Kobi, our dog-child

(This picture is of Kevin and Kobi when Kev was quite a bit younger. Kobi will be 11 this July.)

Over the last week or so, we noticed that Kobi's belly was taking on a quite rounded look, and didn't feel quite right. It was really tense and hard as a rock. Pretty soon it became evident that something just wasn't right and I made the requisite appointment at the vet. She felt him and agreed that something was going on, and asked us to bring him back the next morning when we could leave him for a more thorough work-up. I had a bad feeling leaving the vet's that afternoon, knowing that we were in for something serious. Sure enough, the next morning's visit confirmed that Kobi had a large mass in his abdomen. When she showed us the Xray, it was obvious even to us, that there was something huge in there that was obliterating everything else that would usually be seen. At that point, the tears and sadness set in, as well as knowing a difficult decision was going to have to be made. The vet told us that we could try and remove the mass - telling us that if it went badly, Kobi wouldn't survive the surgery. Or it could be such an involved tumor, that removing it would be impossible and they would just close him up and let us take him home. Or, best case, it would be a tumor that could be removed and then he would be on the road to recovery. We felt we had no option than to have the surgery and try as best we could to save his life. The idea of losing him (although we know that day will inevitably come) is so wrenching, I still can barely handle it. (We spent a few minutes alone with him thinking that depending on how surgery went it might be the last time we would see him alive. That was a so sad experience. We left him at the clinic and went home to wait.) Barely an hour later, we got the call from the vet's office saying that it WAS a tumor on his spleen, it could all be removed and it was just the best news we could've hoped for. The tumor is amazing!! It was 6.4 pounds, and I hope you're not too squeamish, but just look at this thing!

(This is how it came out of him, a big ball of tissue. The vet then cut it open and exposed large pockets of blood the consistency of slightly set up jello.)

That long, thin, dark red part is his spleen and all the rest is tumor. I don't know how it fit in his belly, and especially how everything else in there continued to work so well when they were getting squished. So we got another chance!! Kobi has a LONG incision in his tummy, but has recovered amazingly well. He was pretty groggy and sleepy yesterday when we brought him home, but today he's been more alert. A surgery like that in a person.....well, let's just say, they wouldn't be as chipper as Kobi is. Dogs are amazing.

So we have him home and are nursing him back to health. He is so thin now! He weighed 33 lbs when we took him in. Some of you math whizes can figure out the percentage of body weight he lost, 1/5ish? So would that be the same as a 30lb tumor in a 150lb person? Anyway, he's been through the wringer. Of course, we're not out of the woods. Depending on the pathology report, it will either tell us Kobi will be blessing our lives for a few more years - or it will tell us that we've only bought him some time, but that cancer would win in the end. I hope we have him for some more years, but if not, I hope he makes it til Kevin gets home. I would be really great if he's here when Ryan and Ashley are here in August.

When we had Kobi back at the vet for a check this morning, there was a young man there who was saying goodbye to his friend and buddy as they were having to put his dog down. I know that we will be in that spot sometime. I hope it's not soon. It seems too hard to bear.

(Ditto, Brad)