Troy de Bad Boy - Euthanized Dec. 19th
Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 8:11 pm
Troy de Bad Boy (really an exceptional GOOD boy-BAD in slang actually means GOOD) Saturday, December 19th, approximately 4 years 3 months young.
The Letter to the Dermatologist:
I sent this letter to Troy's Dermatologist today who asked for an update on Troy after I called his office on Saturday morning and he didn't return my call right away. I cc'd it to Troy's regular vet as well who had done the euthanizing...
Apparently, Troy had been scratching his neck and tore out a piece of skin on Thursday night and droplets of blood were falling all over the carpet and linoleum. (I thought he was scratching his ear whenever I saw him scratch but whenever I looked in his ear, it looked and smelled fine. I did take your advice to not overreact everytime Troy began to scratch. Maybe I took this too much to heart.) With Troy's excessively thick fur, as a result of the Atopica, I couldn't see anything and even though I wiped a white paper towel over his body no blood showed on the towel. I even checked my other chow Sheena and couldn't find anything. The next morning there were three 5 inch diameter stains of blood on the linens Troy slept on. So, on Saturday morning I spent two hours grooming Troy and located a wound about 1 inch in diameter just below the left side of his neck. It appeared to be a solid unmoveable mass much larger than that.
Well, I'm still getting over the loss and pain of my decision to euthanize Troy on Saturday. Dr. Raymond was in agreement and told me that the mass was extremely large. I'm so upset I can't think straight...I think he said the mass was 3 or 4 inches or more and it needed to come out. In the past weeks Troy's appetite had increased so I gave him 2.5 cans per day, but his weight had been consistently dropping since I last saw you and now it was about 50 lbs. I've had experience with carcinoma cancer and the one thing I know is that a drop in body weight, even with an increase in calories, is a sure sign of cancer having taken hold.
Beginning in August, Troy was consistently fighting with Sheena, which was probably a direct result of this tumor brewing in his chest/neck area. In September, Troy was bitten by Sheena as a result of Troy's aggressiveness, which resulted in his injury next to his eye. That's when I brought him into your emergency hospital. Unfortunately, the mass by the neck may or may not have been palpable at that time. Anyway, who would be looking at that area when the head and face was filled with pus.
In this past week, Troy even attempted to bite me a few times with all the pain this mass was causing. I decided to put him out of his misery even though he was dealing with the pain as best he could and was vibrant more often that not. Apparently, he had a high threshold of pain similar to me. I decided that there was no point in sustaining his pain regardless of how much I would miss him since that was not the only pain he was experiencing. On the Atopica, in the past few weeks, he began screaming/yelping while pulling his hair out on his back again; began chewing his feet, and I had to resort to putting him in the cone collar every time I left for work and had to watch him carefully when I was home, and I removed Troy from the restraint of the e-collar.
Troy's life was on a short stick. There was his arthritic leg from a healed over fracture when I rescued him at 9 months old, the ACL problem that was brewing as a result, the trying of all the different foods for possible allergies causing itching, antibiotics, the weekly and bi-weekly baths with different allergen shampoos and creme rinses, the progression to an excessive itching problem, more antibiotics, the administration of prednisone, and a food that Troy stopped itching on...Primal raw duck w/added boiled water; then Troy had the acute pancreatitis attack; the switch to the use of Z/D Ultra-Allergen canned food; then 9 months of no itching; then 3 months of living 24/7 in an e-collar; then some other meds Troy had a reaction to, then hydroxyzine, then Atopica with it, for approximately 8 months. Regardless, the itching returned with a vengeance.
I can't help but think that the suppressing of the immune system by the Atopica, the previous use of prednisone for one year (although the dose was only 2 mg. and the dose was continually decreased) added to the growth of this large tumor. It never quite made sense to me regarding the Z/D canned food...the addition of corn starch which is a known allergen to dogs was contained in this so-called ultra-allergen food. Plus this food contains hydrolyzed chicken liver...liver is known to contain carcinogens. It sounds illogical to me. Maybe that's why the itchiness returned after 9 months on the ultra-allergen Z/D food (due to the corn starch) even with the somewhat success of Atopica in thwarting some of the itching. The tumor possibly appeared due to the suppressing of the immune system and the carcinogenic food and former use of a steroid.
I know you all have meant well in your efforts and could only give me possible solutions that I could try. Troy was a very tough case and his days were numbered since he was born. Although he appeared to have some enjoyment, I can only hope he did. I think in the future if ever I am confronted with the adoption of a rescue with this many problems I would put the poor animal out of its misery sooner than later. His personality was what kept him here and what kept me working to find a solution where there was none except death. He was extremely loveable and I do miss him so. Sheena appears to be missing him as well.
Sincerely...
The Prognosis Event:
At the Vet's office, Troy was playing with the red stuffed toy he found there happy as can be. Then in the exam room, Troy, out of nowhere attempted to bite this vet for the very first time in 3.5 years and grabbed his tie...it was a shocking scene. The vet was being brought down to the ground with his tie and it took several commands of "give Troy give" from me to get Troy to let go of the Vet's necktie that now had holes in it. The vet gave him a shot to relax Troy of all the pain he was in and then he was able to feel the huge lump.
Our Last Enjoyable Moments:
I decided that Troy would probably not survive this cancer problem with the immuno-suppressant drug in his system as well as all his other problems and it was time to let him go. So......Sheena, Troy and I took our last walk in the park and fields nearby with each other. Troy was running/limping, barking at the squirrels, chasing the birds while on leash. I located a field and let Troy run free, Sheena... I leashed to the fence since I knew if I let her run free it would take forever for her to return or there would be another fight between them...Troy didn't know what to do with freedom since I walked him on leash even in the backyard since he would eat anything and everything and get sick. Troy went 100 feet away and looked at the freeway cars in the far distance, periodically tuning into the birds flying by..I don't know what he was thinking, I hope it was pleasurable. I called to him and Troy came rushing to me as I hugged and told him how much I loved him. Sheena appeared to understand. It was about a half hour walk. Two people walking their lab on the walkway remarked at how beautiful both of my chows were. I felt impelled to cry and tell them I had to euthanize my Troy, the black chow. They expressed their empathy. In the distance, a man running with his child in a carriage pointed to us and shouted..."look, look at the beautiful doggies" my heart just ached.
When we returned I took some pictures with a disposable camera, mocked myself for not taking video of Troy when he would throw both front legs in front of him to enter a down position, he looked so cute when he did that with a huge smile on his face. Frustrated that Troy never got the chance to romp in the snow. I asked this lady in front of the vet's office outside to please take some pictures of our last day together...I hope they turn out well.
The Final Decision:
When I went inside, the receptionist told me I didn't need to euthanize him today I could wait...that threw me into a confusing state of mind. I spoke with the vet, asked him if it was his pet and he stated he would euthanize. This was the same vet who refused to euthanize Troy when I felt hopeless 3 years ago. He believed it was lymphoma.
The Euthanasia Experience:
What aches my heart most is that this was another terrible euthanasia experience...I had two previous terrible episodes in the past with two cats and now it was poor Troy. Troy was full of energy and the first muscle relaxant did not take hold after a 15 minute wait that normally took 10 minutes. Troy was playing with the little lion on my keychain. I took the muzzle off the first time and was told not to take it off again after the second shot of a muscle relaxant. Troy hated muzzles and fought to breathe and take them off. Then the sodium penathol (sp?) shot was to be administered. Sheena was next to me on the floor as I held Troy's head. Apparently, Troy's veins collapsed in both of his hind legs, after quite a few attempts with two vet techs and then the vet, only half of the syringe had been administered. Troy was attempting to bite them the entire time with the muzzle on. Sheena was now standing and pacing but remained calm and just wanted out of the room. Then the front leg was shaved and as soon as the shot was administered Troy's eyes began to roll and he was gone in about 30 seconds. It was very traumatic for me and everybody, and especially Troy. The vet and I tried to relax Troy during the event but he was fighting for life or to stay awake.
My Wishes and Memories:
I only hope that Troy knew how much I loved him and how difficult it was for me to let him go...it is always too soon to say goodbye. I will always love my Troy de Bad Boy...previous winner of the Purple Kisses Contest of 2008...17 kisses on command on the hand! (And in practice up to 42 consecutive!) A true lover boy!
When I figure out how to post pics again I will post. Gotta get home to Sheena and see how she is doing.
Thank you so much for reading this. For all those who have lost their chows this year........May your heart find Peace.
The Letter to the Dermatologist:
I sent this letter to Troy's Dermatologist today who asked for an update on Troy after I called his office on Saturday morning and he didn't return my call right away. I cc'd it to Troy's regular vet as well who had done the euthanizing...
Apparently, Troy had been scratching his neck and tore out a piece of skin on Thursday night and droplets of blood were falling all over the carpet and linoleum. (I thought he was scratching his ear whenever I saw him scratch but whenever I looked in his ear, it looked and smelled fine. I did take your advice to not overreact everytime Troy began to scratch. Maybe I took this too much to heart.) With Troy's excessively thick fur, as a result of the Atopica, I couldn't see anything and even though I wiped a white paper towel over his body no blood showed on the towel. I even checked my other chow Sheena and couldn't find anything. The next morning there were three 5 inch diameter stains of blood on the linens Troy slept on. So, on Saturday morning I spent two hours grooming Troy and located a wound about 1 inch in diameter just below the left side of his neck. It appeared to be a solid unmoveable mass much larger than that.
Well, I'm still getting over the loss and pain of my decision to euthanize Troy on Saturday. Dr. Raymond was in agreement and told me that the mass was extremely large. I'm so upset I can't think straight...I think he said the mass was 3 or 4 inches or more and it needed to come out. In the past weeks Troy's appetite had increased so I gave him 2.5 cans per day, but his weight had been consistently dropping since I last saw you and now it was about 50 lbs. I've had experience with carcinoma cancer and the one thing I know is that a drop in body weight, even with an increase in calories, is a sure sign of cancer having taken hold.
Beginning in August, Troy was consistently fighting with Sheena, which was probably a direct result of this tumor brewing in his chest/neck area. In September, Troy was bitten by Sheena as a result of Troy's aggressiveness, which resulted in his injury next to his eye. That's when I brought him into your emergency hospital. Unfortunately, the mass by the neck may or may not have been palpable at that time. Anyway, who would be looking at that area when the head and face was filled with pus.
In this past week, Troy even attempted to bite me a few times with all the pain this mass was causing. I decided to put him out of his misery even though he was dealing with the pain as best he could and was vibrant more often that not. Apparently, he had a high threshold of pain similar to me. I decided that there was no point in sustaining his pain regardless of how much I would miss him since that was not the only pain he was experiencing. On the Atopica, in the past few weeks, he began screaming/yelping while pulling his hair out on his back again; began chewing his feet, and I had to resort to putting him in the cone collar every time I left for work and had to watch him carefully when I was home, and I removed Troy from the restraint of the e-collar.
Troy's life was on a short stick. There was his arthritic leg from a healed over fracture when I rescued him at 9 months old, the ACL problem that was brewing as a result, the trying of all the different foods for possible allergies causing itching, antibiotics, the weekly and bi-weekly baths with different allergen shampoos and creme rinses, the progression to an excessive itching problem, more antibiotics, the administration of prednisone, and a food that Troy stopped itching on...Primal raw duck w/added boiled water; then Troy had the acute pancreatitis attack; the switch to the use of Z/D Ultra-Allergen canned food; then 9 months of no itching; then 3 months of living 24/7 in an e-collar; then some other meds Troy had a reaction to, then hydroxyzine, then Atopica with it, for approximately 8 months. Regardless, the itching returned with a vengeance.
I can't help but think that the suppressing of the immune system by the Atopica, the previous use of prednisone for one year (although the dose was only 2 mg. and the dose was continually decreased) added to the growth of this large tumor. It never quite made sense to me regarding the Z/D canned food...the addition of corn starch which is a known allergen to dogs was contained in this so-called ultra-allergen food. Plus this food contains hydrolyzed chicken liver...liver is known to contain carcinogens. It sounds illogical to me. Maybe that's why the itchiness returned after 9 months on the ultra-allergen Z/D food (due to the corn starch) even with the somewhat success of Atopica in thwarting some of the itching. The tumor possibly appeared due to the suppressing of the immune system and the carcinogenic food and former use of a steroid.
I know you all have meant well in your efforts and could only give me possible solutions that I could try. Troy was a very tough case and his days were numbered since he was born. Although he appeared to have some enjoyment, I can only hope he did. I think in the future if ever I am confronted with the adoption of a rescue with this many problems I would put the poor animal out of its misery sooner than later. His personality was what kept him here and what kept me working to find a solution where there was none except death. He was extremely loveable and I do miss him so. Sheena appears to be missing him as well.
Sincerely...
The Prognosis Event:
At the Vet's office, Troy was playing with the red stuffed toy he found there happy as can be. Then in the exam room, Troy, out of nowhere attempted to bite this vet for the very first time in 3.5 years and grabbed his tie...it was a shocking scene. The vet was being brought down to the ground with his tie and it took several commands of "give Troy give" from me to get Troy to let go of the Vet's necktie that now had holes in it. The vet gave him a shot to relax Troy of all the pain he was in and then he was able to feel the huge lump.
Our Last Enjoyable Moments:
I decided that Troy would probably not survive this cancer problem with the immuno-suppressant drug in his system as well as all his other problems and it was time to let him go. So......Sheena, Troy and I took our last walk in the park and fields nearby with each other. Troy was running/limping, barking at the squirrels, chasing the birds while on leash. I located a field and let Troy run free, Sheena... I leashed to the fence since I knew if I let her run free it would take forever for her to return or there would be another fight between them...Troy didn't know what to do with freedom since I walked him on leash even in the backyard since he would eat anything and everything and get sick. Troy went 100 feet away and looked at the freeway cars in the far distance, periodically tuning into the birds flying by..I don't know what he was thinking, I hope it was pleasurable. I called to him and Troy came rushing to me as I hugged and told him how much I loved him. Sheena appeared to understand. It was about a half hour walk. Two people walking their lab on the walkway remarked at how beautiful both of my chows were. I felt impelled to cry and tell them I had to euthanize my Troy, the black chow. They expressed their empathy. In the distance, a man running with his child in a carriage pointed to us and shouted..."look, look at the beautiful doggies" my heart just ached.
When we returned I took some pictures with a disposable camera, mocked myself for not taking video of Troy when he would throw both front legs in front of him to enter a down position, he looked so cute when he did that with a huge smile on his face. Frustrated that Troy never got the chance to romp in the snow. I asked this lady in front of the vet's office outside to please take some pictures of our last day together...I hope they turn out well.
The Final Decision:
When I went inside, the receptionist told me I didn't need to euthanize him today I could wait...that threw me into a confusing state of mind. I spoke with the vet, asked him if it was his pet and he stated he would euthanize. This was the same vet who refused to euthanize Troy when I felt hopeless 3 years ago. He believed it was lymphoma.
The Euthanasia Experience:
What aches my heart most is that this was another terrible euthanasia experience...I had two previous terrible episodes in the past with two cats and now it was poor Troy. Troy was full of energy and the first muscle relaxant did not take hold after a 15 minute wait that normally took 10 minutes. Troy was playing with the little lion on my keychain. I took the muzzle off the first time and was told not to take it off again after the second shot of a muscle relaxant. Troy hated muzzles and fought to breathe and take them off. Then the sodium penathol (sp?) shot was to be administered. Sheena was next to me on the floor as I held Troy's head. Apparently, Troy's veins collapsed in both of his hind legs, after quite a few attempts with two vet techs and then the vet, only half of the syringe had been administered. Troy was attempting to bite them the entire time with the muzzle on. Sheena was now standing and pacing but remained calm and just wanted out of the room. Then the front leg was shaved and as soon as the shot was administered Troy's eyes began to roll and he was gone in about 30 seconds. It was very traumatic for me and everybody, and especially Troy. The vet and I tried to relax Troy during the event but he was fighting for life or to stay awake.
My Wishes and Memories:
I only hope that Troy knew how much I loved him and how difficult it was for me to let him go...it is always too soon to say goodbye. I will always love my Troy de Bad Boy...previous winner of the Purple Kisses Contest of 2008...17 kisses on command on the hand! (And in practice up to 42 consecutive!) A true lover boy!
When I figure out how to post pics again I will post. Gotta get home to Sheena and see how she is doing.
Thank you so much for reading this. For all those who have lost their chows this year........May your heart find Peace.