The diagnosis…When it all began

I was completely unaware of what was to come at the end of this summer 2015 when I found out that Jackson, my 10yr old Greyhound, Lab Mix would be diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, a type of aggressive bone cancer.  I had rescued Jackson at 4 months old, who was abandoned in LA California with his 3 sister’s and litter mates.  He has been my guardian angel throughout life’s up & downs and an incredible source of unconditional love for me in my life.
I had noticed the end of July, early August that after swimming, running or any physical activity that his right rear leg would shake, at first just a little and then uncontrollably in the end. I thought it was arthritis, so on Aug. 20th I brought him to my vet and he prescribed an anti-inflammatory, Rimadyl and told me to come back if it got worse.  Summer continued to pass me by as I was dealing with my father who was in the hospital and trying to be there for my mom, all the while working full-time. Each week that passed Jackson wasn’t getting any better in fact he was getting worse.  He was limping on his rear leg and towards the end not putting any weight in his leg, actually dragging his foot. I knew it was time to go back to my vet to get an x-ray and see what was going on. I was praying it was a joint dislocation or something minor. However on Sept. 12th Jackson had an x-ray and it was found that his head and neck femur bone was disappearing, WHAT??!! how can a bone just disappear! They termed it a lytic lesion and gave it an initial diagnosis of Osteosarcoma, a type of aggressive bone cancer, but further confirmation would have to come from the radiologist.
I was devastated listening to my vet as he explained the next course of action 1) biopsy the site to confirm the diagnosis (however he didn’t suggest it as the bone could break) 2) amputation of the right rear leg (oh my! how was this an option?) or 3) euthanasia (how could I do this to my normally healthy pup who was otherwise active and happy?). Luckily additionsl X-rays of Jackson’s body (thorax, heart, chest, lungs, etc) showed no signs of lesions, etc, he was otherwise a healthy boy. My vet pointed out that he had a lot of positives in his corner and the fact that he was otherwise a healthy dog who was getting around on 3 legs already (for about 2weeks) that he was probably a good candidate for amputation.
Now came the tears and they didn’t stop for almost a week, I beat myself up agonizing why I hadn’t brought him in sooner and then trying to put my head around the thought of amputating his leg.
The following week to come would be the longest week of my life. After Jackson’s x-ray he had a horrible reaction to Gabbatenin and the Tramadol threw him for a loop. He was super sensitive to the meds that were supposedly treating the pain, but how do you know if your dog is in PAIN? I questioned his lethargy and inability to walk let alone stand was worth this, so for the next week I weaned him down to just one pill of Tramadol at night and he slowly came back to life.        It was during this week that I had to make one of the hardest decisions of life. I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning researching online all the different websites related to bone cancer in dogs, hoping it wasn’t this type of cancer at all, but a less devastating type. Once the radiologist results came in confirming the diagnosis of Osteosarcoma I had already begun meeting with surgeons trying to decide my options. The first told me amputation was way to go and she didn’t think biopsy was an option because the leg could break. The 2nd surgeon recommended to definitely do the biopsy even if it led to amputation as it could be something else.    So I slept on it and talked it over with family, friends & my boyfriend and went with my gut…to decide to amputate his right rear leg.     A very good friend of mine who’s an ER Vet said to me no matter what you decide you need to be completely confident in your decision & don’t second guess yourself (which she knew I was good at doing). So with the help of my family, friends & my loving boyfriend we would embark on a journey into the unknown, knowing in the end I was saving Jackson’s life!