Nooo, My Little Jack Russell Has Cancer!

"Your dog has cancer and his leg will have to be amputated."

How panicked I was when I heard those words from our vet. No, my little Jack Russell, who had walked two miles a day with me for years, could not lose his leg. Our walks could not end.

I was stunned. I knew Domino (we called him that because of two dots behind his ears that resembled two dots on a domino) had a knot on the side of his leg as big as a golf ball, but I had assumed it could be easily removed. I could not bare the thought of my little beloved friend losing his precious right leg.

"Can't you just cut the growth off?" I said to the vet.

"No, their legs have little meat on them and, if we cut the knot off, his
wound would not heal" was the reply.

I put him in my car and started driving home. It was like I was in shock. Deep inside I knew the doctor was right, but the sadness I felt told me that we would get a second opinion. Later, a third.

The diagnosis was the same from all three doctors, and worse, the prognosis. "The leg will have to be amputated or the cancer may get him within six months."

The doctor assured us that he could lead a normal life after his limb was removed. He meant that for reassurance, but I could find nothing reassuring about cutting my great friend's leg off. It did not prevent our feelings of fear, uncertainty, disbelief, sadness, and grief that overwhelmed us at one time or another in the few weeks after the cancer was diagnosed, the amputation, and Domino's recovery efforts.

The operation was scheduled for ten days later. That meant that we had ten days to worry, to cry at times, and to feel unbelievable consternation about the upcoming procedure. Were we doing the right thing having his leg amputated?

How much pain would he have to go through? Would he be able to enjoy walking again? As one of my friends said, "why don't you just put him to sleep?"

"Put him to sleep!"As all dog lovers know, your dog becomes a member of your family. They become almost like children in your house. You will do anything for them within financial reason. We certainly were not going to "just put him to sleep."

The day came for the operation. One of the most haunting things I have ever experienced was the look on his face when the doctor took him from us and began walking to his operating room area. Domino looked back with this indescribable look on his face that I can still see today. "What are they going to do with me" he seemed to be fearfully saying.

We were really surprised when the doctor said, "come back tomorrow to get him." What? Tomorrow? That can't possibly be.

But it was. We returned the next day, the doctor put him on the floor and the little rascal started running to us with that one front leg hitting the floor over and over in rapid steps.

The doctor gave us pain medication for him and we drove Domino home. He had a tough weekend of pain and we had to rush him back to the doctor twice to help him. But he made it through and eight days later, the bandage came off. Amazingly he was well.

It has been almost two years since he lost his leg. Though he now walks with a limp but he still can run as fast as ever. He and I don't walk as far as we once did, but we still enjoy our walks and he still enjoys the wonderful smells he experiences as he sniffs along the walkway.

As we had been preparing for this ordeal, I turned to the internet to learn as much as I could about leg amputation in dogs. I learned that there are many dogs that have lost their legs and most of them recover quite nicely. I also learned that cancer is the number one killer of dogs ten years of age and older. I had never even thought that dogs could get cancer and was surprised at the number of dogs that do.

Yes, the amputation was a trying experience for us, but little Domino made it through like a brave little dog. Thank goodness we did not "just put him to sleep."

Glenn Wilkes is a dog owner in Florida. He has authored a book about his experiences with Domino's amputation including his frantic search for other opinions, his varied feelings that came over him at the time, and suggests some important "lessons in life" that came from the ordeal. Please visit Domino's website, http://www.ajackrussellnameddomino.com for kindle book information.