Update on Jade Girl

Here's a little update on our Jade girl. We had an ugly looking mass removed from her front right doggie elbow about 2 weeks ago. The biopsy came back that it was, in fact, malignant cancer. Insert sad face here :( The positive side of the biopsy is that the vet got 100% of the tumor! This form of cancer is rated on a scale of 1 to 3...1 being NOT likely to spread, and 3 meaning it WILL spread or IS spreading. Jade's is a 2.

I took Jade back a few days after this diagnosis to have a lump on her ribs needle biopsied. Dr. Parker, our vet, was pretty sure it was just a Lipoma which is basically a pocket of fat that can come and go. Lipomas are very common in labs. Thankfully, that lump was exactly that! She now has 3 other lumps on her other side. Insert another sad face :(

Jade is 10 and has lived a great life with us. We aren't exactly sure what this cancer is going to do to her or NOT do to her. So, we're going to keep an eye on lumps, watch for any strange behavior especially towards the kids, and keep her as comfortable as possible for however long her life may be. She could live 3 or 4 more years for all we know!!!

Since her mass was on her arm right by a joint, it's taking FOREVER to heal up! 2 and 1/2 weeks later, and she still has to keep the cone on her head. I had to take her back to get staples in it since it kept splitting open. Then the NEXT day, I had to take her back yet AGAIN since she ripped one of the staples out and had pulled the other one off the wound itself. I'm not sure how she managed to do that with the cone on her head, but I suspect Rena helped her.

The boys decided to "sticker up" her cone to make her happy...

Here's the end result!

Jade was the most popular pooch at the park on Sunday with her super stylish Halloween and Mickey Mouse themed cone:)

Here's a cute little pic of Jade "smiling" on the couch with me one morning. I took off her cone to give her a little break! You can see the red scabby looking wound on her arm.

Just say a few prayers for our Jade girl that she can live a great life with us...however long that may be!

Hey Kids...GO FLY A KITE!

Today was GORGEOUS, and the rest of the week should be as gorgeous as today! After I ran my errands, I went home, packed us a lunch, grabbed Rena Bena, picked up the boys and hauled butt to the park to enjoy this beautiful day.

I tossed one of Eric's old kites in the trunk in the event that the day would be windy. I'm SO glad I did! The boys took turns flying their first kite!!!

Here's B taking his turn!

C taking his turn

Rena seemed to be bored with the day's festivities. Either that, or she's just being her plain old lazy self.

When we got home, and played in the back yard...here's what she was doing...

Her name fits her so well. When we rescued her, she was so serene! "Serena" as a dog's name seemed too long. So, we shortened it to Rena! She sure does bring serenity into our lives with her sweet gentile personality and grotesque snoring abilities. Gosh, I love this dog!

Now, here's Jade:(

She's had a really rough couple of days! I took her in for a dental cleaning on Monday, and ended up having the vet remove a very suspicious cyst on her front right doggie elbow. We noticed it around when we moved here, and it was only about the size of a pencil top eraser. Now, it was closer to the size of a nickle or even quarter and bright red! Since she was already under anesthesia, we agreed to have it removed. We sent it off to get a biopsy on it, and should know those results in a few days. She HATES that cone thing!!!

I didn't make her wear the cone when I put her to sleep last night because I wanted her to get some good rest. This was her when I got up this morning...

She didn't move. She didn't even look up at me. She just laid there. For those of you who know Jade...she NEVER "just lays there." Usually, she's trampling me down as soon as my feet hit the front entry way floor. I laid now by her and just rubbed her ears and chin for a little while. The fur around both of her eyes was all wet...I'm sure she was crying in pain:( She perked up a little once the boys got up, but instantly went back to being sad as I put the cone back on her when we left. Poor Jade...she's our first "baby" I hate seeing her so down and out. I hope she gets back to her normal, obnoxiously annoying, forever greeting self in a few days. I felt kind of lonely today without her all up in my business all day long!