The Day After...

 I am going to first start off by saying "I'm sorry mommy and daddy.  I made a mess!"  When my mommy and daddy woke up this morning they looked around because daddy said he remembers me whining in the middle of the night and putting me on the floor and picking me back up.  Daddy is so used to doing this because I used to whine all the time.  I think I did this because I could tell something was wrong with me.  Anyways, mommy scouted out the house and saw that there was a big poop pile and a diarrhea pile on the Virginia Tech rug.  I'm not claiming the pile of poop, but they know that the diarrhea was definitely me.  I will also say, that the pee pad that Zoey has been laying on...yeah, well, let's just say I claimed that for myself in the middle of the night as well.  Daddy also said he felt something in the bed.  When he pulled the covers down, he found poop all in the bed.  Oops!!!  Mommy and daddy immediately went to work.  Zoey and I needed to go outside so daddy stayed inside and began cleaning.  He got some gloves and cleaned everything up.  He moved all of the blankets to the laundry room and put them in the washer.  After this was all done, mommy and daddy started giving the house a good clean.  I am not sure why, but usually it means someone might be coming over.  Unless it's very dirty - in that case they just clean.  After they were done with that, we all went for a car ride.  Mommy and daddy had some errands to run so they brought me and Zoey along with them.  We even got to take a ride into the city to pick up daddy's music stuff.  It was such a long ride.  During the entire ride, I kept ripping some nasty ones. They were pretty bad.  Once we got home, mommy and daddy put everything away that they had gotten.  I am pretty much just loungin' around the house now.  I am still a bit tired from my chemo treatment.

Aren't you done cleaning yet?

Relaxing during our car ride.

My Second Chemotherapy Treatment

Mommy and me waiting for my chemo treatment.

I woke up this morning pretty well-rested, which is good because today I had my second chemotherapy treatment.  I got my morning belly-rubs from my parents, took my medicine, then was on my way to the vet.  Before my treatment, my mommy talked to Dr. K, the oncologist, to go over my treatments today.  This treatment is my first "real" chemotherapy treatment, so Dr. K warned that I might have some nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea over the next few days.  Dr. K also wanted to tell mommy that she looked more into Apocaps, the supplement that my mommy was considering having me take to help fight my cancer, and advises against me taking it. She said that it shouldn't be taking with anti-inflammatory drugs (like the Prednisone I am on), and could also make my chemotherapy side-effects worse.  My mommy listened carefully, and is not going to put me on the Apocaps.  After their talk, my favorite vet tech came to take me back to chemotherapy, and my mommy went home to hang out with Zoey.

Two hours later, I was ready to be picked up.  My mommy and Dr. K talked before I came out, and Dr. K went over my most recent bloodwork.  She said that my white blood cell count is back within normal limits, which is good because it was wayyy high last week.  I do have a little bit of anemia, though, but Dr. K said that is to be somewhat expected with a dog receiving chemotherapy.  My plasma count and one other count was a bit high, but that is nothing to be concerned over.  Dr. K said I did really well during my treatment, and my mommy could tell, because I ran out of the back and happily greeted my mommy.  I was so excited to see her and go home, I was practically running to the car. 

Sooooo hungry!

Zoey sniffing me out.

Back home, Zoey was happy to see me.  I must have smelled funny though because she gave me a good long sniff (or three or four) when I first came in the door.  My mommy got my breakfast ready and I inhaled it - I was so hungry from not eating before my chemo session.  Afterwards, I laid on the floor to relax and Zoey came to sniff me out even more.   She finally got her fill and I went on the couch to relax with my mommy.

Day With Daddy

Zoey and me playing!

This day started out like any other.  Except I was shocked! I got to stay home with my daddy instead of my mommy.  Mommy had to go practice for her test that she was going to be taking next week, so daddy stayed home with me to make sure I was going to be okay.  Plus, they want to make sure someone is with me at all times since I am still not 100% yet.  After about 10 minutes of being up, I was greeted with treats.  I can only guess that they were my pain medicine.  Then I heard mommy asking daddy if I had my steroid (to help me with my battle) last night.  He said yes.  Mommy immediately started freaking out and beginning to cry.  She just gave me another one.  I am only supposed to get one every 24 hours.  Mommy, in her normal mommy fashion, began looking at everything she could find on the internet to make sure that I would be okay.  As it turns out, from what she could find, it was nowhere near an overdose.  I think I will be just fine even if she didn't look that up.  They are just steroids.  I want to be big and strong.  After mommy left, I went and laid on the couch.  This is pretty normal for me.  Zoey sat in the window and just stared outside.  She loves to look outside and watch the cars and bark at anything and everything that moves.

Zoey watching the cars drive by - her favorite activity (other than barking).

I am starting to feel a little more like myself now.  I am back to hopping onto the couch and running around with Zoey.  We had a pretty long play session today.  Tomorrow I go for my second chemotherapy treatment, so I hope that goes well.  I know my mommy is excited to see what my blood count this week will reveal.  

My Treatment Plan

Having cancer is rough, but my mommy and daddy are making sure I get the best treatment options possible.   I have to see a new doctor now, a veterinary oncologist, Dr. K, and she is helping me with chemotherapy.  I am getting the Madison-Wisconsin chemotherapy plan.   I started my first treatment this past Saturday, and I did pretty well.

My mommy has been reading about nutrition and diseases for a while now, so she wants to put me on a special diet.  She has been reading away about doggie cancer, and is trying to figure out the best diet plan and supplements for me.  Hopefully it is tasty because these steroids I have to take sure make me hungry!

Dr. K called my mommy this morning. She said that Dr. W had called her and told her how great I looked and how well I was doing.  She sounded really happy to hear that.  Dr. K said they got the results of my biopsy back and it did in fact show that I have high-grade large cell lymphoma.  My mommy took a deep breath, because she still wished that I had somehow been misdiagnosed. Dr. K asked if my mommy had any questions, and in typical-mommy fashion, my mommy did.  My mommy has been researching doggie cancer since my diagnosis, and has also looked at alternative treatments, so she asked Dr. K about a pill called Apocaps.  Apocaps are a pill designed by a veterinarian specifically for dog cancer that are supposed to cause apoptosis, AKA cell suicide.  Cancer turns apoptosis off in the body, which is one of the reasons why it spreads so efficiently.   Bet you didn't think a dog could know all that, but I am one smart puppy!  Dr. K said she had heard of Apocaps, but did not know how effective it was.  My mommy asked if it would harm me and Dr. K said she was pretty confident that it wouldn't.  She advised my mommy to be cautious about any supplements, since the binding ingredients can pose just as big of a risk as the active ingredients, and my mommy understood.  I think my mommy is going to try them out though; she will try anything to make my prognosis better.  My mommy also asked about K9 Immunity, another supplement made from mushrooms. It is supposed to boost the immune system, but Dr. K advised her against that one.  She again told my mommy that many of these plant-based products can interact with other medicines, so we wouldn't want to risk compromising my chemotherapy treatments.  My mommy said okay, then asked about Fish Oil for Omega-3s.  Dr. K said that was okay, which is good because I think fish oil tastes pretty yummy.  Dr. K said that she would talk more about complementary treatments on Friday, when I go in for my next chemotherapy treatment.

Back to Banfield

Last night I finally got to sleep in my real bed.  My mommy and daddy are still worried about my sister licking my stitches, so tonight me and my daddy were going to sleep on the couch while my mommy and sister slept in the bed.  I tolerated it for a little bit, but after a couple of hours, I was not having it. I went to the bedroom door and scratched and scratched and scratched for my mommy to let me in.  She must have been sleeping hard, because no one came to let me in.  I am not one to give up easily though, so I scratched for 40 minutes, while my daddy tried to coax me into going back to sleep with him.  Well, as usual, I got my way, and my daddy eventually got up to open the door for me. He was pretty frustrated since he had to work in the morning, and he told my mommy that we were going to bed with them.  I got into bed with my mommy and it was so nice.  I went down to my favorite spot, under the covers and between my mom's legs (she sleeps all sprawled out on the bed), but I had trouble getting comfortable with my cone on.  I finally got comfy and had the greatest sleep. 

The next day, it was time to go back to Banfield for my follow-up appointment.  All the ladies at Banfield love me, but I still get so scared when I go there.  When I saw where my mommy was driving me to I started shaking.  My mommy told me it was okay, but I just always get poked and prodded everytime I go there.  We walked into the door, and I got so scared, I pooped on the floor.  Luckily no one was around though, so my mommy was able to walk to the next aisle to get some stuff to clean it up before anyone stepped in it.  When I got to the Banfield desk, the receptionist immediately knew who I was.  She said "Is this Oliver?  I just love him.  He is just such a pretty dog.  He has the most beautiful eyes - he just looks at me and I want to give him whatever he wants."  Yeahhhhh buddy, I am a ladies man!

We went into an exam room, and saw my regular vet, Dr. W.  She was happy to see me, but was sad at all that has been discovered these past few days.  She told my mommy that she never saw this coming, and that she hasn't seen this kind of lymphoma in a dog my age before.  She asked my mommy if she was up-to-date on my diagnosis and understood how I would fare.  My mommy repeated to her what she had been told: I have large-grade lymphoma, which in English means I have aggressive cancer of the lymphatic system, a body system that is part of the immune system.  They talked again about how my age is a negative factor (it means my immune system is really not doing so hot), but my mommy said that we are going to try and beat the odds.  I think we can.  I may have all the cards stacked against me right now, but this cancer is underestimating my stubbornness and my parents' determination.   I know they are not going to give up on me without giving one hell of a fight, and I am not giving up either.

After my mommy and Dr. W talked, she checked me out again.  My heart and breathing was normal, as was my temperature.  She gave me a rectal exam (not my favorite part) to see how swollen my anal lymph nodes were, since last week they were pretty big.  She was surprised to find that they were only 1/3 of the size they were last week.  Ah ha, I'll show you cancer!  It was nice to hear this good news, since the last week has been all bad news.  Dr. W also said that I seemed in much better spirits and looked really great. 
My mommy said that I have been doing really well, except for not wanting to take my pain medicine.  Dr. W gave her a pack of pill pockets to try, saying that they work well for most dogs.  I guess we will see.

That night at dinner, mommy got to test out these pill pockets.  My pain pills are pretty small, so my mommy had to shove the pill into the treat to try and get it to stay in there.  She called me and my sister up to get a treat, and we came running.  My mommy gave each of us a liver treat first (yum!), which is her way of trying to trick me into taking my medicine in the next treat.  She gave us a second treat, only this time, mine was the pill pocket treat with my pain medicine inside. It smelled good, so I put the whole thing in my mouth...then immediately spit it back out.  I ate part of the treat that wasn't contaminated by the pain medicine, but I was not about to touch that pill!  My mommy and daddy laughed, because I can sniff a pill out of anything.  My daddy tricked me later though - he cut the pill up into quarters and stuck it in my beloved liver treats.  That sneaky daddy!

March 26th

Attempt 2: "the belt"

Attempt 1: "the diaper"

My first night home was a little unusual.  My mommy was worried that my puppy sister, Zoey, would lick my stitches from my abdominal surgery, so she kept me up for a while trying to make a “diaper” out of an old t-shirt to cover my stitches up.  My mommy did pretty good, but the diaper wasn’t long enough and it kept sliding down, so she took it off because she didn’t want to make me uncomfortable.  My parents are much more worried than they used to be, but I know it is because they want what is best for me.  My mommy still didn’t want to risk my stitches being licked or me jumping off the bed, so we slept in the living room while my dad and sister slept in the bedroom.  I couldn’t get comfortable on the couch with my mom, so I went to the floor.  Then my mom moved to the floor and was cramping my space, so I moved again. Then, it was time for a bathroom break. After the bathroom break we went back on the couch and got a little more comfortable.  We slept about four hours and got up super early (6 a.m.).  I ate a little breakfast and went potty again, then I was whining to see my daddy. It was weird sleeping without him!  My mommy and I went to wake him up, but when we got to the door, he opened it. Now, if you know my daddy, you know he does NOT wake up early, ever.  So to see him up at 6:30 was crazy!  He said he heard me whining and wanted to see me before he went to work.  My parents talked as me and Zoey had a morning play session. We fought over our new toys, a blue lobster and a red crab, and I was back to acting like my old self again. My parents looked really happy to see me so energetic.  After my dad left for work, the three of us camped out on the couch. My mom was reading a book on her computer, but soon all three of us were dozing.  We slept for 2 hours, then it was time for a potty break. My mom took me outside, wearing my cone (how embarrassing!) and when I was sniffing for a good spot, I scooped up a bumble bee! Ohhhhhh nooooo!  I did not like that one bit…it scared the beejesus out of me!  I ran to the door.  My mom calmed me down and soon I was okay.  Back inside, Zoey and I played a little more.  I saw my green ball, my FAVORITE toy, and tried to squish it in my mouth, but it was kind of hard with my cone on. But then, like her usual self, Zoey stole it from me.  She played with it for a while, then I got it back from her (ha ha!).














Once my daddy got home, mommy said the familiar words, “DADDY'S HOME!”  I immediately ran to the door, anxiously waiting for him to come through.  I know he could hear me outside the door whining to see him.  Once he got in, I was so excited to see him.  I ran around a little bit with Zoey and we both tried to get his attention to get some pets in.  I, in my normal fashion, ran to the carpet and rolled over on my back to get a belly rub.  My daddy had to be extra careful not to hurt my tummy since the stitches are still in, but I knew that he would.  All throughout the rest of the night, mommy and daddy worried about me,  and tried to make sure that I would not lick my stitches.

I am a cutie!

Me and Zoey waiting for daddy to get out of the shower.

BACK HOME!!!!!

Me and my sister under the bed.

 I woke up today hoping that I would finally be able to go home.  Sure enough, I heard the vets on the phone with my mommy and daddy around 12 o'clock.  They must have been waiting right outside because it seemed like they were there within a few minutes.  The vets didn’t even have everything together for me to be discharged.  Once they brought me in to see them, I gave them both big kisses because I was so excited to see them.  To my surprise my sister was waiting for me in the car.  I could tell she was excited to see me, but I can only hope she goes a little easy on me until I am healed up.  We got home and I immediately had to go outside and potty.  My mommy was very worried about me, but that’s nothing new.  I did get a little wet since it had rained the day before, but they quickly dried me off and got me taken care of.  Mommy ran off to the store while me, daddy, and Zoey laid on the couch together.  I think we were all pretty sleepy from the previous few days.  Once mommy got back from the store, they tried to give me my medicine, but I was back to my old “bratty” self and didn’t want anything to do with those pills.  They tried everything but I would just spit it out.  They finally managed it, but I was not happy.  For the rest of the day I mainly just laid around because the doctors said I needed to get some rest.  My daddy did call the vet once though; I have to pee a lot since I got surgery and started chemotherapy, so they wanted to make sure that was normal. The vet told him that it would be that way the rest of my life, but that I might get used to it.  Hopefully I will, because going to the bathroom every hour sure is annoying!

The Day After Surgery!

I woke up today not feeling completely like myself, but let’s be serious, who would after surgery.  The one good thing about today was that my mommy and daddy came to visit me while I was in the hospital.  We spent about an hour together.  I tried to show them that I loved them.  I gave them a few kisses and laid on the floor with them, however I was still very exhausted and in pain.  While here, I also made a new friend with the nurse and doctor.  I whined when they left me alone to go make a house visit because I wanted them with me.  Later that evening I could overhear the doctor calling my mommy and daddy and saying that they wanted to give me my first chemotherapy treatment.  They were a little hesitant because I just came out of surgery, but at the same time they knew we needed to act fast.  My mommy and daddy must have said it was ok because the doctor came back and gave me my first treatment.  All went well with the first treatment and I was back in bed after the long day.

Diagnosis :(

On March 23rd, the vet called and told my mommy and daddy that the radiologist had contacted them, but couldn’t really find anything wrong.  Since I was still not acting like myself, they suggested that my mommy and daddy take me to an emergency vet for further evaluation.  My mommy and daddy called and took me right away.  Once we were there, the doctor was feeling around and could tell something was wrong with me.  We were all hopeful that I had just eaten something and it got stuck in my belly.  They suggested I have surgery right away.  I was left there and the procedure began.  I woke up several hours later feeling very exhausted and in pain.  I don’t think I was awake when the doctor called to talk to my mommy and daddy, but they confirmed what I was hiding from them.  I had lymphoma and it was attacking me pretty aggressively.  I can only imagine how heartbroken they were because I know how much they love me. 

Not Feeling So Great!!!

I had my first visit to Banfield (the doggy doctor) on March 14th after I started acting a little “weird.”  They didn’t really know what was wrong with me, but they gave me some medicine and had another appointment lined up for me a week later.  During this week I tried to act as normal as possible, but my mommy and daddy were still not convinced that I was ok.

On March 20th I had my follow up appointment.  The vets still could not figure out what was wrong with me however they decided to take some blood work and do an X-Ray.  My mommy and daddy were a little worried about how much this was going to cost, but of course because they loved me so much, they went ahead and did it so that they could try to figure out what was wrong with me.  During the week, I again tried to act like my normal self to cover up what was wrong with me.  My mommy read that this was typical pack behavior:  cover up when you're sick so you don't lose your position in the pack.  I know deep down though that I will never lose my position in this pack.  We are too bound together.

My Sister, Zoey!

Zoey looooves to show her teeth.

She still hasn't figured out what a "pee-pad" is for.

Zoey does NOT like mommy kissing her paw.

That is not nice Zoey!

Around late February, early March of 2011, my mommy and daddy decided we needed a new home.  I wasn't entirely sure why.  I liked our little apartment that we were all living in.  Some of the neighbors were my friends.  We always went on walks around the apartment building and the place that was next to it.  Life was good.  Anyways, once we got to our new home, I adjusted quickly.  I now had my own yard.  The house felt much bigger and open.  It was too good to be true.  And I was right.  I soon found out my parents' intentions of moving.  In May, we went to go look at other dogs.  I always heard my mommy and daddy talking.  Mommy really wanted me to have a friend.  Daddy wasn't quite so sure.  He really thought that I loved being an only child.  Anyways, we brought home a new friend for me.  Her name is Zoey.  She was very shy and calm when we went to meet her.  Let me just say, that ALL changed as soon as we brought her home.  She was a mad woman! She was running around everywhere, barking, chewing things up, and was about as potty trained as I was when I was 6 months old.  Still, I had to give her a chance.  This was my new sister after all.  We slowly became friends over the months.  We would run around together, bark at each other, leave accidents in the house and let the other get blamed for it.  Pretty much like any normal brother and sister I'd say.  I think the thing that stands out the most to me is that she protected me.  When we would go visit grandma, grandpa, Uncle Bryan, Aunt Trish, and my cousin Sam, I was always in for a real treat.  Sam is a German Shepard, so lets just say shes a little bigger than me.  I know she didn't mean too, but she always stepped on me.  I was tiny compared to her.  Anyways, one of the trips that we took to visit them, Zoey came along with us.  (If you only knew how we acted in the car on the way down there.  That's another story all by itself.)  So once we get to there, Sam wanted to play with me.  Since shes bigger, her playing is a little too rough for me.  Zoey could see that I was not having fun and went and "fought" Sam off for me.  It was probably the nicest...well probably the only nice thing she has done for me.  I kid, I kid.  She has been a great sister.  If you are wondering who was right, I would say mommy and daddy were both right.  I did want a friend, but at the same time, I LOVE my attention, so it stinks that I have to share it with someone.  I don't think I could be happier though.

My Most FAVORITE Toy!!!

One day I remember my parents getting something in the mail.  It was from my Great Aunt Debbie.  Once they opened it up, there were lots of goodies and surprises for me.  In the package was probably the most perfect toy I could have ever asked for.  It was a ball!  It wasn't just any ball though.  It was my green ball.  The toy that I grew to love and could never live without.  I love carrying that ball around with me everywhere I went.  I used to drop it into all the smallest crevices in the apartment and go chase after it.  Once I got a little bigger, this wasn't as easy.  So instead, I would drop the ball into all these same crevices and underneath the couch, and then would just whine.  A LOT!  My parents got so tired of hearing me whine and trying to dig the ball out of all these places that they eventually took it from me and hid it for a few months.  I thought they had lost it once we moved, but it showed up, thankfully.  Once again, I was dropping it everywhere and whining for them to get it out.  Eventually I figured out how to dig it out from underneath the cabinet with my little paws.  This didn't stop me from whining though.  I kept at it.  One night I took the ball outside with me when I was going potty.  I was so excited to get back in that I left my ball out there.  I remember my daddy kind of freaking out because he knew how much I loved that ball.  He even went outside with a flashlight trying to find it for me.  He couldn't find it.  In fact, it wasn't found until a few days later.  Thankfully it was eventually found though.  To this day, I still have that ball, and take it with me everywhere I go.

Why Must You Dress Me Up??????

I don't know what it is about people who own small dogs - why do they think I like wearing clothes?  First, my grandparents came to visit and bought me pajamas.  C'mon, what dog needs pajamas?  I do look pretty cute though...  

At Christmas, they dressed me as Santa.  Who put this stupid hat on me???  It didn't stay on long.

 Yeehawwww!!!  Saddle up cowboy!  This one wasn't so bad.

 For real!  A chicken!  Whose bright idea was it to dress me, an animal, like another animal!!!!  Not cool mom!

 Got my winter jacket on....still not too happy though.

Now this one I can deal with.  I look mighty handsome in my winter outfit.  My boots didn't fit though....

My First Few Months

Life as a puppy sure was easy, but sometimes scary.  I did a lot of new things within the first few months of being with my new family.  They took me on a long car ride to Virginia to meet my grandparents and my uncles, Ed and Frank.  This was one of the most special days of my life, because Ed is awesome!  On one trip, I even got to go to the beach and hangout with Ed.  This part was kind of scary.  I had never been to a beach before, and I wasn't sure about the water.  But my mommy and daddy thought I could handle it, so they just threw me right in.  Good thing all dogs can doggie-paddle.  I loved it!  I kept jumping back in for more fun in the bay.

Back at the house, I had a lot of fun with my parents.  We played all the time - I was forever bringing them a toy to throw for me.  I also really loved tug-of-war.  Don't judge me by my size, because I sure am strong!  I demolished a few toys in my days though....

Being cute and having fun was easy, but you know what wasn't?  Becoming potty-trained.  Man, did I go through some carpet cleaner.  It was like my bladder was never empty!  It was funny watching my mommy and daddy chase behind me cleaning up all my accidents.  I still remember one time after I had finally gotten good and trained.  My parents left that morning to go snowboarding.  But the snow was a little worse than they thought, and they ended up getting stuck on the mountain for a little while longer than they wanted to be.  But I was a good boy and held my pee all day. That is, until they got home.   I came out from under the bed when I heard someone at the door, and as I walked down the hall I saw two big monsters!  I peed myself all the way back under the bed to safety.  Little did I know, it was my parents decked out in snowboard gear....oops!

Speaking of snow, I LOVE snow!  I loved snow from the very first time I saw it.   The very first time I saw snow, it came down hard.  My parents, who normally walk me on a leash, let me run off my leash because the snow was over my head...they knew I wouldn't make it far.  But once I figured out how to run on it, I could take off.  I even got to play in the snow with my neighbor dog, Reese.  It sure was fun!

The Beginning

It all started on May 22, 2009.  I was brought into this world, born in Philadelphia, PA.  I don't remember much about the first several weeks of my life, however I do distinctly remember a very special day in July.  I was about 9 weeks old and living with my birth mother and the family who bred me and a young couple came to visit.  I couldn't see them at first, because they were in the kitchen with my two medium-haired brothers, and I was back in another part of the house.  The couple said that my brothers were adorable, but the lady insisted that she wanted a short-haired dachshund.  My breeder said she did have one more dog from our little, but that her friend had already claimed him.  He, she said, was a good-looking short-haired dachshund.  The lady sounded very interested, so my breeder said that if they could pay for me that day, they could have me.  She went into the back and brought me out to meet the young couple.  The lady, who soon became my mommy, took one look at me and decided she wanted to take me home.  The man was a little more hesitant; he said he wasn't sure about me because I didn't seem too playful.  Long story short, the lady got her way, and on August 4, 2009, I came home with my new family.

Me and my mommy after my first bath.

I will show you how playful I am!