I’ve just gotta share this story about my friend Maruk, from Cincinnati, Ohio.

Last December, Maruk joined the Tripawd club because of bone cancer. He had chemo, and all was good until late February, when he let out a loud cough.

Sadly, X-rays showed “blurry flakes of snow on a gray and black background,” his Mama Karen said.

Karen says in her April 1st Forums post, “All we kept hearing was how quickly the cancer spreads once it is in the lungs. Panic set in. We didn’t want our buddy in pain, so we began discussing euthanasia.

Thank goodness we snapped out of panic mode! Occasionally, we hear “the Cough”, but he is nowhere near ready to give up on life.”

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My people would like to thank the nice folks at Ruffwear for sending me their new Web Master harness to try out.

And they’d like to tell you that it is now available for purchase right here at tripawds.com! They’ve been using the Web Master to help me get around since I became a canine amputee. And we all agree the new harness has various improvements.

Keep reading to see our product review and the demonstration video we produced. (more…)

The story of Bella is an inspiring one that will just have to wait, for it inspired a line of products that I just have to tell you about.

When we were contacted by the owner of Bella’s Pain Relief Products, we offered to review the Hot-n-Cold Pain Relief Pack for tripawd lovers everywhere.

After finally receiving our new camera – long story – we are excited to present our review complete with demonstration video … and even more excited to announce that we have partnered with Bella’s so you can now save 10% on every purchase.

Read on for the complete review and to learn how you can save on some great products just by using our “TRIPAWDS” coupon code!

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Join the Tripawd Forum discussion on this post

Many times, pawrents aren’t sure if they should go ahead with an amputation on their senior dog. Of course all situations are very different, and there are no right answers. Lots of things about the dog’s existing health issues need to be taken into consideration.

But when a senior dog with osteosarcoma is otherwise in fair health, amputation can immediately alleviate the pain from bone cancer. And despite surgery recovery time and a bit of a learning curve, living out life on three legs can be a true gift for older dogs.

“Its all about growing old together,” says my friend Sasha, dog mom of my special girl Lalla. “A senior dog needs gentle exercise . . . and a pain free life in the ‘golden years’ is the greatest gift you can give to your senior dog.”

Daisy is a great example.

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When a dog goes on chemo, a lot of pawrents wonder if they have to use caution when touching or petting their beloved furry friend. My pawrents wondered if I would glow in the dark! Well, I’m here to tell you, fear not, dogs on chemo are nothing to be afraid of. Sure, you have to use a little care when handling those special chemo pills, but that’s about it. We aren’t radioactive, and we won’t cause your TV to act funny either!

When I was first diagnosed with osteosarcoma, my Mom and Dad didn’t want to put me through chemotherapy, mostly because it was a six hour drive to the hospital, and, since doctors said that I only had a few months left even with chemo, we didn’t want any of our precious time to be taken up with poking and prodding and long drives.

We took our chances, hit the road, and beat the odds, but now, fifteen months later, the cancer devil has paid us another visit. We are prepared to beat the odds again, only this time, we’re going to do it with the help of something called “The Metronomic Protocol.”

Treating Osteosarcoma with Chemotherapy
Most of you know that chemotherapy can help dogs beat cancer. Usually, chemotherapy drugs are given in high doses every couple of weeks, and administered in an injection of some sort. Most of us aren’t affected by chemo drugs like people are; if the drugs are given correctly. And if a dog does experience side effects, the oncologists can lessen the doses and lengthen the treatment time. Our friends at Bone Cancer Dogs have a lot of good information about traditional chemotherapy for osteosarcoma.

When I got the bad news a few weeks ago, my Mom and Dad couldn’t rest without trying something that might give me more time on this earth. Dad did some research on different chemo treatments, and learned about the Metronomic Protocol. It’s chemo in a pill, and it can be done anywhere . . . even in an RV, on the road! It seemed too good to be true. At home chemotherapy?

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I don’t care much for big cities. But I was certainly glad to meet Arnie Costell – owner of Watson’s Pet Products – when we were in Los Angeles. Arnie loved his senior dog Watson so much, he developed the Bottom’s Up Leash to help him walk.

Watson was nearly 18 years old at the time and had developed a condition that seriously affected his mobility. The Bottom’s Up Leash enabled Arnie to walk Watson with ease for both of them.

I figured this could come in quite handy for rear leg amputees like my friend Sami. So we met with Arnie to learn about the leash, then hooked up with Sami to give it a try.

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Oh, you humans and your silly ways of thinking. You’re always talking about the past and the future, but how many of you are experiencing the moment you and your dog are in right now?

All week long my Mom’s been saying dumb thinks like “I shouldda done this…or that..” She seems to think she did something wrong these last 14 and a half months, and that’s why my cancer came back. She was “shouldding” all over herself, until she got this story about coping with canine cancer, sent to her from my friend Moose’s dad, Joel.

An Excerpt from “On Fear”
© Doug Koktavy

. . . I realized my fear of the disease was the fuel that was being used against me. Devilishly clever, my biggest enemy was not the disease, but me. I was the power source being used to generate the very negative energy destroying my own being and wasting a special day with my beloved dog.

This paradoxical contradiction was glaring. I had thought the growing presence of disease was causing my mounting fear. In fact, just the opposite was occurring. My daily increasing fear was causing the disease to grow and become more powerful. I decided it was high time to start working for me and the Beez, not against us.

If your pawrents are coping with your cancer, then you need to take them to Doug’s website. He has a lot of beautiful words there that will make them happy and sad, but most importantly, will get them to live every precious moment with you to the fullest, instead of acting like a silly human and fretting about your health. Good luck!

Thank you everyone for all of your kind, loving and supportive words this past week. My Mom and Dad are so much happier these days thanks to you. They are also very optimistic, and are looking into ways to help me kick this tumor thing’s butt (do tumors have butts?). Just so you know; they have a plan.

A few nights ago, the three of us decided a few things. First, we decided that under no circumstances would I undergo any kind of surgery again. Eeew! Who wants that?! Second, we want to look at options for keeping me as healthy as can be.

As soon as we decided all this, we left my Grandma and Grandpa’s place in Los Angeles, and arrived in Santa Fe, New Mexico yesterday (we’ll be living nearby for the next couple of months). Tomorrow, we are going to meet Dr. Kelly at the Vet Cancer Care Clinic, to learn all about oral chemotherapy and maybe some other kind of easygoing treatment plan that we can do on the road.

Another vet visit isn’t my idea of fun; I’d rather be swimming! But if a few pokes and prods tomorrow means that I’ll get lots more play time later on, well then I guess I’ll go along with it!

Ever since my people started giving me the Synflex glucosamine supplement, I’ve been feeling great! They have even cut back on my Metacam nonsteroidal anti-inflamatory medicine since I started using it.

They noticed such an improvement in my mobility and endurance with Synflex that we went to the Synflex factory to pick up a few extra bottles back when we were in Florida. And the kind folks there were nice enough to donate a couple bottles which we raffled off at the 2 Dogs 2000 Mile cookout to support the Big Dog’s walk from Austin to Boston with Hudson and Murphy.

Whether you have three or four legs, I recommend Synflex for arthritis pain. Or even two legs … they make it for people too! OK, I guess they did that first and discovered it works so well on pets that they added a beef flavor!