4 Months

Hello! Cole had his 4 month scan/4th chemo treatment last week and I wanted to share the good news that so far it is clear! Our oncologist is really happy with his results. He does have some signs of minor arthritis in his back which she said could be just normal aging and not really have much to do with the amputation. We are going to keep an eye on it and have upped his supplements. We have 2 more chemo treatments to go. He is tolerating the chemo really well. His only side effects so far is he gets really tired and a bit weak for a few days after. We are now weaning him off the Gabapentin and he should be done with that in a few weeks. We tried this before about a month ago and he was not ready. He seems to be doing better this time and has only had a few random yelps so far. He is still taking Rimadyl and will likely take that for the rest of his life. The doctor also plans to add the osteosarcoma vaccine to his treatment when it is available. She said it is really close and thinks that will be some time this summer.

Other than that, things have been nice and quiet. I quit my job in February for a variety of reasons, the best being I get to spend all day with the dogs. They come with me for errands though that will have to stop now that it is getting so hot unless it is a short trip and they can come in. Cole loves to ride with his head out the window.

We celebrated Cole’s 6th birthday on March 1st and he and Ella got some chunks of steak and extra cookies. We have been working on the garden a lot and fixing up the back yard so we have been spending a lot of time outside.

He is doing so great. He still gets tired a lot faster and seems sore after a big day but that is slowly getting better. We are continuing to use the brace on his wrist to help support that weight which really helps. He can even do some very short wrestle sessions with Ella and their friend Lucy. He learned to shake (like when a dog shakes off water) again a few months ago which was something that frustrated him. He would stand up and try and was too wobbly but he has it down now. He has also mastered one-armed toy chewing. He was frustrated by not being able to grab the toys between his paws at first and I’m really glad he relearned how to chew.

That is all for now. We are enjoying normal life with him and trying to not think too much about the cancer for the time being. He is my big, sweet beast again. I’ll keep updating as things happen or just to add more cute photos from time to time 🙂