One Year Ago

Toby passed away one year ago today. Still miss him terribly.

Toby is Gone

Today, Toby's battle ended. He had a major setback in early May and we almost lost him then. But the great people at the NC State Vet School brought him back from the brink. In the last few days, Toby had stopped eating. He tried to drink but could not hold down any water. We decided today that it was time. He went quietly.

We will miss him terribly, but cherish our time with him. Goodbye Toby -- best dog ever.

The Not So Good News

Toby is now pretty much blind. Cataracts. One eye is completely gone and the other is mostly gone. Very sad. He's doing OK, but he does startle easily. We've adapted -- we talk to him so he knows where we are, especially when we move. I keep him closer to me on walks so he feels more comfortable. He can't really handle steps anymore, but he does have a ramp in the front which he can handle with guidance.

The vet did a urine test just to make sure that he wasn't diabetic (he wasn't) and she did note blood in the urine. That's not surprising -- I'm sure the bladder cancer is taking its toll.

But Toby is still happy and functioning well. He eats and drinks (and it all comes out) normally. He's happy to be with his family and his quality of life still seems good, despite the challenges.

Treatments Stop

Well, I've run out of options (money) so we had to stop Toby's treatments for the time being. He seems to be doing well, but the only real way to know is to do an ultrasound, which I can't afford. My daughter says she's going to get a job (which I have been asking her to do for, oh, 4 months) to help pay for future treatment.

Toby did have a couple of days when we thought he might be having neurological problems. He seemed to be having vision and smelling problems (couldn't locate food that "fell" on the floor) but yesterday he was perfectly normal. The vet did say that humans undergoing chemo can experience problems with the smell sense but she wasn't sure if that applied to dogs.

Anyway, chemo was never going to save Toby, it was just going to postpone the inevitable. So, we go on.

Everything Going Well

Nothing new to report with Toby. He seems to be doing very well. He is supposed to go to the vet school next week for a round of chemo and ultrasound/x-ray exams. I can't afford this, so I don't know what I'm going to do. But after all I have already invested in Toby, I'd like to find out if its truly working. At any rate, he seems very happy and healthy for which we are grateful.

Update

Toby continues to do well. He had chemo this week at the vet school. He goes again in 3 weeks for what we hope will be his final chemo for now. Hopefully, I will be able to afford the full exam that will allow the vets to determine the effectiveness of the chemo (this involves ultrasound and X-rays).

We've noticed that Toby is tired a day or two after chemo, rather than the immediate day after. He was perky and fine on Thursday, but really dragging yesterday. He also doesn't eat without encouragement. But today he seems more energetic. His blood counts remain good, so he seems to be tolerating the chemo well.

We remain hopeful that the treatments are working. Toby's quality of life is great and that's really the key.

Pretty Boy

Note Toby's new photo (right).