Sunday, September 11, 2011

And Then There Was Only One....


Tim on our first adventure without his buddy, Skye September 2011

Shortly after Skye, Tim and I started to share our adventures on this page, Skye was diagnosed with a malignant cancer - lymphoma - also known as lymphosarcoma, at only about 5-6 years of age.  We discussed and agonized over how aggressively we should treat her.  We learned that lymphoma often responds well to chemotherapy and can extend a dog's life for 6 months to a year, but it requires frequent trips to the vet for chemotherapy treatments and can be expensive.  Skye detested going to the vet and gave me the "stink eye" for 24 hours after taking her in for the biopsy that confirmed the diagnosis of lymphoma.  We opted to give her one dose of chemo and daily prednisone which only gave her about 2 more months of life, but it was a good quality of life without any more hated trips to the vet.  She enjoyed daily walks and swims in a nearby pond for over 2 months.  Then on August 27th she stopped eating.  She had no stamina left and lost weight.  We released her from her cancer on August 31st and look forward to seeing her on the other side of the rainbow bridge.  In the meantime, we will remember her as she was on her last walk, as our beloved companion who loved to swim in muddy ponds.


Skye's last swim