What Matters Most

I have to admit, this entry is a selfish one. It's purpose is to remind me to keep my chin up and remember all the warmth that Bailey brings to my life.

Make no mistake, Bailey is doing great. This third round a chemo was night and day from the previous two treatments and she soared through with flying colors. We will continue to march forward and face this ugly cancer head on.

What Matters Most
As I sit outside and watch her sun herself, chomp at flies and flash cute smiles my direction, I'm reflecting back on our journey. It's been 2 months and 2 days since her emergency splenectomy. There is no doubt, that without Joe's quick thinking, Bailey would have crossed that rainbow bridge. So, I'm one of the lucky ones. I've been blessed with 62 more days than most people get who have a pet with a ruptured spleen. I've been able to hold Bailey, take her to her favorite park, feed her out of my hand, smell her fritos feet, enjoy showtimes, and many, many more things that are special between the two of us. I pray that I will have months and years left with her....that she will be one of the miracle pups that blows the estimated 6 month survival out of the water. But, if for whatever reason she is taken before I am ready, I'll be thankful for the gift of time and the second chance that Bailey and I were given.

Baileyism
I've always told Bailey that I wanted to "bottle her up" - to capture all of her quirky traits and store them for a rainy day. This picture is one for the bottle, it captures the special way she rests her head in my hand and looks at me with pure, unconditional love. It melts my heart every time.

Post Chemo - Round Three

I am happy to report that Bailey is doing so much better this time around. She had her third round of chemo on Monday and so far, the side effects have been minimal. YAHOO!!

Round three was given by our new vet, Dr. Hershey, who practices an integrative approach to cancer (chemo and a mix of supplements). Bailey was pretreated with Ondansetron (5mg given sub-q) just before receiving a lower dose of the chemo drug, Doxorubicin (24.8mg). Her prescribed meds changed from Cerenia to Ondansetron given twice a day along with Metronidasole to combat diarrhea (which was happening before the treatment). I've opted to give Bailey Pepcid AC 6 hours after each Ondansetron pill to help with potential tummy issues. I'm also walking her a bit and giving low carb treats throughout the day to keep food in her system. Granted, she is not 100% and certainly not as peppy as last week, but all things considered, I am relieved.

Baileyism
Like most doggie parents, we have several nicknames for Bocci and Bailey. Bocci often goes by Slim, Pretty Princess and Big Girl. Bailey has a slew of pet names (no pun intended) such as Monster, Cute P, Wailey, Sassifrass, Puppy - and now, she has a new nickname created by her dad last night....Pee Pee. Yep, Pee Pee. While trying to encourage Bailey to eat dinner, Joe blurted out, "Come on Pee Pee." At the same time, Joe and I looked at each other and said, "Pee Pee???? Where did that come from?" I think he meant to say puppy, but it obviously came out wrong. Wish I would of had the video camera taping Joe as the look on his face was priceless.
Here is a picture of Pee Pee waiting for her dad to come home from work...notice, slimy baby is her pillow.

Preparing for Round Three

Bailey has her third chemo treatment tomorrow and to be honest, I'm not looking forward to it. Round two was brutal and it took almost a week to shake the side effects. I'm hoping this time will be different as she'll receive a pretreatment of Zofran. We'll hold off on the acupuncture tomorrow and understand it is available post-chemo if needed.

All things considered, Bailey is doing great. I feel so fortunate to have this 2nd chance with her and plan my free time around doggie activities. A few things to note regarding Bailey's health: At some point (wish I would have written down the actual day), I noticed Bailey eating grass. She's also developed diarrhea on Friday. This has me a bit concerned as we've been careful about keeping her diet consistent. She's been eating the Evo Reduced Fat dog food for the past two weeks with a combination of turkey, eggs and broccoli. The supplements I talked about a few posts ago are added to each meal. The only thing that is fairly new is the K9 Immunity which was started on Tuesday. Diarrhea is not a common side effect of K9 Immunity so something else must be going on....just need to find out what that is! I also wanted to point out Bailey's energy level has decreased quite a bit. Lord knows she has been through a ton, but it's hard to see her tire so quickly.

Baileyism
Bailey drinks incredibly loud. Actually, not only can I hear her from across the house, I can easily track her down with the trail of water she leaves behind. The funny thing is, Bocci is the total opposite and drinks like a tiny kitten. Cracks me up.

Here is a picture from our short hike the other day. I also came across this funny clip from a few weeks ago when Bailey was on a chicken/rice diet and Bocci was not eating due to her Pancreatitis.

Dine and Dash

I've had so much fun with Bailey this past week. She's back to her ol' self - stealing leashes, putting on shows and warming my heart. She even played mountain goat on the hill behind our house - there was nothing stopping her from reaching the top.

We received Bailey's K9 immunity pills and boy is that stuff pricey. We paid $155 for 180 capsules. She will get a total of 6 K9 pills per day plus 2 Probiotics and 4 Yunnan pills. She should be taking K9 Transfer Factor, but I forgot to order. Ugh. Thankfully - the pills are easy to hide in her food. I've become an expert at hiding pills in food over the past 6 weeks...so good, that when I went to take my vitamin the other day, I accidentally wrapped it in turkey....as if to hide it from myself. I need help which is no surprise to many. :)

Bocci is doing great as well. While we know she will never run up a hill, she has been trotting to the mailbox and back with me. It is such a relief to have our two girls feeling better. Thank you again for all the prayers and positive thoughts - it worked!!

Baileyism (more of a storyism this week)
This past Friday, Bailey and I went to a feed store to get her high protein/grain-free food. While there, Bailey found a bin full of homemade treats - $2 each. Before I knew it, she devoured a peanut butter, paw-shaped treat. I tried to pay for Bailey's snack, but the clerk said not to worry. On the way out, Bailey ran past the bin a second time, grabbed several treats and darted out the door. She was on a mission - as if she knew we had to run before getting caught. I can't believe my golden and I pulled a 'dine and dash' move - especially since bystanders saw the crime in action. I wonder if there is a WANTED poster stapled to the door with a picture of Bailey and I???

A dear friend of mine is a photographer and took this picture of Bailey back in May. Such a great shot!

A Combo Approach

Bailey and I had an appointment with an integrative vet (Dr. Hershey) yesterday who specializes in both eastern and western medicine. Dr. Hershey confirmed our research that adding supplements to Bailey's diet will help her fight against cancer and minimize the side effects of chemo. Dr. Hershey laid out a meal program for Bailey which is a slow transition to a high protein/low carb/low fat diet. Here are the details:

Daily food
Innova Eva High Protein/reduced fat diet - 2 cups daily (purchased from a feed store)
Add lean protein such as chicken, turkey or fish
Add foods that help build blood including liver, spinach, eggs and sardines (gross!)
Add Garlic and Turmeric as antioxidants and for flavor

Supplements (to be purchased online)
K9 Immunity - builds the immune system
K9 Transfer Factor - builds the immune system
Yunnan - to prevent internal bleeding
Probiotics - Bailey was on this before so we are started up again
More supplements will be added over time

As in life, there are no guarantees, but we feel good about our new integrated approach and find comfort knowing others have had great success. I just read another happy story in the Yahoo Group Forum where a dog named Henry is 1.5 years past his HSA diagnosis. He did the 5 rounds of chemo and is now on a maintenance program. I also like that we purchase the supplements over the Internet vs. directly from the vet.

We are considering moving our chemo treatments to Dr. Hershey. Currently, we pay AZ Veterinary Specialists about $550 per treatment. Dr. Hershey is a bit of a drive, but $100 less expensive and most importantly, can pretreat Bailey for side effects. Lord knows, it would also be great to have one less vet to juggle. :)

Baileyism
Okay - I fully understand that we all think our kids (2 legged and 4 legged) are the cutest. Joe and I are no exception and get a bang out of Bailey's different "walks" - she is doing her hippity hop in this video taken last winter where she runs funny with her two front legs. She also has prancy prance and several others which I hope to get on video. Yes - I also recognize that our funny names are a bit out there....you think it's time we had kids???

Post Chemo - 1 Week Later

Happy Labor day! Bailey is doing fabulous and looking forward to a morning at the park.

The second round of chemo was rough as the side effects kicked in 12 hours post treatment - normally they start day 3. Bailey got sick a couple times (day 2 and 3) combined with slimy drool on day 3. Her tummy was upset days 2-4 and she ate very little. As of day 5, she was feeling back to normal and craving attention. Our favorite vet did chemo for her Mastiff a few years ago and warned us in advance that round 2 was rough. Boy, was she right!

As for food, Bailey has become quite picky over the past month. Our initial goal was to cut out carbs (they feed cancer), but our run-in with Pancreatitis put that meal plan on hold. The week prior to chemo, Bailey was eating a home cooked meal of boiled rice and chicken. We used white rice, but I've read both brown and white can be used. When her appetite kicked in on Friday (4 days after chemo), we started her on eggs, low salt crackers and lowfat prescription canned dog food. We will stick with the low fat/bland diet for another day then slowly introduce regular food. I boiled chicken last night, but she had no interest. Can't say I blame her! Medication wise, she took Cerenia pills to help with vomiting days 2-5 and a Pepcid AC days 5-6.

I found a great link for hemangiosarcoma via Yahoo Groups - it's called the Sumner Foundation. Basically, it's a place where those battling the awful disease can go for advice, support and comradery. I've learned so much from this site in just a few days and have a new found hope that we can help Bailey even more. I've also found a number of cases where dogs beat the odds of hemangiosarcoma and live for months and YEARS past their prognosis! While it's the Vets job to give us stats (life expectancy of 6 months with chemo), talking with owners who go the extra mile to help their beloved pets is equally important to me.

We're excited to meet with a homeopathic vet on Tuesday as she practices both traditional and holistic methods. We feel she will help us find the right balance for Bailey's diet, supplements and treatment. Although pricey, we have decided to do an ultrasound on Bailey prior to the next chemo treatment. If the cancer has spread, we will stop the chemo all together and solely do homeopathic treatment. If the cancer is in remission (please God - say it is), we will likely continue with chemo and may look at a different formula in hopes to lesson the side effects. It's worth mentioning especially as I know others with hemangio are following Bailey's Blog, that her side effects are NOT normal. In all of my research and talking with doggie parents, most have little to no side effects. I think Bailey's situation has been worse as she is also dealing with a Pancreatitis, Valley Fever, possible UTI and all the meds supporting those illnesses.

Baileyism
I imagine this will come as no surprise, but Bailey is a bit spoiled and can be sassy when she doesn't get her way (hmmm - I wonder where she gets that from). When snuggling in bed with us, she lets out a high-pitched whine if we close our eyes and stop petting her. This, or course, is only when SHE wants attention as it's often on her terms. Our favorite thing about Bailey is her personality and silly mannerisms - she keeps us laughing and smiling from the inside out.

Here is a snapshot from this morning - Bailey is "over" me typing this blog and ready to head to the park for some fun!

50 Hours Post Chemo - Round Two

Bailey's second chemo treatment took place late Monday afternoon. Typically any nausea associated with chemo begins day three, but Bailey's kicked in 12 hours after the treatment. The early start may be due to the Valley Fever or the mixture of meds/chemo. To make matters worse, she may have a urinary tract infection (UTI) indicated by the two "accidents" this past weekend and frequent squats.

I took her to the vet yesterday for a UTI test, but they were unable to get a urine sample. Instead, Bailey was given a shot of antibiotics and pills to take for the next 10 days. I think the additional meds sent the poor girl into trouble as she woke today feeling even worse. Her symptoms include: slimy mucus and drooling from the mouth, complete loss of appetite, and obvious upset tummy. I took her back to the vet today and they did a CBC (Complete Blood Count) and found that everything was in check - great news. They gave her a shot to help settle her stomach and sub-q fluids (under the skin) to boost her hydration. She seems to be feeling a little better although far from normal. We've been instructed to stop the Valley Fever meds and antibiotics until we get her back on track. A note to those following Bailey's progress for comparisons to their cancer pups, she vomited once (12 hours post chemo) and had one spell of diarrhea (42 hours post chemo). Sorry if that is TMI for friends and family. :)

We'll keep an eye on her over the next 24 hours and get with the Oncologist if the symptoms do not subside. Thankfully, I work out of the house so can monitor her progress. Have I mentioned that I've become a pro at the "rear" temperature check - fun stuff. Even though she is feeling under the weather, she still manages to make me laugh. Today I found her in the spare room laying on the pillows with her butt up in the air and head resting on a big stuffed animal. Check out the video - I wonder if it's a sin to be this cute??



Baileyism
Along with being a snoop, Bailey is a leash thief. Here is a picture of her taking one from a bag that is packed for the weekend. The best part is the sneaky way she attempts to tip-toe across the house hoping we do not notice. I wonder when she'll figure out that the clanking noise made by the metal is a dead giveaway??