I envy you (and respect) you both greatly. Thank you for sharing.
(WARNING: Possible trigger for pup sadness.)
When Spigot's bone cancer lump in his front left leg was noticed (from one day to the next) he was in agony. Fortunately for him, I had hard-core opiates for my own chronic pain condition, and he managed those few days until we got him to a specialty veterinarian hospital some distance away.
But when we got him home after drastic surgery, we could not get him into the house. He had lost his left front leg into the shoulder, and as an already somewhat heavy husky (100 lbs. prior, 90 lbs. after), we had no choice but to sleep in the yard together for several days. Eventually he was able to climb the few steps into the house, but he never acclimated fully. (But yes, he did get his life back, and was again the happy, loving pup I had known for years. And with the help of the opiates, he managed to live an acceptable life for many months longer than was ever expected for him.)
But if there is any creature on Earth most victimized by demon cancer, it is the dog. Eventually the cancers became worse, and varied, and my mother managed, with great suffering on both their parts, to get him into the house one final time when I was away. But I was never away again....
Though huskies are not a particularly affectionate breed (while being deeply loyal and loving), Spigot wanted me with him every second in those last days. We were in the same room every second, and when he woke and called to me, I woke as well and was with him every second. (He learned that the horrible action of shoving pills down his throat will help in 20 minutes or so, and he never objected.)
When the end came at the hands of a caring vet in the same spot near the front door that had become his world, he was very ready. I miss him still; every minute, every day.
But after a year of wondering how my life would ever be restored (Spigot being the second beloved pup lost to cancer in less than a year), I now have the gift of a shelter pup by the name of Chiquita, and my life is better for the full range of the cycle of love and pain.
I am SO HAPPY your Kinzi recovered, and you both grew (and continue to grow) from the experience. It is in no way my intention to do anything other than to show two sides to every story of love and/or loss, and how giving and caring pups can be
Any chance we can see some pictures?
Thanks again!
