Maggie's Blog

Nothing much to update – it’s just been a while.  Maggie continues to do well – happy to eat and go for a walk.  Last night we took her for a walk and she scared us by running across the street to great another dog.  We just didn’t think she’d do that (any more) but she did and luckily there were no cars.  Still gotta watch that girl!!  It’s hot today, but she still came upstairs to sit with me – which is actually unusual 🙂  She’s usually lazier than that.  We’re just happy every day she is happy and pain free!!

Last weekend we took Maggie over to a friends house who has a pool.  This is the 1st time we’ve given her the opportunity to swimi since her sugery.  She was AMAZING!!  Wanted to jump right in, but we made her put on a life vest first.  She swam back a forth chasing her new friend Riley.  When she began listing to 1 side we made her get out and she was not happy about that!  She’ll definitely be doing more swimming this summer.  Here’s a picture

Today was Maggie’s 1 month anniversary after finishing chemo.  She continues to do very well.  Today she did a lot of hopping around and investigating for lizards, squirrels, and skunks.  Thankfully she did not find skunks.  We have slightly modified her diet to include more fish oil in place of flax seed oil.  Her energy level continues to be good for her age (almost 12) and her tripawd-ness.  All in all things are going better than i hoped.

The next milestone is a chest xray at the 2 month mark.  Not sure if we should do it as i am not sure what we could/should do if she has tumors  in her lungs.  As we are already watching her like a hawk for changes in her comfort level – do we need to know if the cancer has spread until we suspect it has?

Here’s Maggie coming home from her last chemo treatment.  She was happy to be home and to see Cody.  She RAN down the hall several times and then got into her bed for a nap.

Maggie has a great walk today.  Running so fast i had a hard time keeping up with her.  I brought treats to keep her going when she got tired (after a rest) and am walking her before it gets too warm.  She does much better off leash than on – so i keep her off as much as I can.  She looked so happy today!

I was really freaked out last time  – so thanks for the encouraging comments!!

So yesterday we went for a walk and she fine going out.  But when we turned around she kept stopping an lying down on my neighbors yard.  I coaxed her up after resting and she went another two houses and sat down again.  After resting for about 15 minutes, she really was not interested in getting up.  So i went to a neighbors house  and asked her to watch her while I ran to get the car.  Instead she offered a ride home.  When we got home Maggie would not get out of the car by herself and I lifted her out.  For the rest of the day – she was completely normal.   It was not very hot during the walk – 9:30 am and about 65 degrees F, so she was not overheated. Today she RAN like a maniac and (although i did a shorter walk) she came home by herself.  So i am just watching.  Every time her behavior changes i get scared.  But she seems fine today.  Still eating, going in and out of the doggie door when she wants a change of pace.

Maggie’s 3rd Chemo was done last wednesday.  Other than being a little more tired on her walks for a few days she is doing great.  Loves to eat!!  We’ve been careful with her diet and she’s down to 59 lbs from closer to 70.  She looks really good – her coat is very shiny and healthy.  We’ve made a ramp to get her into our truck and it’s much easier to transport her now.  One more chemo to go in 2 weeks.  So far – it’s all good.

Hi All,
On February 5th was Maggie’s one month ampuversary. She is getting stronger and stronger everyday to the point that we can’t keep up!
She had her 2nd chemo treatment on February 10th and as the first time, she did great. No side affects from the Carboplatin. She continues to have a good appetite and LOVES her walks.
The Dr’s wanted to re-check her ALT and ALTP as they were high just before her 1st Chemo Treatment. Her ALT was ~220 and ALTP was ~ 900. Thanks goodness the results were back to her normal numbers ALT was ~ 68 and ALTP came in at 224.
We continue to feed her a low carb and high protein diet with flaxseed oil. She loves that!
She is using the stairs all the time now and sometimes a little too fast!
We are very happy to see our baby feeling back to her old self. I have attached a picture from her walk on valentines day! Till next time.
Maggie’s Mom!

Maggie continues to amaze us with her progress.  This weekend we took her to our place in the mountains and she did everything as usual.  She hopped up the hill, investigated underneath the goat barn.  Met a skunk and did not get skunked (unlike her brother Cody).  She is doing so well!

Her blood work after the 1st treatment came back fine.  White blood cells looked good.  More blood work tomorrow and chemo next week.   So far so good!

First of all – 2 weeks to the day of her amputation Maggie went up the stair to the bedroom.  3 weeks of sleeping in the dining room appear to be over.  Hurrah!!!

Met with the oncologist Wed for her 1st treatment.  The Dr recommended Carboplatin every 3 weeks for 4 treatments.  We had a scare because the blood work came back with elevated liver numbers.  He did an ultrasound and looked at most of her organs and did not see any issues.  Recheck her liver in 1 month.   Since there is no visible spreading of the cancer – he expects her to have about 1 year.  We’re doing everything we can to give her that at least.

She had no side effects from the chemo.  Eating normally, wants to go for a walk, goes up and down the stairs with no problem.   Life is getting closer to back to normal.