We have lost the battle

 

Eyes of Fire Glyn Taff
11/06/2007-16/11/2013

Our pack lost its topdog.
Taff lost his fight against cancer and we had to say goodbye.

Dear Taffie, you were the best dog-friend I could have ever wished for!
Thank you for being you.
You are back with Indy now.

I miss you so much...

 

Taff chemo 3

Two days ago Taff has gotten his third chemo therapy.

He did not like it at the vets but he stayed close to me until it was done.

Until now Taff is doing fine, he misses his `sharp edge` and acts calmer than ever before but he is still with us and I hope there will be a time when he can totally be himself again!

We don`t know how long we can keep Taff with us, I can`t get used to the idea of him being so sick..

But this chemo gives a litte bit of hope,

so far he made it until my birthday and Lucille`s birthday which was very important to both of us.

I try to enjoy every day with my Taffie but sometimes emotions get in the way and I can only cry.

Why?

 

 

A picture of Taff, Falko and Taz.
Falko looks bigger than Taff but he is sitting more straigt up.

Two days after Taff his second chemo therapy

Picture taken 18/09/2013
Taff is doing ok.
He is eating as usual, but is somewhat less active.
His body temperature is normal and he doesn`t show any signs of sickness.
We wanted Taff to take it easy and that is exactly what he is doing.
             


Taff and his second chemo therapy

On monday 23/09/2013 Taff went to visit the vet for his second chemo therapy.
He was a little more nervous than the first time but it all went well and he did not get sick.
Let`s hope he doesn`t have one bad day this time, but for now he is fine.
I try to keep him as calm as possible..

Sheltie Tibo`s first birthday

On September 6th our little Shetland Sheepdog Tibo celabrated his first birthday and of course there are pictures!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One week after Taff his first chemo therapy

Taff only had one bad day the last week, one very bad day but all the other days he was fine.
He is happy and lively, if we did not know better we would think he is a very healthy dog!

Day 4

Yesterday Taff had a real bad day, he was not feeling well at all.
This mornig he did wag his tail when he saw me and he walks around much happier today!
Let`s hope this will continue untill he is completely back!
Later today we will have the results from his blood by the vet.

Day 3 after Taff his chemo therapy

Yesterday Taff was still very happy and lively, but in the evening he did not want to eat..
He ate someting but in the morning I found out he had soiled his crate..
Taff is obviously not feeling well :-(
Of course I have contacted the vet and he will examine Taff in a couple of hours.
My poor boy..

Day 1 after Taff`s first chemo therapy

Taff is doing great, his temperature is fine, he is not feeling sick, he is eating like normal, he is just being happy! I am so proud of my sweet boy, lets hope he stays this way!

A glimmer of hope

We know that Taff his cancer can not be cured.
We`ve heard about chemo therapy for animals before but nobody was very positive about it.
Untill the day we had the plumber at our house who told us about his dog who did very well with the chemo therapy and lived a happy 4 years extra!
Of course we have to be realistic, not every dog gets trough all of this in a good way and there are no guarantees given, but Taff is not ready to give up his life so I wanted to give it a try.

This morning I took my Taffie to our appointment with a vet who knows all about chemo therapy and Taff had his first..

This chemo therapy is a last glimmer of hope on a bit more time together.
We can only hope!

Very bad news

Taff his bloodtest came back but no strange things were found.
We carefully started to get hope again, maybe it was not so bad after all..
But we still had to wait for the results from the biopsy...

On the day we had to let Indy go, the vet told us that Taff was suspected of lymph node cancer.
Indescribable grief took over.

The discovery...

At the end of June (only a few days before we left on holiday to Austria) I felt a big lump in Taff his neck.
Of course I was shocked and asked the vet what this could be.
She could not give an answer right away, but we should come back in two weeks (when our vacation was over).

 

 

During our holiday we were worried about our Taffie because he continued to keep diarrhea.

He was clearly not in his best condition although he kept having fun!

So when we came home, we returned the vet and she took blood and a biopsy from one of the lumps, the other lymph node in his neck was now also swollen. His tonsils were also enlarged.
The biopsy would be examined and we had to wait for the results...


In loving memory of Indy

To watch my In loving memory of Indy video click this link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJORVehL9LQ

Indiana fan e Rispinge
Indy
18/02/2002-20/07/2013

Tot ons grote verdriet hebben wij afscheid genomen van onze Border Collie Indy.
Ze had al jaren last van epilepsie en EPI, maar sinds oktober hebben we heel erg met haar lopen dokteren en sukkelen.
Ze ging van slecht naar slechter naar toch een klein beetje beter.
Steeds hou je je vast aan die ene stohalm...
Vlak voor wij op vakantie gingen ging het zo slecht met Indy dat we dachten dat het einde daar was.
De dierenarts wilde toch graag haar bloed laten onderzoeken en Indy moest daar blijven om een infuus te krijgen anders viel er niets meer te testen, zo slecht ging het.
Indy kwam heel vrolijk en opgewekt thuis, wauw!
Wat waren we blij, zo kon ze nog lekker mee naar Oostenrijk!
Maar helaas ging het steeds een beetje slechter, natuurlijk leefde ze op van de Oostenrijkse watertjes, maar buiten de wandelingen was ze niet veel meer waard.
We konden haar voeren zoveel we wilden, ze bleef maar afvallen..
Ook had ze geen spieren meer over, vreselijk om te zien maar wanneer is het tijd?
Toen ze op vrijdagochtend niet wilde eten wist ik het zeker, ze heeft opgegeven en dat was ook het beeld wat ze de hele dag liet zien. Alles was haar teveel en ze keek met heel trieste ogen.
Vandaar dat we op zaterdag met haar naar de dierenarts zijn gegaan, voor de laatste keer...
Haar zoon Taff was erbij.

We zullen onze lieve Indy nooit vergeten, ze kwam bij ons op vier jarige leeftijd, een heerlijke open, vriendelijke en vrolijke hond. Indy vond echt alles leuk en kon met iedereen overweg.
Ze had een enorme will to please, ze had plezier in alles wat we met haar deden. Schapen vond ze niet echt interessant maar toch had ze een flinke dosis werklust als het aankwam op agility of frisbee of gewoon voetballen.
In 2007 hebben we een nestje met Indy gefokt en daar zijn 3 schatten van pups uit geboren.
Ze was gelukkig met haar zoon Taff maar ook als ze haar dochters terugzag wist ze wie ze waren en de aller eerste keer begon ze gelijk weer te moederen.
Helaas ging haar gezondheid achteruit en moesten we de echte sporten links laten liggen.
Gelukkig haalde Indy ook veel plezier uit de wandelingen en met water maakten we haar altijd gelukkig.

Het is moeilijk te bevatten dat Indy nu niet meer in ons leven is, ze heeft ons zoveel gegeven..
Maar zij heeft nu rust en dat verdiende ze.