Well, here we are, less that a year later, and Shelby is being operated on once more.
I have two dogs, they are brother and sister, named Joey and Shelby. Like all breeds, dogs are predisposed to certain medical issues, and for Shelties it happens to be complications with the gall bladder.
About 2 1/2 years ago we discovered that Joey has what they call gall stones (think kidney stones, except in your gall bladder). To try and resolve this issue he was put on several different types of medications that while they have made him better have made him lose a lot of weight and not be as active as he once was (but the seizure-like episodes have stopped).
Recently we discovered that Shelby has a similar issue and that it is also affecting her bladder. To try and figure out what exactly was going on, she had to have an ultrasound (like what they use to see the fetus in a pregnant woman). The ultrasound showed that Shelby had some strange (and potentially cancerous) growth on her bladder.
As I type this, she is currently undergoing surgery to have this growth removed, and hope that she will recover and that this will resolve most, if not all, of the issue.
I'm surprising composed as I am writing this, which is strange because I spent a good deal of the morning before Shelby left for her operation with me clinging to her and crying into her fur.
I love that dog so much. She is my baby girl. She is my favourite and I am her's.
Shelby and I are kindred spirits. We're both loud, stubborn, tough and bossy, but a sweetheart at the core.
She is strong, and hopefully she (and I) will get through this.
I am so terrified that I will get a call saying that I no longer have a little girl anymore. That those tear filled hugs from this morning may be the last ones I'll ever be able to give her.
To conclude (before I start to cry), I will leave you all with a quote by John Grogan (author of Marley and Me)
“Such short little lives our pets have to spend with us, and they spend most of it waiting for us to come home each day.
It is amazing how much love and laughter they bring into our lives and even how much closer we become with each other because of them.”
