A few words about Jake

I probably wasn't clear enough, but I also didn't have all of the answers until the middle of this past week.

Yes, Jake has cancer but he is not in pain.  WE know he has cancer, but HE doesn't.

In fact, he probably hasn't been feeling this good in a while. The acupuncture has really helped his hips, which is what had been making him feel lousy for a while.  If we hadn't seen the tumor in his mouth, there would be no indicator that anything was wrong.  He has a slow growing tumor and in most cases, with this kind of tumor, they could operate and get rid of the cancer.  In Jake's case, it would mean removing most of his muzzle, including his nose, and that just isn't an option.

Most important to us is Jake's quality of life.  The "good" news is that he is a good candidate for radiation therapy and with a week of radiation, we can halt the growth of his tumor for a while.  After that, we will just have to see how comfortable he continues to be.  We will continue to watch him.  Right now and for a while, he will probably continue to feel good, which we can see by the way he plays, wags his tail and eats (Jakey eats A LOT - in fact RIGHT NOW he is eating cheesy eggs that Mo is casually throwing on the floor for him).

Letting him go before he was ready would be inhumane (and completely unnecessary).  Jakey has some time left.  He isn't ready to say goodbye just yet, which is good, because neither are we.

1 comment

Taryn said...

I've been catching up a bit, and am sad to hear about Jake's cancer. I think he's getting golden treatment, and that, in itself, is extraordinary in many ways. He is a lucky puppy, and it's clear you feel lucky to have him as a part of your family. Hoping for the very best for Jake and everyone!