Bo Bo

UPDATE: Bo has an infection in his GI tract so he is on an antibiotic and steroids for that piece of the puzzle. He also has a malignant tumor that will be removed tomorrow morning. The vet said that "most of the time" these tumors are a Grade 2 and, once removed with clear margins, they do not return. It's possible that it's a Grade 3, which would require chemotherapy. 


We have made the decision to move forward with surgery but, if it's more advanced than they think, we will not proceed with chemo. Either way, the surgery will keep him with us longer and will improve his quality of life. He's on Benadryl and Pepcid AC (no, I'm not kidding) for the tumor as this type excretes antihistamines.


On another note, I now FULLY support Tay's dream to be a vet because I simply cannot believe how much Dave wrote a check for today and they said it will be more than twice that amount tomorrow. Bo's totally worth it but I'm just in shock...and I accept that we'll now be staying at the Motel 6 for vacation this year. Lol...

This guy made an unexpected trip to the vet this morning...

He is 7.5 years old, which is pretty advanced for a boxer, and he's been having some problem we attributed to old age. Those issues became pretty significant this morning and, though he's still playing and acting like he feels well, there may be something more going on.

Dave and Tay (she's out of school today for a bad weather day) left him at the vet's office about an hour ago for some pretty extensive testing to see exactly what we're dealing with when it comes to the big guy. Those who know us well know that this is the eldest member of the Puppy Posse.

Bo has been with us through a lot and, quite frankly, he's another one of our children. He is most of Dave's world and, because he means so much to us, there is no way we will ever let him suffer. Not ever.

The good news is that he's still enjoying life and is not in any pain right now so no major life decisions will be made today. We are simply figuring out what we're dealing with but, because of his age and the afflictions boxers suffer from in general, we're coming to grips with the fact that he's old and simply won't be with us forever.

Though I've often joked that this dog would live forever because 1) he's stubborn and 2) simply out of spite because he's a handful at times, we would be devastated if we lost him. And, yes, I understand that there are much worse things that could happen to us. And, yes, we are so grateful to have healthy children, good jobs, etc.

But I do want to give a shout out for a great dog who we love very much and know that we are totally praying his tests will reveal something that is rather simple and totally treatable.