Buddy Zito the Wonder Dog

I haven’t blogged because things have been going so well.  The first day home, Buddy went up and down the stairs and jumped on the bed. And despite our best efforts, he wouldn’t be kept calm! Thankfully, he healed well and is hopping along just fine.

He gets tired easily on short walks, but we’re building up his stamina. Tomorrow, perhaps, we’ll try swimming with his life jacket.

A friend brought over a brand new elevated feeding dish, handmade by someone at our local farmer’s market. Another friend had given us one she had used in her work with German Shepherd rescue, so we have two — Max is using one, which has been helpful with his old age. When Max passes on, we’ll give back the elevated feeding dish to the rescue organization, or, if she doesn’t need it, we’ll give it to another family who does.

People have been so kind and generous with their words, thoughts, and prayers.  Buddy is a lucky dog in many ways. He has a loving family, of course, but he also has a lot of people out there who care for him and have been pulling for him and his recovery.

The vet said he looks happier. The neighbor said he looks happier.  I think he looks happier. Perhaps he was in much more pain than we ever imagined. As they say on this site, it’s better to hop on 3 legs than to limp on 4.

Hooray for Team Buddy!!

We’re 9 days post-op, and Buddy is doing fantastic!  The first day, he went up and down the stairs.  A few days later he RAN when he saw a raccoon.  And having three legs hasn’t stopped him from jumping on the bed (ok) or the couch (not ok) or on people (not ok).

My husband took Buddy to the vet Thursday, and they removed his bandage and said he’s good to go — just be cautious so he doesn’t bust open the stitches inside.  Here’s a pic of Buddy sleeping, so you can see the amputation site well.  As you can tell, the vet chose to perform a non-scapular amputation.  He said he was in surgery an hour and a half because Buddy is so muscular; I can only imagine the time it would have taken had he done a scapular amputation.

No baths or swimming for a few more weeks, and we’ll continue to be cautious as we move forward.  But I think — and hope and pray — the worst is over!  And Buddy seems to be happier for it.  Pain-free is good!!

It’s Day One post-surgery, and everything looks good so far.  The vet said the surgery went well, although it was a long surgery due to Buddy being so muscular.  He said the bone was messed up further up than just the foot and that the foot was about to split open — it was obvious that we and Buddy had been treating it gently.

Buddy is hopping everywhere, going up and down the steps; and he even jumped on the bed to sleep.  He’s eating normally and went potty without a problem.  Our main task will be to keep him quiet and still so he can heal.

The vet requested we come back in a week to remove the bandage, for a check-up, etc.  It’s already starting to slip off, so I’ll do some fancy maneuvering with surgical tape here in a bit.

Any and all positive vibes, prayers, good thoughts, etc. sent our way are appreciated!

Max is 14 and was diagnosed with liver cancer a few months ago.  The vet said we’d know when it was time, and Joe and I think it’s time.  I’m going to take some space here to reflect on Max — the good, the bad, the furry.  If you know him, please feel free to post your memories of him!

I got Max in January ’98 when I lived and worked at the Catholic Worker in Tacoma, WA.  In retrospect, getting a pet without getting approval of all the members of the community ranks as one of the top violations of living in community!  At the time, though, I just wanted a dog.  I had visited the animal shelter off and on for weeks but had not met the right dog.  When I met Max, he was the quiet one, sitting all alone and scared, quiet, in a cage.  I was immediately drawn to his huge Shepherd ears and his long legs — THIS would be a great watchdog and walking partner!  I asked to visit him outside his kennel, and he was WILD.  I chalked it up to him being cooped up all day and said I’d think about it and come back tomorrow.  They told me that today was his last day (sucker!!), so I signed some papers and put him in my car.

Off to Target I went, thinking he’d sit nicely in the car while I shopped for bowls, food, etc.  He did sit nicely and watch me walk into the store.  This is gonna be awesome, I thought.  Until I got back — he had destroyed my car, nearly ripping my seatbelt in half, getting dog goo all over the windows, and taking my Mt. Dew out of the cup holder and quite possibly drinking it.  Yet I still drove him home.

Max was unruly, to put it mildly.  We went to obedience classes (coming in 2nd — beat by a poodle.  A poodle??!) and even worked one-on-one with an animal behaviorist.  He always performed well under pressure, but when I was in charge away from the instructor, he was completely out of control.  He chased squirrels, hated people wearing hats, lunged at small children, drug me on the leash, barked excessively, and stole food whenever he got the chance.  But I loved him dearly — and defended him no matter what.  He was MY dog, and, by golly, he was the best dog ever.

Fast forward to when Joe and and I got our first house.  I chained Max to the back steps while I worked outside, and he promptly ran down the alley, dragging the steps behind him.

We became foster parents to our now-daughter, and I was terrified that Max would be a terrible companion.  Did he prove me wrong!  Perhaps it was all the food she dropped on the floor.  Or perhaps it was because “dog” was one of her first words.  But Max loved Samantha.  Still does.

Max has turned into a great family dog.  Yes, he still hates the postal carrier.  And he still steals food right out of your hand.  And he barks waaaay too much.  But he’s MY dog.  And, by golly, he’s the best dog ever.

Another boil is developing on Buddy’s paw, and he’s starting to limp again.  Enough is enough, so I called the vet today to make the appointment for his surgery.  It’s Thursday, July 28.  I have Friday, Saturday and Sunday off work, and the following week I don’t go into work until 11 a.m., so I can spend time with him, make sure he is comfortable, etc.

I’m sad and scared, but I know it’s the right thing to do.

I called on my way home from work yesterday, and Joe was home cleaning up dog poo poo.  Apparently Max had an accident in our son’s bedroom, and it was a big mess!  Now, in Max’s defense, we were getting our porch worked on yesterday morning, and I was unable to let the dogs out to do their business.  He’d already been out once, so I didn’t take him out before I left for work; I did take Buddy out, so I know he wasn’t the culprit.

Max was diagnosed with liver cancer a few months ago, and the vet made it sound like he had only a few weeks to a month to live.  He’s done fantastic — I think in large part to the canned food we’re spoiling him with!  But, looking at him now, he’s very skinny, is having trouble getting up and down, and may be losing control of his bowels.  The vet said we’d know when it is time.  He’s still going up and down the stairs.  He’s still eating.  He’s still barking at us.  And he’s still actively ignoring Buddy.  So I don’t think it’s time yet.  But I think it’s closer than we think.

We’re holding off on Buddy’s surgery until 1) Max passes away 2) Buddy and I finish obedience school and 3) The family gets adjusted to my new job schedule.  (I started yesterday.)

I know, those are a lot of conditions.  So we may need to adjust our plans.  For now, Buddy is not limping, does not seem to be in a lot of pain (and we have pain meds if he is), and his foot isn’t infected.  So, we wait.  A bit longer . . .

I took Buddy to the dog park the other day, and he had a ball!  He wore his little boot and ran like the wind, keeping up with all the dogs there, big and small.  After once around the park, he grew tired and was walking behind me, though.  Granted, it was a hot morning, but I suspect he was feeling some pain and is out of shape from not getting a whole lot of exercise consistently (me, too!)

This park has a small pond for the dogs, and Buddy jumped in like a puppy!  He got in to his neck and swam just a bit.  I threw a tennis ball, and he dove in to get it, but he was more interested in the other dogs than in chasing the ball or swimming.  It was really awesome to see him play so carefree — pure doggy joy!

As he limped back to the car, it was also a reminder how much pain he is in.  I know I can’t put of the surgery much longer.  I start my new job Tuesday.

So excited to come home from dropping the kids at camp this morning to find my package from Fed Ex with Buddy’s Ruff Wear Harness and life jacket.  He’s wearing the harness now, with little resistance, and I plan on taking him to a local dog park to let him run and show it off tomorrow.

His paw is not nearly as swollen as it was, and the cyst is looking much better.  I start a new job on Tuesday (hooray!), so Joe and discussed putting the surgery off until fall.  A part of me still hopes his foot will miraculously heal, and he won’t need the surgery, I guess.  Also, with Max having terminal cancer, we feel we can only handle so much at one time.  However, we surely don’t want Buddy to be in pain.

It’s so tough to know what the right thing to do is.  Putting the surgery off seems like the easiest thing to do.  Perhaps not the best thing to do, but the easiest.  Hmmm . . . .

I called the vet’s office at Iowa State University today, and they said they were able to do a fistulagram  — shoot dye into Buddy’s fistula (wound) in hopes of finding the foreign object causing the problems.  If found, they would then perform surgery to remove the item.  The fistulagram costs about $350, and the surgery $1500.

I’m disappointed, as I was hoping the cost would be significantly lower than the local specialist.  However, I trust our vet when he tells me to “cut our losses,” amputate, and let Buddy move on to live a pain-free life as a tripawd.  I wish money were not an object, but it is.  And Buddy has already been through two unsuccessful surgeries and months of pain.  Not to mention the low success rate of finding the object with the fistulagram.

I talk to someone about a possible job for me tomorrow.  When I know more about that, I will make the appointment.

We all love Buddy and want the best for him.

Friday night we took Buddy to Petsmart to pick up some training treats for Buddy and canned dog food for Max(we switched him to canned after he was diagnosed with cancer, and I think it’s been the miracle “cure”!)  Buddy did terrific, sniffing, ignoring other dogs — even ignoring the shelter cats who live there waiting for permanent homes.  He truly does have an amazing temperament!

While looking at treats, my daughter called from another aisle, “Mom, come here!”  Over and over.  Finally, she came around the corner with a yellow lab bobblehead in her hand.  It was broken — missing its right leg!  We promptly bought it, brought it home, sanded the leg, bandaged it, and named it Buddy.  It’s the patron saint of tripawds!

At church today, a friend introduced me to a vet, who was then forced to “talk shop” off hours.  She didn’t seem too put out, however, and she had a great suggestion — call Iowa State University’s vet school and ask about having them do the fistulagram to find the foreign object in Buddy’s foot or leg.  We had ruled out this option, due to cost and, more importantly, due to the fact that the local specialist who performs this procedure said that in 20 procedures throughout the years, she has only seen the object in two.  Our vet suggested Buddy has been through enough pain, considering two surgeries have not uncovered the object, and that we move to amputation.

But if there is a chance at saving his leg, I’m willing to give it a try.  I’ll call in the morning.

In the meantime, Bobblehead Buddy looks down on us from a shelf in the kitchen and smiles.  🙂