bone cancer. Torsten emailed me at work to call him. Since my student teacher was teaching that period, I hurried out to the staff room to give him a call. Halfway there, I panicked and started running, hoping it wasn't the cancer. When I called him, he told me right away, and I couldn't believe it. I had to go to my AGI Academy meeting at lunch and luckily, my friend Kristin, who also teaches in the Academy had an idea of where we should take her to get her help. After the meeting, I called Torsten with the information and he set up an appointment for the next day. It turns out that this is the same place where Banfield was going to refer us to as well: Sacramento Veterinary Referral Center (www.vcasvrc.com).

Our appointment was with Dr. Gabby, an oncologist. On Thursday, we took Monty and her x-rays to see Dr. Gabby. Dr. Gabby explained that for bone cancer to show up on x-rays, the bone had to be at least 50% compromised. She said that the cancer grows from inside the bone out, and she thought it would be best to take a sample from it and do an ultrasound of her major organs. She had x-rays of her entire leg and also her chest (which luckily was clear), but Dr. Gabby also wanted to check out her organs and make sure it hadn't spread there.

On Friday, February 26th, we got the results back from the biopsy, and it confirmed that it was indeed bone cancer. The good news was that her organs were also clear, so it looks as though we caught it pretty early. Dr. Gabby explained that we could treat this one of three ways:
1) just with pain killers
2) just amputation
3) amputation plus chemotherapy

Because option 3 gives us the most amount of time, that's what we're going to do. We have a consult scheduled for tomorrow with a surgeon, Dr. Valverde, and we'll go from there.