Kind of a Wild Week and It's Only Tuesday!

My wild week started out with snow yesterday morning. Not much, just enough that we could see it. But very cold.

Otter's 6 month lung recheck was yesterday. The doctor said about what we expected: karate is not recommended. She is to keep using her inhaler morning and evening, the same resue inhaler as needed and he added Cingulair once in the evening. He gave her a prescription, but he also gave us 2 weeks of samples so I haven't gotten the prescription filled yet. I want to watch her for a while, as there are a few side effects such as upset stomach while her system is adjusting to it. She started it last night and she did have an upset stomach this morning. I don't necessarily expect problems, but I have heard of a few cases where people can not take it. So we'll keep an eye on her. Which we would do anyway! He wants to see her again in 3 months, at which time he might make a change in her medicine plan. So I have her appointment scheduled for the Monday of spring break, that way she won't have to miss a school day. I don't think that she would have minded making the sacrifice of missing a day of school! :)

The other thing that made this week wild is Frasier. He's had a spot on his leg just above his left foot where it originally looked like a scratch. He's been limping on and off the last few days and the scratched spot is suddenly big. Like about marble size, which is pretty big. The last couple of days he's acted like he was in pain or not feeling well. So I called the vet. And they very strongly suspected that we were looking at cancer. Which is not good, as what they suspected is incurable and the treatment (chemo, amputation) would only buy a few months - months of pain. So we took him in this afternoon. After being worried about him all day, we played with him when we got home and gave him a few treats. Then we took him to the vet - which he liked at first, he loves car rides. But he changed his mind when the assistant took his temperature! The vet gave him a very, VERY thorough exam and he's leaning towards it NOT being cancer. However, it definitely is a tumor. There is a biopsy for it, but apparently it is not very accurate. So he suggested a steroid shot divided between the shoulder area and into the tumor - Frasier was ok for the first part, but he did not like the shot in the tumor! He also gave me a spray to use on the spot twice a day or three times a day if I think it's necessary, and Frasier is on an antibiotic. There is still a possibility that it is cancer, but at this point he doesn't think so. I have to keep an eye on Frasier and see how he acts, also if the tumor grows I have to take him back in. If it grows, then we are probably looking at a worst-case scenario. But we're thinking positive about it.

While we were there, Magginator got her rear end squashed. She hates that, but she needs to have those glands cleaned on a regular basis. She was funny, she was happy to get there. But as soon as we were shown into the exam room, she put on the brakes! She was not going anywhere for anything. Otter had to pick her up and carry her. As soon as the assistant took her out of the room to get her procedure done, she just wilted. When the assistant brought her back, she ran to the opposite side of the room and parked her behind against the wall. I think she wanted it to be unreachable. She's such a silly dog! But she's a happy dog, especially once we left the vet's. She couldn't get out of there fast enough. Frasier was happy to leave, but he's obviously not feeling 100%.

Hopefully, the rest of this week will be uneventful.