Padfoot - The Bad News

Padfoot is back from hospital in Liverpool and once again recovering from the cutting, prodding and probing of the medical fraternity.
The upshot of his extended stay at the university's Small Animal Hospital is the vets have confirmed that he DOES have cancer and he has been given about six months to live.

A CT scan, X-rays and blood tests revealed all organs were working fine, there were no obvious tumours and at one point it looked as if he might even be given the all clear. However, the wall of one lung was slightly thickened and they found a mass of fluid in his chest cavity so took samples.
The biopsies had to be sent down to Cambridge for analysis and the results returned on Thursday evening and revealed that he has a virulent cancer in his lungs. Anyway, they drained the fluid in his chest and removed about a pint! They told me, however, that is not unusual for a dog of his size as they can often find about four pints!


I went to collect Pad on Friday afternoon - enduring an horrendous storm, torrential rain, a five-hour round trip, one of the worst drives I can ever recall and two near-accidents. I took Henry (the three-leggged leader of the pack) with me for company and he and the boy seemed indifferent about being reunited - dogs are funny creatures.

Pad is now home again and slowly reacclimatising to The Towers. The procedures have knocked him about a bit, obviously, and he is drinking voraciously again, has a throaty cough and is very sluggish and out of sorts. However, having witnessed his recovery from his operation about a month ago, I put this all down to what he underwent at the hospital. The cough and thirst are, I'm sure, caused by the tubes shoved down his throat and his demeanour and lack of energy are down to the trauma. I am certain he will be back to his old self in about a week as he has already begun to get his appetite back.

Looking on the bright side, he no longer has that awful muck in his chest and so can breathe easier. Also, he has been given an anti-inflammatory which is easing the degeneration in his back legs. Combined, these two things mean that he is in a better state than before I took him to hospital and so, apart from definitively revealing what is wrong with him, it was well worth his five days away - and the bill of £3,700!!

One thing which is depressing him a tad is that, once again, they shaved his fur to carry out the procedures. They cut a big circle in each of his flanks and the result is that he looks like a bloody poodle!! - pretty embarrassing for a street-wise alsatian with credibility to maintain. Still, like before, his fur will grow back soon.








Today he is going to have a huge shoulder of beef all to himself as a treat. He also has two new beds (one in the lounge and one in the kitchen), a new, soft toy to play with and boxes and boxes of chews and treats.
I am determined that his remaining time with me is going to be as happy and comfortable as possible and no expense will be spared.
He's where he wants to be and he's not in any pain.

I'm sure you can imagine that this is pretty tough to write about and so I am not going to post about him for quite a while - his ups and downs will be between me, Mrs P and him. I will, however, document the very end for those who have been so kind as to ask about him. Rest assured, he is currently one of the happiest, safest, most comfortable and loved creatures on the planet.