Gavin's radiation treatment

Sending you and Gavin hugs! Daily cancer treatments are exhausting.. I used to go with my father-in-law for his chemotherapy. Can't imagine doing it with a pup that just doesn't understand why. It sounds like he is in good spirits though, and fairly comfortable. Hang in there!
 
The vet tech said he was much better today.
she took him for a longer walk (and he pooped).
no sedation needed.

he whines softly and not for the first 25 minutes of the commute home. hopefully he is getting used to the new routine.
 
week 1 summary:
Tuesday : Gavin was a brat, turned over his water, barked a lot, hard to settle him in at home. car ride was tough, lot of whining. I had to give him his sedative
Wednesday : Gavin was a brat, turned over his water, barked a lot, refused to poop for vet tech, hard to settle him in at home. Whining in the car on the way home w as awful! I had to give him his sedative.
Thursday : Gavin was good, turned over his water, got an extra long walk at vet's. whined some on the car ride home. Gavin got a sedative with dinner.
Friday : Gavin was good, did not turn over his water. was very tired when he got home. no whining in the car! no sedative

So looks like he is settling in and figuring out the routine.
next week is the only 5 days of treatment in a week.
Dec21-24 is only 4 days (25 off) and he is boarded anyway.
Dec28-Dec31 is only 4 days (Jan 1 off) although I only pick him up late Dec 26.
Jan 4-Jan5 is only 2 days.

Leg looks good..maybe loosing a little bit of fur (it was already shaved, but you can see the amount isn't consistent). Gavin left it alone at vet's on friday so the took off the cone. he still wears it while sleeping when I can't keep an eye on him. He has always been more of a front paw licker..I need to bandage up his catheter site or he will lick that. Over the weekend they remove it (during the week they leave it in: they bandage it up and attach a plastic guard over it)

So Tuesday and Wednesday were exhausting!!!!! Awful.
Thursday was better
Friday was good.
saturday: I woke him for his pee at 6:30AM and he is already asleep again.

I picked him up a little earlier everyday trying to find better traffic conditions, because 45 minutes in a car with a whining dog was hard on me: Tuesday was 4, Wednesday was 3:45, Thursday was 3:30, Friday was 3:15. I drop him off at 7:30AM when the radiation techs get in and pick him up before 4PM when they leave (I can pick him up later, but I want to talk to the radiation techs as they are with Gavin all day). So we generally leave home at 6:50AM and get back around 5PM.
 
Cindy, it sounds like you and Gavin are settling in to a good routine...but I know both of you will be beyond happy when the treatments are over and life can get back to normal! You are being a wonderful Mom to your boy.:hugs

Trini
 
Treatment 5 (Monday) :

I was greeted by a happy pup at the vets. I brought in his beach ball and he played for about 40 minutes in the morning (he bounces it back to you with his nose), got a nice walk, and was treated early so he got fed around noon. On the days he gets his treatment later, he might not get fed until 3 PM. I don't get to pick when he gets treatment, although if I said I was going to pick him up at noon I'm sure he would be ready. But since I can't pick him up that early most days, I'm not gonna do that. I just told them that feeding him earlier will make him happier.

More balding on his leg/foot. Still putting on the miaderm lotion. His catheter is on the other front leg.

His mast cell tumor site is almost all healed: the scab fell off today at the vets. So just a pink scar
 
Playing with his beach ball! WOW... great that he has such a positive outlook considering all he has been going through. What a trouper little Gavin is! :yes:

So glad to hear the site is almost healed! What a relief!!

Hugs and prayers coming your and Gavin way for continued positive news!:fl:hugs:fl
 
Aww...so glad to read that happy update for Gavin. I know he still has a ways to go with the radiation treatments but under your loving care he will do fine.

Trini
 
Just caught up with this thread. Glad Gavin is settling into the new routine and things are progressing well. Loved reading that he is playing with his beach ball.
 
Cindy, what marvelous progress Gavin has made. I know how heart-wrenching it is taking them in for treatments and all you can imagine is they are thinking "Why is Mom torturing me??" I had to take Ally back in today for another ultrasound, she was shaking when we turned onto the street of the hospital...:(

His attitude is great and the best advice I can give is take it one minute at a time... enjoy those little special moments and break-throughs, and it will get you through this journey. :hugs
 
treatment 6 (Tuesday 12/15):

on dropping him off, I found a big old bump/lump right next to Gavin's IV site from last week (the one they are using this week is on the other front leg). It was millimeters away from the pinprick site, but it was quite large and of the inside of the leg.

Vet tech's swear it wasn't there Monday.
Vet says it is a seroma (fluid filled pocket). I can try hot compresses. They don't seem concerned, but interested. Probably because of the timing, as that leg had the IV catheter pulled last Friday.

Gavin wasn't as happy today; probably no extra long walk or playing today.
But he did fine on the 50 minute ride home. Traffic is not getting lighter as we get closer to Christmas!

Tomorrow I will be at work only half a day, basically the length of his treatment. I need a break from the super long days.
 
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