Just called the vet: the mass in his liver was a hematoma, which is a devil of a thing to try to find information on when it’s in the liver (apparently it’s most common, or at least most commonly posted about, in dogs’ ears). Basically, it’s a collection of blood outside a blood vessel — probably not a good sign when it occurs in a major organ, but, on the other hand, it might’ve been yet another side effect of the colitis that apparently knocked Nigel’s entire system to hell. (Apparently hematomas are often caused by trauma, and given the fact that Nigel hasn’t been hit by a car or taken any body blows, I’m guessing that maybe the colitis either caused or aggravated the hematoma. Maybe?)
And at least it’s not cancer. We don’t have to operate, either — just recheck his liver enzymes again in a couple of weeks, to be sure everything is continuing back on the path to normal.
Edit: Or did the vet say “hepatoma”? That would make more sense, because I can’t figure out otherwise how his liver would have been bruised. I’ll ask when I take him in next Wednesday.
Actually, what I hate is when I leave my mobile phone at home all day, because that almost guarantees that someone will call me (and it won’t be someone out in Arizona with out-of-date records, trying to reach the person who had my number three years ago; seriously, this happens at least once a month). This time, it was the vet: Nigel’s biopsy results are back.
Of course, I didn’t get home until after the vet closed, so I’ll have to wait until tomorrow to call. Still, I’m trying not to freak out by reminding myself that the vet sounded upbeat in the voicemail. Surely, if it were really bad news — cancer or something — he would’ve used an appropriately solemn voice. At least, I hope so. . . .
Photo taken by Cindy Sheffield Michaels, who is obviously a much better photographer than I am.
In the meantime, Nigel seems to be doing pretty well, though his belly is still pretty bald from where they shaved him for the ultrasound. I tried to photograph the bald spot, but discovered that it was almost impossible to get a picture that was clear enough that you’d know what you’re seeing and get a feel for how very, very exposed his skin is, without at the same time giving you an eyeball full of his rather more personal bits. Not that I think Nigel would care, particularly, but posting shots of beagle tadger* just seemed a bit . . . much.
Anyway, unusually placed bald patches aside, he seems chipper enough. The only strange habit he’s developed lately involves his toy — currently, the brand-new electronic-sound-chipped frog I bought him last week. He’s always been wont to carry his toys with him on walks, and similarly likely to bay at other dogs he sees from a distance (otherwise, they may not notice him, you see?). The past couple of days, he’s started combining both activities into one: giving his, “Hello, I’m over here, do you see me?” bay while still holding the stuffed frog in his mouth. The toy acts as a kind of a mute, as for a trumpet, and the effect is just . . . bizarre.
Probably not diagnostically significant, though. At least, I hope not.
*** ***
*Much to my surprise, there is actually a fuel efficiency gadget out there called the Tadger; inexplicably, their FAQ does not address the first question that popped into my mind: why on earth would they name their product after a British slang term for an element of male anatomy? One might make the case that one of the charms of British English is its fondness for lots of different penile nicknames, making it difficult to find a product name that would not potentially evoke snickers; one might also be justified in noting that the Tadger (heh) product does at least appear to be cyclindrical, so maybe it was intentional; thirdly, one might also point out that the ToolTips box for the “Independent Testing” link on their Web page misspells it as “Independant” when you hover your mouse over the link, so who cares what they meant because they obviously can’t spell. (Go back.)
Well, we won’t know the results of the biopsy for a week, but the vet said that Nigel’s liver enzymes had improved quite a bit since his last bloodwork on Friday. He’s to continue on antibiotics for another cycle, while we await the labwork.
Thus, it looks as if Cushing’s is probably not what’s going on (assuming he continues to improve), and that his heart is not of any more concern than it’s been for the past year. The distended stomach we saw on his X-ray last week was presumably either from systemic irritation or, possibly, the mass in his liver that they found on the ultrasound. The vet sounded upbeat about that, even, saying that they had to biopsy it to be sure, but that there was a fairly good chance it would be benign. (I’m trying not to think about the possibility that he just didn’t want me to have hysterics in reception before there was any hard evidence that it was hepatitis, or some other liver problem.)
Better safe than sorry, I know. It’s just been a difficult day — for Nigel, for obvious reasons, and for me because I worried about him all day. He’s still not entirely happy, because the biopsy site seems sore. I’ll have to check whether I can give him half an aspirin with his antibiotics. (He also didn’t eat all day, until he got home. The vet tech said he refused the food I brought for him, which I suppose means he was pretty keyed up. For that matter, though, I didn’t feel much like eating, either, so I guess I can understand.)
Apologies for the inelegant writing tonight. It’s only just past 7:00, and I am so exhausted I could go to sleep right now.
The ultrasound found a mass on Nigel’s liver. They’re biopsying it right now.
Fuck.
Nigel’s vet took the blood and urine samples for analysis today; his ultrasound is scheduled for tomorrow, which means that we will (I devoutly hope) know something definitive soon about his heart, stomach, and any possible Cushing-type tumors on his pituitary and/or adrenal glands. I will also have spent approximately the equivalent of one mortgage payment on vet bills — and I still haven’t heard anything on how much of my own little medical adventure earlier will be covered by insurance, so the fiscal fun may only just be starting. Ah, well; one does what one must do. I’ve also started the year off on the right foot by being out of the office for significant chunks of the first two days. Just super.
On a brighter note, the GPS system my parents got for me arrived today. Hurrah! No more getting horribly lost while trying to find places, or, as is more common for me, while trying to find my way back home after going somewhere unusual. My parents had lent me theirs this autumn, so I could test it out, and it was definitely a lifesaver. Of course, now that I’ve got my very own, I’ve spent a happy few minutes setting my home address and setting up a few favorite destinations so they’ll be preset — and then I discovered that you can change the language settings, for both printed and spoken instructions. So, yeah, my GPS system now speaks German. This will mean one of two things:
or . . . (You forgot there was another option, didn’t you?)
