Here we go again.

Lucky's first chemo treatment went very well.  She seemed to suffer no side effects and was her usual playful self with no vomiting or diarrhea.  She had one morning where she wouldn't finish her breakfast but when I came home from work, she was begging for food.  Otherwise, she seemed completely happy and content.

Her second treatment didn't quite go as well.  She's had no side effects since the first day of the treatment, however, the first day was extremely scary.  I went to pick her up after her chemo and the dog they brought out to me was not my dog.  She collapsed at my feet, not wanting to get up and when I tried to walk her out the door she was literally dragging her feet so they scraped across the floor.  I immediately called for help and told them she was NOT acting right.  Somehow it had gone unnoticed but shortly after the vet rushed out and said she most definitely was not acting normal and that tests needed to be done right away to determine the cause, as these symptoms were like nothing she'd ever seen with a chemo patient.  She was lethargic and oddly enough, yelping when she swallowed.  The vet was concerned that her stomach was distended and recommended immediate x-rays.  In a panic I of course agreed.  About 30 minutes later she came out and said it hadn't been that, but they were still puzzled.  Being a speciality hospital they had a range of doctors come look at her, each being stumped.  They began to think she had a spinal infection and recommended x-rays of her neck and spine, and again I obliged.  I was so worried, and had to leave the office to gather myself.  The vets told me to go home and they'd observe her and give me a call if anything came up.

Meanwhile, our oncologist was on the net, searching for rare side effects to this particular type of chemo.  Symptoms of this nature had never been reported in dogs, or at least not that she could find.  But similar symptoms had been reported in 1%  of humans who'd received the treatment.  She called it neurological leprathy, and said it was a temporary lapse in control over fine motor skills.  She wasn't certain that this was the case, but at this point all we could do was take her home and watch her.

Within a few hours, thankfully, she improved.  By the next day our scare was behind us.  She was bouncing around playfully, full of energy yet again.  Of course we were out another few 100 in vet bills, but at this point we try not to bat and eye and just flash the plastic and stow away bills so we don't have to look at them.

We are so thankful it turned out to be a temporary thing, but stumped as to how these odd, random, things keep occurring to us.   We try to remain positive but sometimes it seems overwhelming.  We almost lost our house we've been trying to buy last week, and my husband got in a wreck this weekend.  (Though thankfully no one was hurt).  Our friends joke that every time they call, they never know what to expect from us.  I keep telling myself our luck has to turn around eventually and hope that it does.  But at this point I suppose I should be thankful for the many blessings God has given me including my two beautiful fur babies and my super supportive husband.

Lucky's next treatment is today!