Simone Graduates!

Simone graduated from chemotherapy today! She had her fifth and final treatment, and tolerated it very well. We're so glad to finally be at this point!

Fourth Chemo Down

Simone had her fourth chemo treatment today. The vets at OSU also did x-rays of her chest and right rear leg to look for metastasis. Chemo went well, and all of the x-rays came back negative. We were so relieved to hear that there are no obvious signs of cancer at this time. As much as we didn't initially want to amputate or even consider chemo, we're glad that we changed our minds. Her leg breaking may have actually been a blessing in disguise. Without that event, we likely wouldn't have gone with this course of treatment, which means she might not be here with us today. We are most thankful that she is.

Chemo #3 Down

Simone had her third chemo treatment this past Thursday. The doctor upped the dose another step, and Simone did great. The aftereffects seemed even less this time, and she really didn't seem to have too many problems with decreased appetite or lethargy like the last two times. She will have her fourth treatment on July 8th, and additional x-rays will be taken at that visit to check to see if the disease has metastasized. Based on her general attitude, energy, and enthusiasm, it seems like she has the upper hand on the cancer. We're just keeping our fingers crossed that she will continue to have as many good days as possible.

Doing Well

A day after Simone's second chemo treatment, she is doing great. She was a little tired this morning and didn't want to do much, but perked up this afternoon and enjoyed a run through the tall grass at the park.

Second Chemo Down

Simone had her second chemo treatment today.

Simone wasn't too happy when she arrived and didn't want to go in, but with a little help from the receptionist and Dr. Cohen, she complied.

Dr. Cohen said Simone tolerated the treatment well. She was much happier when it was time to go home, and went after the pig ear waiting for her with gusto.

Chemo Begins

Simone had her first chemo treatment today.

We initially thought that we didn't want to put her through it, but were convinced by her doctors that it would be her best shot for a longer survival and overall remaining better quality of life. Gary met with Dr. Helfand, a veterinary oncologist at OSU, for several hours this morning. He said that in cases like Simone's, average survival time after amputation is around 3-5 months, while adding chemo can potentially raise that survival time to an average of 12 months. Dogs tend to tolerate chemotherapy better than humans. Simone does not have obvious signs of metastasis, her incision has nearly healed, and her bloodwork looked good, so Dr. Helfand said if we were going to start this treatment, today was the day. So, we decided to go ahead and give it a try. We've already gone further than we thought we would, so we decided to not stop now.


Gary left Simone at the hospital for the rest of the afternoon while they administered the IV. They used a drug called Carboplatin for her first treatment. Assuming all goes well, she will receive a total of five treatments over 15 weeks, one every third Friday. When Gary brought her home tonight, she ate her dinner like usual and had her same amount of energy and zip. We're told she may be a little lethargic or have less appetite tomorrow, but any possible side effects should dissipate within a day or two.


We'll just continue to take things one day at a time.

Two More Milestones

Simone mastered two more tasks today....
hopping into the truck unassisted and going up and down the stairs.

We are so excited! It's been less than a week, and she's nearly back to her old self.

Back to Chasing Chickens

It's now been four days since Simone's surgery, and she's nearly back to her old self. She is able to go up and down the steps from the back deck into the yard without assistance. She's also giving the chickens a run for their money again:

At this rate, we'll all be sleeping upstairs again in no time! Her incision also looks really good...it's really starting to heal nicely. We see the vet tomorrow for our first post-op visit, and suspect she'll get a good report.

She really is our miracle girl.

Hopping Around the Backyard

First Walk

We took our first walk to the mailbox today (about a block each way), and Simone walked like a pro. Her balance seems to get better every time she gets up. Going up the steps into the house has gotten a lot easier, but we're still helping her to walk down them. She gets pretty worn out after only a short distance, but we expect that will improve with time.

Fortunately she won't be running any marathons soon, so we're content to just take it easy.
Short walks and lots of naps are just what the doctor ordered.

Snuggling with Dad

Simone snuggles with dad on our makeshift family bed in the living room.

Happy to be Home

Simone rests in the backyard after checking on the chickens.

Simone's First Steps

Simone is up and walking, less than 24 hours after her surgery.
She's doing great!

Simone's Home!

We're happy to report that Simone is now home and resting. She is on a few pain meds, but off the really strong stuff, so her eyes are bright. She's still a little wobbly, but is getting around well when she needs to. Her incision looks good (no bandages, just one really long running stitch). She seems genuinely happy to be home, and I can't tell you how happy we are to have her here.

Thank you again for your kind words of support and for keeping our girl in your hearts and prayers. It means so much.

Simone Update

Just a quick note to let you all know Simone is doing great. She made it through the surgery very well, and came out of anesthesia without complication. Gary was able to visit her tonight and saw that she was comfortably hopped up on pain meds. She had already been up and walking after the procedure to go potty and appeared to be quickly adapting to life on three legs. She is resting tonight at the clinic, and we will bring her home tomorrow. We've spent the evening rearranging furniture and preparing for sleeping downstairs with her until she's ready to tackle climbing stairs.

Thank you all for your kind words and for keeping Simone in your hearts and prayers. We truly believe every good thought sent her direction today made all the difference. We may not know how much time we have left with our girl, but we're so very thankful to have her feeling better and are looking forward to every moment we get to spend with her from here on out.

Simone's Roller Coaster

We've been on quite the roller coaster ride the past 24 hours.

After several weeks of limping, Simone was diagnosed with bone cancer (osteosarcoma) in her rear left leg yesterday about 4pm. As we were starting to discuss how we might handle this last night, the diseased portion of her femur broke in two (a little stress on a weakened bone = major damage). We had to decide this afternoon whether to end her suffering all together or to amputate the leg. Simone did her usual talking to us with her eyes, kept trying to leave the exam room, and wagging her tail....which we felt were all of her ways of letting us know that she wasn't ready to go just yet. So, we decided to give our consent for the amputation. Her surgery is tomorrow around noon, and we will be able to take her home on Thursday. The vet says most dogs are walking within 1-2 days and the wound is healed in about 2 weeks. We will not do additional chemo or radiation therapy. The vet said as a result of the surgery, she may be with us for another 6-18 months. With her lively spirit and love for life, we trust it will be at least that long, and if not, that she'll let us know when it's time.

It just wasn't today.

Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers.