Up early on Friday morning, we were back on the road to Albuquerque to take Sue Bee in for surgery. None of her prognoses were great at that point, but surgery seemed the best way to go if she was “healthy” enough to get through the prerequisites. We dropped her off, and waited patiently for updates…

Update 1: Ultrasound had confirmed that the mass was only attached to the spleen, and not the liver. No other masses seen during the ultrasound. Despite some heart disease (common in older dogs) her heart was strong enough for surgery.

Update 2: Exploratory surgery hadn’t revealed anything (like metastasis that couldn’t be seen on the ultrasound) that would make a splenectomy a bad course of treatment.

Update 3: Surgery went perfectly. Sue Bee had her entire spleen removed. The doctor said she woke up and warmed up from anesthesia quickly and easily. She’d need to be observed for two nights by the hospital, as some dogs have an unexplained reaction to splenectomy that affects the heart.

The amount of messages we received (and Sue Bee received) were overwhelming that day. Friends and family continuing to pour out their support, their love and their concern for her and for us. Even the vet gave us words of encouragement throughout the process. We are still so thankful for our tribe and community. You guys truly love well.

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As of today (Thursday) Sue Bee is continuing to heal from surgery. She’s on restricted activity and exercise for the next three weeks – thank goodness the pain meds keep her sleepy, or else keeping her still and quiet would be pretty difficult. If you’ve ever met Sue Bee, you know.

We won’t know Sue Bee’s final prognosis for a few more days – they sent her mass out for a biopsy to determine if it is benign, cancer, or something else. But, we feel confident that whatever comes our way, we will love our dog well, as she has loved us well, and she’ll continue to live the best life we can provide for her.

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– Adam + Kristin