Monroe's final days and second opinion

We adopted Monroe in January of 2012 and Monroe had only been seperated from us once when he had surgey to remove a small mass back in 2019.

The photo at top is from October 28th. Monroe was not able to bear any weight on his hind leg so we took him to an animal hospital. The vet there provided  us with a list of possibilities as far as diagnosis and Osteosarcoma was one of them. The  x - rays they took showed Monroe's bone was dense and we were informed it could break at any time. 

At that time, the vet suggested Humane Euthanasia. My husband said yes.

I want to be honest with you about  euthanasia. It is something I always feared  for our dogs and something I was not prepared for. I refused and said "NO, I'm not ready!"  We took Monroe home on palliative care. We had him on pain medications and I spent a portion of the week loving on Monroe while seeking out a 2nd opinion.

During this time, Monroe was still able to eat, drink and potty outside. He was not able to bear weight on his leg. In a few days time, it appeared a small mass  alongside his leg was growing and the muscle wasting. Even though Monroe's appetite was great, he was losing weight. He had an occasional cough and was  more clingy. I would lay him in his bed on the floor and I would wake and he would be snuggling against me.

I called the local vet's office and explained the situation of wanting a 2nd opinion and was informed they could not work Monroe in until November 15th. I called a vet office in a town adjacent to us and was informed their vets were busy in surgeries and would have to contact me when they had time. 

While waiting, I read about Osteosarcoma and none of it was promising. Many articles mentioned 2 months lifespan without therapy and  6 - 9 months lifespan with amputation and chemotherapy.

Another day went by and I heard nothing back from the entities I had contacted. Monroe, while wanting to go outside more, appeared to be having more difficulty getting up on his three working legs. He was also licking himself more and I was beginning to worry the medications  he was on was not easing his pain

On November 2nd, I started searching on-line. I found the vet who took care of Monroe's from 2012 - 2020  was now working at an Emergency & Specialty Hospital in another state. Their website listed that the place was certified by Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society (VECCS). I immediately contacted them and we packed Monroe in the vehicle and transported him there shortly after my conversation. 

Monroe was able to walk outside and potty. While waiting in the lobby, he saw a dog coming in the hospital and barked a greeting to them. Monroe then sat on my lap in the waiting room. We filled out the paperwork and a nurse came out into the lobby and took Monroe vitals.   

We had to  wait and hour  or two and then they took us back to the examination room. The vet who observed Monroe was the manger at the Emergency &  Speciality Hospital. He reviewed the x-rays we had brought along with us and examined Monroe and told us Monroe had aggressive Osteosarcoma.  He informed us at any time Monroe's leg could break and even injecting a needle into Monroe's leg may break it. The vet also discussed Monroe's wasting, mass and age and we talked about what may occur if we were to have his leg amputated and he go through chemo. As you may have guessed, the vet also suggested humane euthanasia.

We were aware that it was possible the cancer had already spread and if Monroe survived the surgery, we were told it would be a lot of in and out of the hospital with  chemo. 

I had received a second opinion and did not feel Monroe would want to spend his remaining days or months in and out of the hospital so agreed to euthanasia. 

After we brought Monroe's body home, I laid him out in his bed for the other dogs to come in and see. For me, this is the most difficult time as they all react differently and you can observe that they appear as lost as we do with him being gone.

As many of you know having a dog greet you when you return home is the most awesome experience as they are always so happy to see you. Having Monroe not be here when we walk in the door is difficult.

It has now been 5 days since Monroe's passing. All dogs are more clingy and we are all missing him. While we grieve, we are hanging onto the exceptional memories. We have many images of him that bring us great comfort.