Hi all!  Thanks for the positive responses to my last post! I hope our photo shoot has inspired some of you to get on the other side of the camera with your pets.  While I love any photo of Griffin, the ones with us together are so special, just as it would be with human members of our family.  And, I especially love the photos that were not posed, catching Griffin and me in our natural state of interacting.  I had a friend do an informal photo shoot with Griffin and me just prior to his surgery, scared that if something went wrong, I would not have any recent pictures of us together.  This more recent photo shoot was more of a celebration of how far we both have come, but it gives me peace of mind to know that these special moments have been memorialized forever.

I'm also feeling at peace (and dare I say optimistic?) with the current treatment plan.  Griffin has thankfully experienced no side effects from the metronomic drugs, palladia and piroxicam, that he started taking on Friday.  We've had a much welcomed break in the heat for the last few days, which positively impacts Griffin's stamina on our morning walks and makes them more enjoyable overall.  We are heading to Connecticut for the first dose of the Yale vaccine on Monday, and after reading Copper's update, I'm now weirdly rooting for Griffin to develop infection from the injection.  And, we are deep in our training to hike the Continental Divide starting on Saturday!

Griffin received the first dose of the Yale canine cancer trial vaccine yesterday!  We were originally scheduled to travel to Connecticut tomorrow in order to avoid the $1,200 cost (tax deductible donation to Yale University) of having the vaccine sent to our local vet, but the vaccine was mistakenly sent to Griffin’s oncologist last week.  Dr. Mamula, the lead vet for the trial, very graciously allowed us to keep the vaccine, lowering the cost to $300.  So, instead of having to travel about an hour and turn over Griffin in the parking lot to staff of a clinic we don’t know and pay about $225 for that consultation, we were able to have our local vet administer the vaccine with me in the room for $65.  That was a total win for us!

Griffin started Palladia and Piroxicam last week.  He does not seem to be experiencing any side effects, but he has been a little picky with his food the last few days.  He is still eating, but whereas before he would literally lick the bowl clean for his afternoon homecooked meal, I am now having to coax him a bit to eat most of it.  Nothing has changed with his food, and he eagerly eats treats and human food (for example, cottage cheese and chicken), so I’m not sure what’s going on.  When Griffin is not feeling well, he will refuse all food/treats, so I don’t think he is nauseous.  He has gone from 60lbs on July 18th to 56.7lbs yesterday, losing one pound just from August 14th.  His local vet says he is in ideal body condition, and his oncology team doesn’t seem concerned, just cautioning me not to force him to eat.

Other than the recent food pickiness, Griffin continues to do well.  The weather in NYC was cool enough not to need the AC for most of last week, and the lower heat/humidity made our daily morning walks more enjoyable.  Griffin will return to his local vet for the second dose of the vaccine in 3 weeks and has an oncology appointment 2 weeks after that to repeat the chest x-rays and determine our next course of action.  Not including the trips to our local vet (walking distance from our house) for the vaccine injections, this will be the longest break from major medical appointments that we’ve had since Griffin was diagnosed in March – whoo hoo!

We used Griffin's red wagon a ton while on vacation to haul things down to the pond and pavilion, and we accidentally broke the push handle bar.  His original wagon has been discontinued but I was lucky enough to find a replacement one which is almost identical.  Griffin was very color coordinated on this day, modeling his Ruff Wear Jet Stream cooling vest and enjoying the shade provided by his new chariot!

Griffin and I don't share our apartment with anyone else, so I never close the bathroom door when showering, brushing my teeth, etc.  If Griffin decides that I'm in the bathroom too long, he comes to stalk me.

Even the rain doesn't dim Griffin's joy at romping in the grass.  The geese weren't too sure what to make of the 3-legged orange animal rolling around in their field!