Five chemotherapy treatments left to go, if all goes well. Amber had the first treatment yesterday morning and did seem a little quiet most of the day. When we got home I gave her a bully stick to chew and she ate half of it and then buried the rest in the couch for later. She ate her dinner and brought me her stuffed soccer ball to play a few times but other than that was in her kennel curled up all day. They gave her a drug called Mitoxantrone, a quick injection. The next one will be a different drug given IV for 20 minutes.
I brought them this picture of her from her last show. My little athlete. Photo by Randy Gaines
By the way, it's just KILLING me that she is so perfect in every other way still, just that one body part....
They told me I didn't have to do anything differently, just to let her tell me when she was ready for normal activity. This morning she was fairly normal again. Every morning I listen for the sound of her rolling on the couch, she makes these noises that sound like a bear scratching its back on a tree. This morning was no exception, I was happy to hear her. She seemed to want to do something so we went for a short hike, she did just fine!
We took them for another run tonight. Eagle Island again, our favorite place.
The sun was just setting and it was perfect light for photos. Lots of bugs though!
See all the insects?
I have lots of very similar shots but can't decide which ones I like best so I'm posting them all.
Upon coming home I am almost convinced that the chemo has made her feel BETTER. For the past few months she has not seemed very excited about her food, she still ate it but just didn't act like she used to. She used to sit in the kitchen and watch me make it, drooling, and lately she has been waiting on her bed til she hears me put Rye's dish down to get up and eat. Tonight she watched me make her dinner.
You should see her drug basket. Mixed in with her food she gets one Omeprazole (prilosec) twice a day, to help protect her stomach from the effects of the Deramaxx which she gets once a day. Now she has Metochlopramide, twice a day to help prevent upset stomach from the chemo. I give her a total of 3 fish oil capsules a day, good for lots of stuff, she gets cranberry juice capsules twice daily to help keep her urine acidic, a vitamin E once a day, and I've been making a mix based on something called the "Budwig diet". It sounds silly but I don't think it can hurt her. It was recommended on a dog cancer forum. It is about 3 tablespoons flax seed oil and 6 tablespoons cottage cheese, blended using my handy dandy hand mixer, until it is very smooth and creamy. Something about the blending of the two is what's important.
Goodnight and thanks for reading!
4 comments:
So glad she is feeling alright after her first round. I hope the trend continues and she can get back to even more normal activities. Your girl gets some air! Great photos of the evening walk too, what camera do you use? It's got nice light control, and I have really been enjoying your photos.
Anna
www.akginspiration.com
She was always a high jumper, never so high that it seemed inefficient but high! She hardly ever knocked bars.
I use a Nikon D60, not the most expensive model but I do love it.
And thanks!
What camera do you use?
Claire I have been through several over the years but am currently shooting with a Nikon D7000. I was a Canon shooter since High School but switched this year. No particular reason outside of my photography partner shooting with Nikon already, and my brother as well who has a whole slew of equipment for me to use/borrow on occasion. So i figured I should switch before I got deeper into Canon. I still kinda prefer Canon, but I also need to spend more time getting to know this camera. But it was more difficult to switch than I thought. I always tell people that is not the camera you shoot with, but how well you know how to use it. An expensive camera does not make beautiful photos all on it's own.
Anna
www.akginspiration.com
I'm so glad the first treatment is going well! I think I read about the "Budwig" diet too. At least about somehow the cottage cheese is helpful. It's great that she seems to be feeling better and more excited about her food. Beautiful pictures too!
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