Requesting Prayers for my Wife (updated 2023 - see p. 78)

[huskernole]

Prayers for you, Stef, and Mav. My heart hurts for you.

 

[Elwood von Kiowa]

The MRI determined that Maverick has a meningioma at his brain stem, which is the least favorable of the cancers that they suspected possible. The potential treatment would be radiation (probably 20 sessions over 4 weeks), as the tumor is inoperable. This may give him another 12 months… obviously not a great scenario. For now, he’s on prednisone, which should help relieve the edema / inflammation around the tumor while we make decisions over the next week or two.

We have been trying to schedule a visit with the staff at Piedmont Atlanta ICU (the people who worked so hard to save Steph), as she wants to thank them in person (she has no memory of her time there). Maverick visited her twice while she was in the ICU, and won the hearts of everyone there. So we would love it if he could be up to the visit as well.

 

[Red Reign]

The MRI determined that Maverick has a meningioma at his brain stem, which is the least favorable of the cancers that they suspected possible. The potential treatment would be radiation (probably 20 sessions over 4 weeks), as the tumor is inoperable. This may give him another 12 months… obviously not a great scenario. For now, he’s on prednisone, which should help relieve the edema / inflammation around the tumor while we make decisions over the next week or two.

We have been trying to schedule a visit with the staff at Piedmont Atlanta ICU (the people who worked so hard to save Steph), as she wants to thank them in person (she has no memory of her time there). Maverick visited her twice while she was in the ICU, and won the hearts of everyone there. So we would love it if he could be up to the visit as well.

Hang in there. Having lost Daisy and the wife's sister up and down with her medical issues I can relate all to well

God has you all

 

[BigNed]

The MRI determined that Maverick has a meningioma at his brain stem, which is the least favorable of the cancers that they suspected possible. The potential treatment would be radiation (probably 20 sessions over 4 weeks), as the tumor is inoperable. This may give him another 12 months… obviously not a great scenario. For now, he’s on prednisone, which should help relieve the edema / inflammation around the tumor while we make decisions over the next week or two.

We have been trying to schedule a visit with the staff at Piedmont Atlanta ICU (the people who worked so hard to save Steph), as she wants to thank them in person (she has no memory of her time there). Maverick visited her twice while she was in the ICU, and won the hearts of everyone there. So we would love it if he could be up to the visit as well.

Very sad. Hopefully the treatments work for Maverick. If Maverick is in pain, sorry, but let him go. I know it's hard.

 

[Elwood von Kiowa]

Very sad. Hopefully the treatments work for Maverick. If Maverick is in pain, sorry, but let him go. I know it's hard.

That's the sad reality. I don't see any point in extending his pain for another 9-12 months. If we decided to do the radiation treatments, we'd basically lose a month with him anyway (we'd have to board him there during the week, or drive 3 hours daily, which isn't happening), and for what?

The good news is, the Prednisone seems to be taking effect today. He's much more like himself, more aware, ... I'd say more energetic, though still nowhere near what he was a couple weeks ago. So that seems to be the answer; hopefully we can make his last days worthwhile and as enjoyable as possible.

 

[BigNed]

That's the sad reality. I don't see any point in extending his pain for another 9-12 months. If we decided to do the radiation treatments, we'd basically lose a month with him anyway (we'd have to board him there during the week, or drive 3 hours daily, which isn't happening), and for what?

The good news is, the Prednisone seems to be taking effect today. He's much more like himself, more aware, ... I'd say more energetic, though still nowhere near what he was a couple weeks ago. So that seems to be the answer; hopefully we can make his last days worthwhile and as enjoyable as possible.

Just enjoy the memories of how you treated Maverick and gave him a great life. Dogs lives are short. Maybe it's a lesson for us,

My last pooch developed cancer, I kept her alive for a couple of years with treatment, pain free. The cancer came back, full force. The Vet mentioned, and I will never forget it. Don't be selfish, if she is in pain, let her go. I understood, as I wanted to keep her around.

That evening I had her with me, listening to the Royals on the radio, she kept staring at me, like. Why? I put her down the next day. It was very hard. But better for her. She was in too much pain.


I'm very sorry. I'm sure that you will make the right choice.

 

[All 'N' 011808]

That's the sad reality. I don't see any point in extending his pain for another 9-12 months. If we decided to do the radiation treatments, we'd basically lose a month with him anyway (we'd have to board him there during the week, or drive 3 hours daily, which isn't happening), and for what?

The good news is, the Prednisone seems to be taking effect today. He's much more like himself, more aware, ... I'd say more energetic, though still nowhere near what he was a couple weeks ago. So that seems to be the answer; hopefully we can make his last days worthwhile and as enjoyable as possible.

The day after Mom passed, I had to put her dog down because Scooter wasn't eating or going to the bathroom the entire week Mom had been in the hospital. I had to do it before Lil' All 'N', who was two, came back home the next day on Good Friday. God gave me the strength to get through that time and gave me peace with the decision.

I know He will do the same for you. God still has you and Steph in his hands. Praying for the peace, comfort, and courage through this time.

 

[huskernole]

Elwood, when we knew our boy Jake was reaching the he end of his life, we made a bucket list for him. We took him to the beach to watch a sunrise and play in the surf. We took him on boat rides with his sister and let him jump in the water like he used to do. We took him on one last rip to the Keys, rented a beach house, and he’d follow us into the ocean and swim with us. He crossed the rainbow bride a few weeks after that last vacation. It gave us a little bit of happiness knowing that we gave Jake all we had. Thoughts and prayers for you.

 

[Elwood von Kiowa]

Elwood, when we knew our boy Jake was reaching the he end of his life, we made a bucket list for him. We took him to the beach to watch a sunrise and play in the surf. We took him on boat rides with his sister and let him jump in the water like he used to do. We took him on one last rip to the Keys, rented a beach house, and he’d follow us into the ocean and swim with us. He crossed the rainbow bride a few weeks after that last vacation. It gave us a little bit of happiness knowing that we gave Jake all we had. Thoughts and prayers for you.

Thank you. We're making a similar list for Mavi. One last trip to Bass Pro. Play date with his gf.

He has good moments, and not-so-good moments. Does a lot of circling at times, and sometimes I think his eyesight or optic nerve is affected. He's having less control over his back legs. Last night he wanted to jump up on the bed. Three weeks ago he could do it in an effortless leap. He got his front legs up on the bed, then started to lose his balance and fall backwards. The look of fear and despair in his eyes was absolutely heartbreaking. I ran around the bed and was able to catch him before he fell, then helped him get on the bed.

The hospital gave us an option of 10 radiation treatments; thought that would be a better option than the 20. But just seeing how the Prednisone and gabapentin are not relieving his symptoms like we hoped, tells me we ought to be planning for the end. Every day is depressing because I see the best dog in the world not being his normal self. Reminds me of the TV movie, "Death Be Not Proud".

Steph said the other day, "I feel like if we don't do everything we can, we're giving up on him... while so many people fought so hard to save me." That's what makes it especially tough. Christmas is her favorite holiday; she missed last Christmas, and was so looking forward to this next Christmas with Mavi.

 

[Sandhills Husker]

Elwood, I'm so, so sorry to hear the news about Maverick. After all you have been through, and now having to face this. We have had to make these decisions with multiple pets over the years. So much pain is involved I wonder why we keep taking it on? My wife is braver than me and reminds me that its all worth it. I suppose it is, but man, this part is brutal. Hang in there; Steph, you and Mavi will be in our prayers.

 

[CrnhskrBob]

A lot to report, as it’s been a while. Steph continues to get stronger and gain stamina. She had an echocardiogram last week, which went well. She has so many appointments. She has upcoming appointments with a vascular specialist, as well as a nerve test upcoming.

Recent blood work has us a bit concerned about potential kidney function risk. Praying about that.

On Sunday I set up our new adjustable bed base, so we can adjust our king bed – which allowed Steph to sleep in our bed for the first time in over eight months.

It’s been just over a week since we got the second shot of the Pfizer vaccine. Last Friday was a rough day for both of us (fever, body aches, severe fatigue), but thankfully Saturday was a day to recover and get back to normal.

Our book is not yet written. Here’s a chapter I didn’t expect to write. Now it’s Maverick. Poor boy. A few weeks ago, his back side started bothering him. A couple instances of “scooting” and other signs led us to get his anal glands expressed. The first try was semi-successful, as he was extra nervous due to thunderstorms that day. After a day of soreness, he was doing better for a while. But the same symptoms came back, so we took him in again on Monday, where they were able to get both sacs emptied out. But since then, he had been whining and crying more. We thought there might be another problem in his lower abdomen, but we couldn’t identify any specific source of pain for him. Recently, he had been slipping on the wood and tile floors more noticeably; we trimmed his paws, but that didn’t help much. This week he’s been having trouble getting up and lying down, and the last few days, he’s been favoring his right side, continues to circle to the right, and will often lean against the wall to his right. We took him back to our vet yesterday, and they didn’t find anything specifically wrong. They had trouble getting X-rays because he was too squirmy. On the second attempt, they were able to get one picture, which didn’t give any indications.

Today we took him to UGA Vet Research Center, and they did more extensive testing. Still nothing conclusive, though due to the heavy load in imaging, we weren’t able to get an MRI today. We will need to bring him back for that after the holiday. But the indications are that he may have a brain tumor. Just breaks our hearts to see him this way. It’s worse since he checked out today, since they had to sedate him, and it just now (almost midnight) is beginning to wear off. Poor boy is so confused and disoriented. He’s been through so much, as he had suffered with Mommy being gone for so long.

Please, if you would, pray for Mavi. That may sound like a strange request. God has brought us through so much. Of all the curve balls… here comes another one. It just doesn’t seem right that He would put this burden on us at this time. I know He has a plan. And I’m thankful that He reveals it only one day at a time.

Oh, so sorry about Maverick. As you may have heard, at the end of October of 2019, I lost our Sophie. We had her for 19 blessed years. My heart is still heartbroken for her. I have her on my phone cover, so I talk to her everyday, many times..
I am, already, praying for Maverick, my friend. Yes, your plate is so full, but just hang in there and do what you can for him.

Continued prayers for Steph, and now for Maverick. Our pets are so much a part of our lives. Hang in there, Elwood. God is great; God is good. God bless you and the family.

 

[BleedinHuskerRed]

Thank you. We're making a similar list for Mavi. One last trip to Bass Pro. Play date with his gf.

He has good moments, and not-so-good moments. Does a lot of circling at times, and sometimes I think his eyesight or optic nerve is affected. He's having less control over his back legs. Last night he wanted to jump up on the bed. Three weeks ago he could do it in an effortless leap. He got his front legs up on the bed, then started to lose his balance and fall backwards. The look of fear and despair in his eyes was absolutely heartbreaking. I ran around the bed and was able to catch him before he fell, then helped him get on the bed.

The hospital gave us an option of 10 radiation treatments; thought that would be a better option than the 20. But just seeing how the Prednisone and gabapentin are not relieving his symptoms like we hoped, tells me we ought to be planning for the end. Every day is depressing because I see the best dog in the world not being his normal self. Reminds me of the TV movie, "Death Be Not Proud".

Steph said the other day, "I feel like if we don't do everything we can, we're giving up on him... while so many people fought so hard to save me." That's what makes it especially tough. Christmas is her favorite holiday; she missed last Christmas, and was so looking forward to this next Christmas with Mavi.

Hugs, my friend.

 

[OneMoreTime]

Thank you. We're making a similar list for Mavi. One last trip to Bass Pro. Play date with his gf.

He has good moments, and not-so-good moments. Does a lot of circling at times, and sometimes I think his eyesight or optic nerve is affected. He's having less control over his back legs. Last night he wanted to jump up on the bed. Three weeks ago he could do it in an effortless leap. He got his front legs up on the bed, then started to lose his balance and fall backwards. The look of fear and despair in his eyes was absolutely heartbreaking. I ran around the bed and was able to catch him before he fell, then helped him get on the bed.

The hospital gave us an option of 10 radiation treatments; thought that would be a better option than the 20. But just seeing how the Prednisone and gabapentin are not relieving his symptoms like we hoped, tells me we ought to be planning for the end. Every day is depressing because I see the best dog in the world not being his normal self. Reminds me of the TV movie, "Death Be Not Proud".

Steph said the other day, "I feel like if we don't do everything we can, we're giving up on him... while so many people fought so hard to save me." That's what makes it especially tough. Christmas is her favorite holiday; she missed last Christmas, and was so looking forward to this next Christmas with Mavi.

I hated to read this part of the thread. The hardest thing I have ever done was put our beloved yellow lab down (in human years he was mid to late 80s in age). I distinctly recall hearing advice from the vet saying, "Most owners put their dogs down 6 months too late." I hated to hear that but I knew I would only be prolonging Franz's life for us, not for him. His eyes said he was ready to go. Saddest thing I have ever done. Prayers for you and Steph.

 

[CO4NU]

Thank you. We're making a similar list for Mavi. One last trip to Bass Pro. Play date with his gf.

He has good moments, and not-so-good moments. Does a lot of circling at times, and sometimes I think his eyesight or optic nerve is affected. He's having less control over his back legs. Last night he wanted to jump up on the bed. Three weeks ago he could do it in an effortless leap. He got his front legs up on the bed, then started to lose his balance and fall backwards. The look of fear and despair in his eyes was absolutely heartbreaking. I ran around the bed and was able to catch him before he fell, then helped him get on the bed.

The hospital gave us an option of 10 radiation treatments; thought that would be a better option than the 20. But just seeing how the Prednisone and gabapentin are not relieving his symptoms like we hoped, tells me we ought to be planning for the end. Every day is depressing because I see the best dog in the world not being his normal self. Reminds me of the TV movie, "Death Be Not Proud".

Steph said the other day, "I feel like if we don't do everything we can, we're giving up on him... while so many people fought so hard to save me." That's what makes it especially tough. Christmas is her favorite holiday; she missed last Christmas, and was so looking forward to this next Christmas with Mavi.

We had a German Shepherd that we put through the cancer treatments. It only gave her a couple more months but we could see that it made her more sick than she was intially. Our mistake. NEVER would I/we do that again. EVER. We do have a tendency to try to keep them around for us....instead of them. I'm guilty of that myself.

That was a number of years ago, and just this last April 29th we put down our last German Shepherd. It was never a consideration for us to do that again. Miserable times when those days creep on us.

Will keep you and yours in our prayers.

 

[Elwood von Kiowa]

We had a German Shepherd that we put through the cancer treatments. It only gave her a couple more months but we could see that it made her more sick than she was intially. Our mistake. NEVER would I/we do that again. EVER. We do have a tendency to try to keep them around for us....instead of them. I'm guilty of that myself.

That was a number of years ago, and just this last April 29th we put down our last German Shepherd. It was never a consideration for us to do that again. Miserable times when those days creep on us.

Will keep you and yours in our prayers.

(Like / sad)

We have decided to not do the treatments. Tuesday night / Wednesday a.m., Maverick was restless, and none of us could sleep. We had noticed "something off" behind his right eye -- couldn't tell if it was a bump (like from hitting his head) or a depression/dent next to the bump. Was he bleeding internally? It just didn't seem like something we should let go. So we called the UGA Vet center ER and took him up there. They said it was a depression due to muscle atrophy (the muscle ordinarily makes the head smooth, where there's actually an indent in the skull). But we talked with the vet about our options, as the Prednisone and gabapentin haven't given him the relief that we hoped. I think the radiation treatments would not provide much relief either at this stage, and only prolong his confusion. They say he's not feeling pain (??) but I know it's a condition he doesn't want to be in.

Steph's siblings are all here at our house now; first time they've all been together since our wedding. So it's a happy time for us to all be together. Maverick was excited the first day, playing with his "cousin". But I think he's just worn out now. He rests a lot, and is having more trouble with balance. We feel like the time is getting near.