Tomorrow 9/27/17 will be ONE MONTH POST OP.  Ruby is almost 3 years old and I had just received her into my life in May of this year.  I rehomed her because my niece couldn't keep her on the farm killing other animals with her high prey drive.  I picked Ruby up, very excited and proud to have this beautiful GSD in my life.  She is a magnificent dog.  She went around town with me to Doctor appts, bank, post office, stores, out for walks...she was such a steady good walker.  I have an invisible disability and use the aid of a Service dog, mine are self trained.  I was getting her used to helping me by giving her a job to do and then... well...  Anyhow... let's skip to why we are now here, on this website and posting in the forums/blog.

I saw a small lump on Ruby's left stifle knee.   I took her to the Vet on 7/17/17 and it had tripled in size, like a baseball.   7/27/17 Ruby had her first surgery to find out what was growing.  They sedated her and then didn't really know what to do.  The extracted some fluid and sent it off for culture.  It came back showing signs of hemorrhage, but they were baffled.  Kept treating it with novox and sent her home.  The mass kept growing and getting bigger.  Seemed like the size of a volleyball.  I took her back to get a new opinion at a different animal hospital and that Vet owned the office my first Vet was in.  So he ended up referring us to another hospital in a City beside us that had a Specialist to see Ruby's knee.  

We ended up doing another surgery on her, this time to biopsy and culture again.  I asked her to take the leg off during this surgery and was told that was a drastic solution for an unknown ailment because she was using the leg just fine.  I couldn't afford all these medical bills and knew that the current surgery would be the last one I could get for her.  I am low income, single, mother of one son, 4 dogs and 2 fish.  My job is minimum wage.  Those two surgeries were $1700, not including misc. other items I purchased to accommodate her better.  So... the Vet did not want to remove the leg until they knew what it was.  It turned out to be soft tissue cancer.  I know there is a work for that, but I can not remember it and I always explain it as "soft tissue" because that is how it was described to me.  She suggested we amputate the leg.  I knew I could not afford to do another surgery.  I couldn't afford the first two, really and I maxed my credit cards paying for those.  My friend started a gofundme and over that weekend we raised $365 in donations from really kind friends, family and strangers.  I still, knew it wasn't enough.  The amputation price was quoted at $2,200.  On 8/28/17 I went to the Vet to put my dog down because I couldn't afford to save her life.  I was teary eyed and could hardly even speak when we all three got into the room together and I told her I couldn't afford the procedure.  To my surprise she offered me a more affordable way to have the amputation done.  Less than half of the cost of her price.  Ruby was going to be saved!!!  I was in such shock I didn't even know how to respond.  I just didn't know what to say other than "please".  

Ruby stayed with them and left for to get an amputation at a Vet I never met, in another City, far from where I am located.   Her leg was removed on 8/30/17.   She had a very difficult time during and after the procedure.  She is still having a difficult time, as well.  If anything could go wrong, it did.  Ruby almost died once or twice thru this process.  She is a heavy, heavy bleeder.  She needed doner dog blood to keep her going a couple of times.  She was opened, chopped off, closed and then reopened to make sure she was all good on the inside.  She kept bleeding and seepage.  She had pressure wraps on her... She remained in the hospital for two weeks or more.  It seems like forever.  

These past two months have went by in a blur and we are still trying to figure it all out.  What happened so fast.  Goodness knows.  Finally, Ruby came home and she still had seepage, but the Vet had faith that I could handle keeping her cleaned up.  And yes, I was able to.  It took forever.  We went back to the vet once to get the staples and stitches removed, but she kept them in for two more weeks.  The seepage would not stop.  She wasn't healing the greatest, but we kept giving it more time.  

Last night, I took her to the hospital to finally have the staples removed only to end up leaving her there to have another surgery, to repair and restitch the incision... again.  Poor poor Ruby.  She has a wrap on her stump and she is in so much pain.  It's going to be a long night for us tonight, as I lay out here beside until the morning when I can take her somewhere and get the wrap off.  I made her an appt to go the local Vet and have him remove this wrap, but that isn't until 2:30 pm.  I think I should take her in the morning instead, to the City beside me and have it removed.  

I kind of ran thru Ruby's story there, in a nutshell.  It gets more intricate, but it was a lot to type.  I'm anxious to get her story started and out here on the forums.  I have been keeping a blog about her and just decided to venture in over here.  I didn't think this would be so prolonged for Ruby.  I expected her to be well by now.  I feel like we just had to start over again for the second time.  It's discouraging when she can't get any better before being picked apart again.  So not fair all that she has had to endure.   I admire her for her strength and fight.  She is a keeper.  

Ruby is in pain tonight with this wrap on.  She howls out with pain at times, moans long moans, she just is not comfortable at all.  Breaks my heart to pieces.  I hope I explained her somewhat good for you all and gave you a glimpse into her life.  Thank you for taking the time to listen to what I wrote about my great dog Ruby.