Update!
Throughout the day yesterday, Baxter's balance appeared to improve somewhat. Around noon I let him out to potty and I didn't have to hold him up, he even lifted his leg (although slightly, it was still a lift!). I was rejoicing in the backyard! By evening, he had an even higher leg lift going and was more steady than earlier. However, he began vomitting and was a pitiful mess after dinnertime. I gave him a pepcid complete and he stopped foaming and appeared better by bedtime. He slept well through the night and was eager for his breakfast this morning. Baxter was able to keep down his breakfast and his 3:00 snack! So far, so good. His balance is still bad. He is shaky and wobbly. Fortunantly he is holding himself up again (all day Sunday and yesterday morning he required assistance to balance while going potty). Sadly, he is too unsteady for a walk still. Bax is unable to manage the stairs anymore so I have been having to carry him. This is hard for me, he is 75lbs. I think it's time that we move into the basement (sorry Deb, we are moving into your room
). This will keep us from having to carry Baxter up and down the stairs. We have a walk out basement therefore he has easy access to potty. I think this will be a good arrangement for him.
I called the cardiologist yesterday. We are having Baxter's blood pressure checked and possibly some x-rays run on Monday at 1:00 p.m. at our vets office. Depending upon the outcome, he may be scheduled for an ultrasound with the cardiologist. The cardiologist is consulting with our vet currently on our situation. We are holding out hope that his recent chain of events is due to high intracranial pressure secondary to hypertension. If this is the case, we are hoping to be able to alleviate that pressure with blood pressure medication (that's if his liver can tolerate it). Lots of factors at play here, please pray for us. Otherwise, we are facing the sad fact that his tumor has grown in size to where it is affecting his quality of life. As long as Mr. B remains stable and does not appear to be in any pain, I am going to hold out for our appointment on Monday.
These past few days have been the worst yet. It's tough because his favorite past time, other than eating and chewing on a bone, is taking a walk. Taking a walk is something he is no longer able to do. Right now he is simply existing and it's killing me. I promised myself when he could no longer do the things he always enjoyed, I would set him free.
Please send us those magical Boxerworld vibes. You have been with us each step of the way, I can't tell you in words just how much this has meant to us. Thank you for your kindness and compassion. It helps to not feel alone in times like this. Daily we are surrounded by so many people who don't share or understand the love we feel for our animals. This place has been a godsend for us.
I do know that eventually we will run out of ways to comfort Baxter and that I will be faced with shouldering the pain so that he no longer has to. I do know that I love him so much that I will be able to do that for him. However, I want to be sure that he is ready. I want to know that he no longer wants to fight anymore. Right now I'm not 100% certain he is ready to give up yet. I pray that Monday will bring us some answers.
Aimee
