Well, I certainly didn’t plan on four months flying by after my last post. Nearly every week, I tell myself to make a post and not overthink it, but invariably, I find an excuse not to.
The pups had a busy few months with a trip to Key West, Chip’s first time at dog day at the beach, and a few minor health issues – fear not, everyone is well (and I plan to write about both at some point).
With the start of Ziggy’s cancer journey, coupled with the peak pandemic, since Thanksgiving 2020, the holiday has been one mostly spent with my husband and the pups. I’m grateful for the shrinking of the holiday as it reduces stress and allows for a long weekend to gear up for the end of the year. I’m not fond of the origin of Thanksgiving, but I like to take the opportunity to be more mindful of what I have to be grateful for each. Plus, it’s the “official” start to the Christmas season, which is always cozy.
This year, I’m particularly grateful for health—for the pups and for ours. Inevitably, we all experience varying degrees of illness or health challenges. While the last few years have been marked by canine cancer, I’m grateful that everyone is healthy overall.
It can be hard to express gratitude for what we have each day, but I am always grateful for Cookie and Chip, who always bring joy, comfort, and love, no matter what is happening around us. (And my husband, too, who can always be counted on to make me laugh – intentionally or otherwise! 😜)
March 3rd (3/3) is Tripawd Awareness Day! While Ziggy was truly a three-legged dog, I managed to unintentionally capture an optical illusion moment.
Years ago, well before meeting my husband, I walked dogs as a volunteer at a local shelter. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to walk a three-legged dog. I was amazed at how happy that dog was – because he was three-legged and in a shelter.
Ziggy and Cookie, December 2021. Photo Credit: Jill Nero
When it was recommended that Ziggy’s hind leg be amputated, it was a hard adjustment, but having seen the joy and ease with which that shelter dog moved on three legs, it was an easier decision than for many.
I was fortunate to have found the Tripawd community online, which helped prepare us for Ziggy’s surgery and recovery. The resources in that community led me to find all of the other wonderful canine cancer and canine health resources I reference today, as well as recommendations for harnesses and more.
If you ever find yourself confronted with the prospect of amputation or adopting a tripawd, I strongly encourage you to turn to this community for support. They are truly priceless!
February is spay and neuter awareness month. You may think you know everything there is to know about getting your pups fixed, but if you’re like me, I’m betting you don’t. There are some commonalities with cats, but never having had cats, I will speak only to dogs. Remember that this post is based on my experience and learning. Be sure to consult your veterinarian or other professionals before making a decision for your pup.
I Didn’t Know Diddly
Until the past two to three years I knew that getting dogs fixed was important in preventing unwanted litters of puppies. With thousands of dogs being euthanized annually due to limited homes and limited space in shelters, spaying and neutering dogs is key to reducing the number of healthy dogs euthanized. I knew that getting a dog from a shelter or other rescue meant that they would be fixed before coming home. While I didn’t know the details of the timing, I did know that dogs from breeders would get fixed months to a year after being brought home.
I never thought much of this, as spaying and neutering is a familiar and routine procedure. I assumed that it only carried the risk that comes with any kind of surgery.
My education
When Ziggy was diagnosed with cancer in late 2020, I began doing a lot of research – attending online conferences and reading articles. I started seeing a lot of references to a link between early spay/neuter and cancer. Many advocated delaying the surgeries until the dogs are around one year old to ensure they get the health benefits of their sex hormones.
While this advice struck me as common sense in retrospect, I was confused. If there was a link between early surgeries and cancer, why did rescue groups opt for early surgeries? In a nutshell: humans are irresponsible and suck.
In March 2022, I attended the Holistic Pet Care Summit. The module with veterinarian Dr. Tara Timpson, who worked at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, addressed my questions and confusion.
Once upon a time, dogs and puppies would be adopted out without being fixed. The organizations would encourage adopters to return for FREE surgery once the dogs mature to the appropriate age. But the lazy humans DIDN’T follow through on their commitment. While there’s nothing wrong with responsibly breeding dogs, people would be irresponsible with their intact dogs, resulting in unwanted litters of puppies – not enough homes and not enough space in shelter groups.
So the rescue groups were confronted with a choice: do we risk high kill rates of otherwise healthy dogs due to lack of space? Or do we operate on them young, risking illness later in life?
Beyond Cancer
Early spay and neutering is linked to more than cancer.
After Ziggy died in March 2022, Cookie started experiencing incontinence in her sleep. My worrisome brain went straight to cancer. After a couple of tests to rule out more serious illness, our vet advised that the incontinence was likely caused by early spay. While there is medication available to help with incontinence, it comes with its own risks (like all medications). We opted to keep Cookie off of the medication and manage the incontinence with diapers, supplements, and more frequent walks and potty breaks (even in the middle of the night).
There are multiple surgical solutions for preventing an unwanted litter – two for males and four for females. If you bring an unfixed dog into your home, consult with your veterinarian to consider which option is best for your pup based on age and lifestyle. Each has its own risk factors, so evaluating the options with your veterinarian is important.
If you rescue, you may feel as if you have no options. You could try contacting potential rescue groups to learn what procedure is done on their pups prior to adoption and whether they may be open to letting you choose the procedure. I haven’t tried this, nor have I heard anecdotes from anyone who may have tried it.
You can also work to make changes to veterinary education. Dr. Karen Becker has a petition to include all procedures as part of the veterinary curriculum. On the petition page, you can learn more about the limited curriculum veterinarians receive on spay and neuter surgeries
The Bottom Line
You may not always have a choice in when or what kind of spay/neuter surgery your pup gets, but if you do, evaluate all the options with your veterinarian and decide what is best for your dog. And if you can’t, you CAN advocate for changes in veterinary education, and when
There are many organizations researching aspects of dog health. There are differing ways to participate if you are interested in helping advance canine health and longevity.
Organizations
This is by no means a comprehensive list, but the ones that I have come across in my pawrenting journey.
The Dog Aging Project is a longitudinal study evaluating how your dog’s age. I registered Cookie about a year ago. At the time, I only had the option of enrolling one dog. I don’t recall whether they provided guidelines on which pup to pick or if that was left up to me.
The time commitment is pretty minimal. Upon joining, I filled out a number of surveys about Cookie’s health and lifestyle. Every so often, I receive an email about an activity to do with Cookie and to register the results on their website. You always have the option to skip the exercise, but I always do it because otherwise, it defeats the purpose of enrolling, and it ends up being a bonding activity with Cookie that she enjoys.
The Dog Aging Project aims to extrapolate their findings to humans. Despite aging quicker, dogs experience similar aging issues as humans. Their studies include a medication trial (if you’re local to their facility) and cognitive assessments that you conduct periodically in your home (this is what we do).
Darwin’s Ark brings scientific minds together with pet parents to help study the effects of the environment on our furry companions. They have several projects, but the one that appealed to me was their cancer project.
You can register more than one dog, participate by filling out surveys, and even submit your dog’s DNA. You can purchase a kit or be added to the waitlist once you complete a minimum number of surveys to obtain one for free! (I have yet to reach that minimum.)
Take C.H.A.R.G.E. is a canine health registry and exchange. That simply means that veterinary clinics and dog pawrents can upload the medical records of dogs with cancer. The records are anonymized, and the data surrounding dogs with cancer is available in a dashboard.
When I signed up, I was able to upload the medical information for both Ziggy and Cookie. It was simple to do, and there hasn’t been any additional action needed or requested from me.
The American Kennel Club is involved in all things dog and has its own foundation. The AKC Canine Health Foundation funds scientific research centering on canine illness. You can contribute to the organization, read about the outcomes of studies, or even participate in research.
I don’t have any experience with participating in research studies. Whether or not it makes sense for you requires careful consideration of several factors such as the criteria of participation, your financial situation, whether covering the cost of care is included, comfort with the risk of getting a new treatment, comfort with the risk of getting a placebo treatment, etc.
Considerations
Participation with these organizations or others boils down to your comfort level, the time commitment, and the risk-benefit analysis for your particular situation. Everything other than the research studies seems to have no risk and low time commitment, but it’s ultimately up to you to decide.
Last week, in anticipation of Thanksgiving, I wrote about what I’m grateful for in our canine cancer journey. Following the shopping “holidays” of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, what better than a post about affording cancer treatment?
No one can accurately estimate what treatment will cost because it’s determined by many factors. First is the kind of treatment you’re choosing. Surgery, chemotherapy, supplements, radiation, or some combination of those will all affect the costs.
Second is where you live and your options. Like everything, where you live influences the cost of services. Similarly, suppose you want to pursue treatments that your veterinarian doesn’t offer (e.g., chemotherapy or radiation), and specialists are hard to come by in your area. In that case, you may choose to travel for treatment. That will add in another layer of costs – travel expenses.
Third is for how long you are treating your fur baby. Ziggy lived 17 months post-diagnosis. He had surgery, six rounds of traditional chemo, and then went on a low-dose at-home chemo pill. Our oncologist advised that the standard protocol for the at-home chemo is six months. It was safe to continue on it long-term, so we kept him on it until the end. When a mass was found on his spleen, we were going to attempt traditional chemo once again (a different protocol), but Ziggy’s health took a turn before we could continue.
Meanwhile, Cookie had a total of three surgeries in two years and is on the low-dose at-home chemo. She has been on it for nearly seven months and counting.
Not counting supplements, we have spent about half of what we spent (out of pocket) on Ziggy on Cookie so far.
One reason we can choose ongoing treatment for our pups is through pet insurance. Each time we bring home a pup, the first thing we do is to sign them up for pet insurance. I plan to dedicate a post to insurance, but my key bits of advice:
Get it early, before health issues arise. Pre-existing conditions are real!
Choose the highest maximum annual coverage. Increasing it later on will constitute a new plan and any health issues previously found may be considered a pre-existing condition – even cancer.
Almost everything that we pay for out of pocket we use Care Credit. Yes, it’s a credit card, but it offers no interest financing for at least six months for purchases over $200.
Like any other purchase, you should spend within your means. The benefit of the financing options allows you to spread the cost over time instead of taking a huge hit all at once.
The veterinarians you visit must accept Care Credit as a payment option. Every practice we have been to (at least four in the last three years) accepts Care Credit. What varies by practice is the number of months of financing that they offer. Some only offer six months, while others offer up to 24 months.
Some practices with multiple options would give us the choice of how many months to finance, while others would choose for us based on the amount of our invoice.
Since applying for Care Credit, we were “upgraded” to a MasterCard option, allowing us to earn points on purchases at Care Credit practitioners and other retailers. You can redeem the points for gift cards or statement credits. We apply the points as statement credits to lower the cost of the vet bills that we pay out of pocket.
There are other options for paying for treatment that I don’t have first-hand experience with but have read about.
One option is clinical trials. You’ll most likely need to live within travel distance of a veterinary college. There are pros and cons to participating in a clinical trial. While you may get free treatment, there’s a risk that instead of treatment your dog gets a placebo. That may be a worthwhile risk if that’s your only option for affording care. It’s important to note that costs of care may not be covered by the trial, so it’s worth doing your homework before enrolling.
Another option is to look into organizations that may offer grants or other types of financial aid to cover the costs of cancer care. This DogCancer.com article overviews some of the organizations that provide financial aid.
For additional advice, listen to this DogCancer.com podcast episode, where one dog racked up $60,000 in vet bills, or this episode highlighting creative solutions and difficult conversations.
Final tips
My top recommendations from personal experience are to sign up for pet insurance and research whether Care Credit is right for you.
When discussing treatment options with your veterinarian, discuss the cost and your financial situation. They can provide estimates for the treatment so you can research payment options and consider them when choosing what treatment is right for your pup.
Discussing your financial situation with your veterinarian may enable them to offer alternative diagnostics or treatments or even share discounts that their practice offers (e.g., a multi-pet discount).
Bottom line: Don’t assume that care is out of financial reach without getting written estimates from your vet and researching options to help offset the costs.
It’s the season of gratitude, and while we’re in a stable spot on our canine cancer journey, I’m reflecting on what I’m thankful for in how we experienced canine cancer.
The Pandemic
The pandemic was a source of fear, stress, and anxiety for all of us. But without it, I wouldn’t have been working from home and able to catch Ziggy’s limp. It’s impossible to know whether we would have caught the cancer as early as we did without the pandemic, but catching Ziggy’s cancer early was certainly a critical factor in his survival time.
The first dog
Ziggy, the happy patient, after his last traditional chemo treatment in April 2021.
I absolutely HATE that Ziggy was diagnosed with cancer and amputated a leg before his second birthday. It kills me that he died shortly after his third birthday. But I am grateful that he was the one to lead us on the cancer journey.
Ziggy was the best patient. He always smiled when going to the vet (which was a near-constant occurrence once he was diagnosed). He easily adapted to the tripawd life and showed us what resilience is. Ziggy’s pawsitive attitude and resilience made it easier for us to make treatment decisions and to figure out ways to maximize his quality of life.
Seeing how well he responded (physically and emotionally) to these challenges gives us the strength to make the best decisions for every other dog.
The unexpected prognosis
When we at long last learned that Ziggy’s cancer was hemangiosarcoma, we were devastated and afraid because of how short that prognosis tends to be. He was already three months post-diagnosis when we confirmed the type of cancer. We were incredibly fortunate to have 17 months with him post-diagnosis.
It would never be enough time, even if he’d lived to age 10. This success with cancer treatment not only softened the devastation of losing a pup so young but also gave us an optimistic lens when confronting the cancer journeys of subsequent pups.
Cookie’s Simpler Journey
Cookie recovering from surgery in April 2023.
When I first found Cookie’s lump on her leg in July 2021, my heart sank. How could we handle a second dog with cancer? Why is this happening so close to Ziggy? Given their age difference, it should have been unlikely.
While the prospect of two dogs with cancer simultaneously sucked, I’m grateful that Cookie’s cancer (soft tissue sarcoma) was less serious and more easily treated. She’s a terrible patient and tries to find a new family after each surgery, which are two reasons why I’m relieved that she hasn’t needed traditional chemo or radiation.
We’re fortunate to have an amazing holistic veterinarian, his patient and compassionate staff, a terrific veterinary oncologist, and the oncology care team to help keep our pups healthy.
Lessons Learned
I would never wish this on anyone, but this journey has taught me a lot. Sometimes, it seems like common sense (e.g., fresh food is better than processed kibble); everything I’ve learned helps to improve the care for Cookie, Chip, and any other dog that comes along. There’s plenty more that I could (or want to) be doing, but I do the best that I can right now. And I look for opportunities to make improvements wherever and whenever I can.
All the sources that have taught me about healthcare have exposed me to other resources, such as trainers. Exposure to more perspectives in all areas helps me be a better dog pawrent. It’s helpful when encountering new challenges, such as an anxious and sometimes reactive Chip.
Every day Gratitude
Most importantly, these cancer journeys are reminders to say yes to the pups as much as possible. To take them out for activities that bring them joy (like Cookie’s recent beach day and slide escapades). To let Chip lay on me a little longer in the mornings before getting ready for work. And appreciate all the time we are given because you never know when it will end.
Cookie’s cancer journey is less dramatic than Ziggy’s, but it’s scary in its own right.
How it began
In July 2021, nine months after Ziggy’s diagnosis, I spotted a decent-sized lump on Cookie’s front left leg, right by her elbow. It shocked me because of its size – that of a very large grape. I was surprised that I hadn’t noticed it sooner. We monitored it for a few weeks before scheduling an appointment with our vet in early August.
Though the vet felt confident that it was benign, I know from Dr. Sue Cancer Vet, that no one could tell whether a lump is benign or cancerous. So we aspirated. It was inconclusive.
Unsure about aspirating again to get another inconclusive result, we scheduled a consult with Ziggy’s oncologist. He was concerned that it may be a soft tissue sarcoma. He recommended surgery to remove and biopsy the lump.
Our primary vet did the surgery and opted for conservative margins. Given the location, he was worried about healing if the margins were too aggressive and it turned out to be benign.
Cookie’s suture site after the initial surgery.
Sure enough, the biopsy confirmed a low-grade soft tissue sarcoma. It required a revision surgery to get full margins.
Cookie’s surgeries were outpatient surgeries with an easy recovery. But each time I picked her up, she tried to leave with another family! And she gave me the cold shoulder for 24 hours. She’s a pretty different patient compared to Ziggy.
Cookie was ready to leave before her revision surgery.
Cookie didn’t require further treatment, but we did chest X-rays every few months as a precaution. She was probably already on the same diet as Ziggy, but we added some supplements to improve her care.
Oops, it happened Again
In March 2023, a year after Ziggy passed, I saw the same lump in what seemed to be the exact same spot. We again did an aspirate, which indicated the lump was likely cancerous.
This time, our vet recommended a consult with a board-certified veterinary surgeon. He was concerned about the difficulty of the surgery, given it would be round three in nearly the same spot.
The surgeon wanted us to consult with the oncologist before proceeding with the surgery. In her written report, she was concerned about the ability to get full margins and indicated that amputation may be the best approach for a curative result.
The possibility of a front leg amputation on our first furbaby, an agility athlete, gutted us. My husband was immediately against the possibility. I also wanted to be, but I wanted to hear what the oncologist had to say – what the different prognoses may be with different treatment options.
Fortunately, the word amputation never came up with the oncologist. He said the lump was technically not in the same spot, so it wasn’t a recurrence, and removal would be curative.
Cookie post-op after the second lump was removed. You can see the size of the suture site compared to the first.Cookie wore a surgery suit and a leg sleeve since she had bumps removed on both sides. I highly recommend these suits – far more comfortable than a cone!Chip playing nurse for big sister Cookie.
We did the surgery, got clear margins, and also removed a giant lipoma from her other side. Cookie did well, but this was a slightly harder recovery for her as she’s a little older, had surgery on both sides of her body, and had a younger brother to contend with during her recovery.
One product I highly recommend is a surgical suit or recovery sleeve (I’m an Amazon affiliate and can earn on qualifying purchases). Since Cookie had the lump and lipoma removed on either side of her body, she wore both to protect the suture sites and remained cone-free until the sutures were removed. It’s wise to get more than one to swap them out while washing one.
Ongoing treatment
Cookie, fully recovered, is judgmental about the fake corn maze in Florida.
Our oncologist gave us the option of putting Cookie on chlorambucil, a low-dose at-home chemo treatment, to reduce the likelihood of recurrence for ongoing treatment. Typically, pawrents opt for six months of treatment as it is the standard of care and for financial reasons. We’re fortunate to be able to afford to continue her on the chlorambucil. It’s a chemo that is safe for her to take longer, especially since she’s tolerated it well. We check in with the oncologist every two months and will do chest X-rays every six months or so.
Whether your furbaby is old or young, showing symptoms or not, the cancer diagnosis is likely to feel like a punch to the gut. There’s no right or wrong set of emotions to feel. You may be sad, angry, anxious, or afraid. Allow yourself the grace to feel your emotions.
Don’t try to suppress your emotions. It will only blow up later. Do try to process them away from your furbaby if possible. I know it may be hard, but they pick up on our emotions, and you want to minimize them picking up on the anger, sadness, or fear, which can increase their stress.
When dealing with Ziggy and Cookie’s diagnoses, Ziggy’s especially, we bawled, cursed, and screamed. We did our best to have the worst of our breakdowns away from the pups to minimize their stress. It’s not always easy or possible, but do what you can.
Once you’ve taken a beat to digest the news and process your emotions, it’s time to take action. That can look like many different things, depending on many factors.
You may want to consider a second opinion, which may come in the form of a specialist (i.e., a veterinary oncologist) or simply another vet. We did both with Ziggy because of his young age and our hope for a less traumatic diagnosis. Additionally, it was a few weeks before the oncologist could see us, so a second opinion with another vet was a good checkpoint while we waited for the oncology consultation.
I highly recommend a consultation with a veterinary oncologist. They’re more likely to be able to give you a range of treatment options, give you information on a prognosis, and other important details. If there isn’t a veterinary oncologist near you, you may be able to do a virtual consult (thanks, pandemic!) or at least have your primary vet consult with one.
Being human isn’t easy these days, and you may not have the privilege of time to do so, but I strongly encourage you to do what you can to learn more. Beyond the conventional treatments (surgery and chemo), most of the additional treatments that we started for Ziggy and Cookie (e.g., supplements, home-cooked foods, etc.) are ones found through DogCancer.com‘s resources.
The Dog Cancer Survival Guide (I’m an Amazon affiliate and may earn based on qualifying purchases) is my top recommendation. They present many treatment options that vary in cost and time intensiveness. They also have short podcast episodes, though I recommend selectively listening to topics of most interest to you based on your dog’s journey. Their Facebook support group can also be a source of comfort from fellow pawrents who you may relate to better than your family and friends.
Be your pup’s advocate
No one knows your pup better than you. If something doesn’t feel right, don’t do it. Consult with experts and others who have been through something similar, but remember the key difference: you and your dog.
You know your situation best. I do encourage you to explore and consider various options. That may include aggressive conventional treatment, hospice care, holistic treatments, or a little bit of each at different points in your journey. Everything from your pet’s age, cancer type/stage, and personal circumstances (i.e., financial ability, time constraints, etc.) will influence your decisions.
Treatment can add up financially, but there may be options to help with the costs. I plan to write about the tools we use to help manage expenses, but there are more options out there that I urge you to explore.
Dogs don’t have expiration dates
Don’t let anyone tell you that your pup only has a certain amount of time left. I’ve heard this repeated countless times with the DogCancer.com community – dogs don’t have expiration dates. Your vet or oncologist may tell you that with or without treatment, your dog has an average of N days/weeks/months. But that is an average that doesn’t include your dog.
Hemangiosarcoma is one of the most aggressive canine cancers. When Ziggy was diagnosed, we feared he may only have a few months. He lived 17 months post-diagnosis.
My parents’ dog, Brie, went to the emergency vet one night after collapsing (due to internal bleeding). She wasn’t supposed to survive the night, but my parents took her home when she returned to her usual self. Brie lived five months after that. While never officially diagnosed with cancer, based on what I learned about hemangiosarcoma, I suspect that’s what she had. With no treatment, she lived five more months being spoiled with all kinds of yummy food and love. The emergency vet suggested they could do surgery, but there was a possibility that she wouldn’t survive. My parents opted to take her home and forego treatment.
Ziggy coming home after his splenectomy.
What is right for one pup and one family may not be right for another. Even within one family, you may make different decisions for different dogs. Ziggy was young, and he was an EXCELLENT patient, going to the vet with a smile on his face. Cookie and Chip aren’t as easygoing as patients. That may factor into what options we choose for them.
Ask for help
Being human is hard. Being human while caring for a sick pet is harder. Whatever path you choose, ask for help. It may not be caring for the sick furbaby, but it may be helping with other stuff so that you can care for your furbaby.
Cherish every day
Ziggy enjoying a stroll in Key West 7 months after his amputation.
Most important: cherish each moment with your furbaby. We should do this every day, even when they’re healthy, and with all of our loved ones. But being human is hard, and sometimes we get caught up in the little things that don’t matter.
When they’re sick, regardless of what treatment path you choose, prioritize their quality of life. Do what you can to do more of what makes them happy. You won’t regret it.
Though Ziggy was our second dog, he has been my greatest teacher so far. Here are just some of his lessons.
You’re their Advocate
Regardless of whether you view yourself as a pawrent, owner, or guardian, you’re definitely their advocate. They cannot voice their feelings, desires, or opinions. Living with them day in and day out, you know them best. Sure, you rely on experts (e.g. vets, trainers, groomers, etc.) to help care for them, but you can choose what advice to follow.
With Ziggy, I had two memorable experiences as his advocate.
The first was with a trainer. We wanted to take Ziggy to the same place we trained Cookie, but unfortunately, they weren’t offering classes at the time. I signed up for a training class through a community education program offered by the school district.
The first week was a dog-free class to go over the class policies. I got a bad feeling but decided to give her a shot. I should have trusted Ziggy’s opinion when he chewed part of her class policies.
Chewed-up policies on the bottom right.
I followed a friend’s advice to listen to the perspective but do things the way you know better. In the first week with Ziggy, we had to all walk in a circle, spaced apart to practice heel / loose leash walking. Ziggy wasn’t quite getting it with her method. I stepped a bit out of the circle so as to not get in anyone’s way and proceeded to teach him the way we taught Cookie. He nailed it. I stopped to praise my nine-month-old puppy. I was yelled at. I yelled back that her methods were outdated and unnecessary (lots of punishments and corrections). I stormed out of the class never to return again.
During Ziggy’s cancer journey, we switched vets a couple of times. The second time was when I was trying to talk to the vet about switching Ziggy to a home-cooked diet from The Dog Cancer Survival Guide (paid link). He made a few remarks that showed he wasn’t really looking at it, but when he said “Ziggy’s doing great. You don’t need to do anything else,” I knew it was time to find another vet.
I was coming to him with stuff that I wanted to explore and try. He shut me down, and that wasn’t the attitude we wanted on Ziggy’s care team.
Bottom Line: If it doesn’t feel right to you, don’t do it, get another opinion, or at the very least question it. You are their advocate. No one knows them better than you.
Every dog is different
Ziggy and his “crooked” sit.
A trusted friend and dog trainer (the same one with the advice above) had to beat this one in my head. Whenever we’d talk about Ziggy, often about training matters (like his “crooked” sits), I would compare Ziggy to Cookie. She said this one to me REPEATEDLY.
I don’t have good anecdotes for this one, but when you struggle to teach one something the same way you taught another, remember this. When one seems to like something that the other hated, remember this.
Bottom line: Dogs are as unique and different as we are. Remember that in all aspects of your relationships with them (especially in training), and adjust accordingly.
Trust your gut
Since dogs can’t tell us when something is wrong, they don’t feel well, or they are in pain, it’s up to us to make observations and take action. It’s easy to brush aside some symptoms we see – especially if you’ve overreacted once already or you simply don’t know that a behavior is actually a symptom. But this is where a health journal can come in handy.
When I first noticed Ziggy’s limping, we initially took a rest and wait-and-see approach. We went that route in part because as a puppy we rushed Cookie to an emergency vet thinking she injured a paw (she was walking on it by the time the vet saw her).
After a week or two of observation and no improvement, we made the call to go to the vet. Watching him like a hawk is what led to his early diagnosis.
The symptom of Ziggy’s cancer was incredibly subtle – just him not putting weight on the leg that had the tumor.
Bottom line: trust your gut. Every time you make a choice, you learn from the experience and fine-tune your gut decisions.
Life lesson: don’t worry be happy
Ziggy was happy as can be riding in his stroller in Key West.
One could argue that all dogs teach us this lesson – and it’s true. But Ziggy in particular had no concerns in the world. Whether it was after his amputation, a chemo treatment, a visit to the botanical garden, or the doggy ice cream shop, he was always happy.
Everything that we experienced with Ziggy led me to do a number of things differently or started doing for both Cookie and Chip.
Health Journal
After getting the hemangiosarcoma diagnosis in December 2020, I started a health journal for Ziggy and Cookie. It’s a notebook where I keep track of the supplements they’re on, changes in diet, notes of any symptoms I observe, questions for the vets, feedback from the vets, etc.
I’m very diligent about documenting whenever a particular symptom arises (i.e. vomiting, diarrhea, limping, etc.). It may not seem to be a big deal if it happens once, but it certainly helps with identifying patterns, connections to changes in diet, or determining if it’s something that happened previously.
About one year before noticing the limping that led to Ziggy’s diagnosis, he ran around in the yard and briefly limped. A year later though when it started again, I had no recollection of what leg it was on. While it turned out to be irrelevant, it may have been helpful to reference when going through his diagnosis.
It can be a challenge to be consistent with it when the pups are healthy. I have a reminder set on my phone to take notes every couple of days. Sometimes I skip it (especially if I’ve been making several other notes), and other times I consider the framework I learned in a seminar from PetSummits.com: BEAM – behavior, energy, appetite, and mood. There may not always be much to write, but noting what is normal or what changes you’re observing can help identify patterns or other changes to discuss with your care team.
Nutrition
In January 2020, I started home cooking for Ziggy. At some point, I also started cooking for Cookie. They both started on the dog cancer diet from The Dog Cancer Survival Guide*. When Chip joined our pack, I planned to keep him on kibble until he graduated to adulthood. However, he was a very itchy pup. Among several recommendations from our vet, I started cooking for him too. I chose a recipe based on my veterinarian’s guidelines from Yin & Yang Nutrition for Dogs* by Dr. Judy Morgan.
While fresh whole-food diets are the highest quality for dogs (not unlike humans), it’s not always the most convenient (again, not unlike humans). Our veterinarian once advised us to balance a whole fresh food diet with the constraint of being a busy human.
Based on the volume that I’m able to batch cook and how much they eat for their weight, I feed them kibble for breakfast (they’re fed twice daily) and home-cooked food for dinner.
When choosing kibble (or other pre-made food), I refer to TruthAboutPetFood.com. They publish a list every year of the highest quality pre-made food (be it kibble, fresh, or raw). They contact pet food manufacturers inquiring about how they source ingredients and their cooking methods. Many brands are not on the list, but that could be due to unresponsiveness from the manufacturer or lack of awareness of the brand by the website. Nonetheless, it’s my go-to for selecting kibble.
Alternatively, you could refer to chapter nine of The Forever Dog* by Rodney Habib and Dr. Karen Shaw Becker. They share tips for how to objectively analyze your dog’s food based on similar standards to TruthAboutPetFood.com.
You may be short on time or not yet ready to make a change. A simple way to improve the quality of your dog’s meals is to incorporate what The Forever Dog* calls “Core Longevity Toppers (or CLTs).” These are fresh superfoods that you can offer your dog as treats or add as a topper to their meals.
Vaccines & Preventatives
This may be a bit controversial, but it’s something I’ve discussed with my veterinarian and have found supported through multiple trustworthy sources. Studies show that dogs have immunity for much longer than expected (or advertised) with vaccines (a great resource to learn more is The Forever Dog* or Dr. Judy Morgan’s website).
After the initial rounds of core vaccines, I conduct titers. A titer is a blood test to check your pup’s immunity levels. If the test comes back recommending a vaccine, our vet’s office won’t charge for the vaccine since we did the blood test. Other vaccines, such as Bordetella, flu, etc., I evaluated with our veterinarian based on our dogs’ lifestyles and risk of illness. Another factor that may come into decision-making is vaccine requirements by the groomer or training facilities.
Similarly, based on our geographic location and lessons learned from Dr. Judy Morgan, among others, I have switched brands of heartworm preventative and modified dosage to be every six weeks year-round instead of every four weeks. I have discontinued flea and tick preventatives with the support of our veterinarian.
Please do your own research and consult with your care team before making any changes to your dog’s care.
Quality Time & training
Cookie & Me, Dog Day in the Garden, May 2022
Cookie and Ziggy almost always did everything together from the start. With Chip, I’m intentional about giving them separate time with me. Some of it is practical – it’s hard to train a puppy properly on a walk when both hands are occupied with a leash. Some of it is mental and emotional, allowing each to have a break from the other (admittedly, Cookie wants more breaks from Chip given their eight-year age difference) and to form a strong bond with each of us.
So, I also try to take each pup out (aside from a walk) independently once a week. Sometimes it’s a drive through a car wash or a visit to the vet to pick up supplement refills. Other times it’s a shopping excursion to a pet-friendly store or a local farmer’s market. I try to keep it simple and build it into my routine.
Final Thoughts
There may be more things that I do differently, but these are the main changes. You can refer to the Health & Nutrition Pawrenting Resources page for more tools.
Be sure to consult with your care team (veterinarians, specialists, trainers, etc.) before making any changes to your pup’s care.
Note
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