Hello all,

First and foremost I want to say thank you for everyone who has shared their stories and experiences on this forum. It has helped my family immensely get through this tough time knowing we are not alone.

Blakes story:

Blake is an amazing 7yo chocolate lab/chessy mix. He was a rescue found wondering the streets of a small town in Oregon. Blake was found then at a local shelter by a foundation that rescues dogs and turns them into rescuers. For the past 5 years Blake has been my search and rescue canine partner and more importantly my best friend, right hand man, my shadow, my son. I noticed one day he was limping after a search training and thought we should take it easy and pulled him off of the pile and let him rest for a week or so. The limp still persisted so we went to the vet to get xrays. I thought he simply pulled a muscle as his job is extremely difficult and he is an absolute stud on the pile. Xrays revealed substantial mothing to his left humerus and I was told its highly possible he has an osteosarcoma in that leg. I immediately broke down and felt like my heart was ripped out of my chest. We started a pain management regimen which seemed to help him well until we could see what treatment we needed done. The day before we had our appointment with the oncologist we we’re walking into the fire station(one of his favorite places to be) when he bolted into they station and slipped. Upon slipping, due to his bone being so weak it snapped under the pressure of him trying to correct his balance. I immediately grabbed him and rushed him to our team vet who was thankfully three blocks away. We were able to manage his pain in under 10 minutes( THANK GOODNESS!). Even the fire engine showed up to the vet to support Blake.

This is were one of the hardest decisions of my life came into play.  While sitting in a room waiting to gear from the surgeons and oncologists so many things played through my mind. I was then faced with the decision to amputate his front left leg because there was no good bone left to surgically repair it. My only thought in my mind was I will do whatever will give him a happier life and no pain. A week later im sitting on a dog beg laying next to my best friend while he recovers. Let me say this…. Its not an easy road like many have stated before. You see your loved one confused, depressed, in pain and you feel helpless because all you want to know is how can i help you more. If i could take all his pain and burden it unto myself i would in a heartbeat. The first three days were not bad. This stud stood up right after surgery and was hopping around the house his first few days. Once the local anesthetic wore off is when things got rough. The panting, drooling, and just the shear look in his sweet eyes. I know every little thing about my boy down to what he’s thinking by how he wags his tail. All I can say, like many others have, have a good routine of pain management and stagger some times of each med so that there is full coverage throughout the day. It KILLED me to see him fidget, shake, and pant. Luckily. We have found a good routine now to where he sleeps most the day. Icing the surgery site in early days and switching to a heating pad has helped a lot. The heating pad puts this moose to sleep almost every time. Today has been the best so far. He’s been getting up and walking around the house and following me as he always did. As much as i want him to i try to make him get his rest. Also, what I have found to help him in particular is keeping with your normal routine of what life was before the surgery. He has always had a very regimented life with me and he learned it quick. One thing we would every day off from work would be to load up in the truck, get a coffee, and go for a beach cruise. We did that yesterday and I almost started crying because it was the most normal i had seen him in a week. His tail is beginning to wag more and he is moving faster each day. Stay strong for your pup. They need you. When i feel down i think about how tough he is and that i need to be even stronger for him. Blake is an inspiration to me and hope that whatever caused this he gives it hell and lives a happy and strong life. Thank you again all for your wisdom on getting through this. We are proud to say we are a new part of the Tripawds. 

-Mike