I am sorry I took so long to post this update- we had a rough week.

Maggie is still here and doing OK.  She is not in pain, is still alert and interested in what is going on, and likes to go to the park, although her energy level is sort of low.

Rewind to last Saturday- she started throwing up the little bit of food I could get her to eat, she didn't keep anything down all weekend (diagnosed with kidney failure, or CRF last month).  Into the vet Monday morning for IV fluids and a shot to help with the nausea and vomiting.  While there my vet Linda checked her mouth just in case, since she wasn't eating, and found what she thought was a melanoma in Mag's upper jaw.  Linda took a sample with a short surgical procedure to send in for analysis.  This is where I left off last time.

Monday night Mag did not sleep at all, very restless, seeing the pink elephants from the pain meds I think. Still wouldn't eat anything.  Back to the vet Tuesday morning to have the catheter removed, change pain meds, and another anti-nausea/vomiting shot.  She didn't sleep at all Tuesday night either,  pretty much the same as Monday night.  I quit giving the pain meds Tuesday night. I was also worried that she was having some abdominal pain because she had that hump in her back, her tail was down, and she wouldn't lay down.  I talked to Linda first thing Wednesday morning and we decided to watch her until 12:00 to see if she was better after the pain meds wore off.  She did finally settle down and sleep a couple of hours (me too).  When I called Linda back at 12:00 she had the pathology back on the tumor.

Confirmed malignant melanoma. We decided to go ahead with an ultrasound of the abdomen area that afternoon to see if any other organs were involved.  Earlier x-rays of her chest and lungs were clear.  The ultrasound came back clear as well except for some nodes or lesions on her liver.  This is the same report we got last April from the oncologist, who determined it was not a problem, so I think that is not an issue.

Where we are now:

My biggest immediate concern is her weight.  She was already under 16 pounds on Monday morning, and didn't eat much if anything Monday or Tuesday.  The only food she has eaten on her own this week is chicken chips at the vet on Wednesday.  I bought some since she has always liked them, but now she will not eat them.  I am syringe feeding her liquefied dog food, which she actually likes- she licks the syringe.  I can't get her to eat the liquefied food from a bowl or plate though.  I don't know if it is the melanoma in her mouth, or the CRF causing her not to eat, maybe both.  I have been increasing the amount of food I give her each day, and so far she has kept it down.  But she is REALLY thin!

On the melanoma-  The treatment protocol is surgery to remove it, including part of the upper mandible if necessary, radiation and chemo.  I do not consider any of those an option for Maggie at this stage of her life.  There is a vaccine for melanoma that is a series of shots that has proven to be effective in slowing growth and even shrinking tumors.  I have an appointment with the oncologist in a week and a half to find out more.  The pathology report did say that based on appearance the tumor was of the less aggressive type.

As always it is about quality of life.  I had doubts earlier this week, but for now Mag still seems to be pretty happy. She is quieter and has less energy, but still is walking around the park, barking at all the right times, playing a bit, and generally showing interest in life.  And she is not in any pain or discomfort- and she has always been a real drama queen- she always lets me know.  And she is almost 11 and a pug, so its not like she was running marathons anyway!

Thanks for all the well wishes on my earlier post.  We will continue on for now, fighting our second cancer and those rebellious kidneys.

Karen and the pug girls