Baron

So, this past weekend we got some sad news about Baron. He had been doing this thing for awhile where he seemed to be wheezing and then hacking like he was going to throw up, but nothing would come out. He also had swollen lymph nodes on his body. Denise and I had noticed that it was getting progressively worse, so she finally decided to bring him into the vet. There were some tests the vet needed to perform, but he was fairly positive that Baron has lymphoma. Lymphoma is a common cancer in dogs, and it is aggressive. Often without treatment, a dog will die within 1-2 months of diagnosis.

This was of course quite a shock and painful for Denise to hear. She didn't go into work on Friday (the day she found out), and I left work early in order to be with her. It was a melancholy day to say the least. That night we decided to keep it low key and go to a movie and dinner. We went to see "Into the Wild," which is an inspirational, but also sad, true story about a young boy who leaves everything and everyone in order to travel across the United States to his eventual goal of braving Alaska. I thought the movie was incredibly well cast, acted, and of course stunning. I was glad we chose this movie because Denise had been wanting to see it for awhile, and she needed a bit of an escape from reality.

Anyway, we had a pretty quiet weekend consisting of a dinner on Saturday with friends, a Sunday hike with Baron and a trip to Petco where Baron was surprised with all kinds of disgusting treats (including pig ears, YUCK!). Sunday evening was game night and the final poker show down was again between Phil and I, cause we ROCK! ;) It just felt like a weekend to be with the dog, and make his life from now on as joyous as possible.

Baron went to another vet this week (there was some delays and run around with the other vet, so Denise went elsewhere) and they are starting treatment for the cancer. From what we read, this form of cancers responds well to treatment, and although it won't cure it, he will probably live for about a year. Denise was concerned about his quality of life with the chemo, but she was assured that there is slight discomfort like loose bowels and excess urination, but nothing like what humans go through. The treatment lasts for 2 months, and then we just see what happens.

So, although the news was a blow, we are hopeful that with treatment there are many good times still to be had with Baron, and our biggest concern is that he is happy and does not suffer. I will keep you updated, and here's to BARON! (ps: above is a pic of he and Argo together on the bed, with Argo actually not hissing and slapping Baron. It's a rare occurrence, believe me.:)