Sometime on March 2018. My husband told me that Twister had jumped on top of the patio table last night and released a loud yelp. After carefully checking twister’s foot my husband determined that twister had broken a nail; however, it was not bleeding. So, he assumed that Twister was all right. Twister was fine for about a month. Then, around April 6, he started limping.

We carefully inspected his right foot and leg again. Twister did not indicate that he hurt when we touched him. But we still suspected something was wrong because he would occasionally limp and sometimes would not put any weight on the right leg. We Suspected That Twister had hurt himself when he sneakily  tore a large hole on the back end of our tool shed. I suspect he was trying to get to an animal that had snuck into the shed.

The next day when we examined his leg, I noticed that an area on Twister’s right wrist was slightly swollen, and he was still limping.  His injury concerned me because a few years ago one of our cats developed a limp. We hadn’t noticed that a very small lump had appeared on one of its hind legs. We took our cat to a vet who told us that she had a tumor and that it was malignant. There was not much we could do except to keep her comfortable. The days went by and the tumor kept growing. One day our little girl let us know the tumor was hurting. We had to euthanize her. This was a heartbreaking experience.

May 1, 2018, we took Twister to the vet to check his right foot. (Because of my fibromyalgia pain, I had not gone with Bob when he took Twister for his regular checkups. This time, even though my pain level was a six, I tagged along.) Our veterinarian, Dr. Jason Doolittle, checked Twister thoroughly, but I kept telling my husband and our vet that I noticed there was a small difference in size between his front legs. The right leg appeared to be swollen.

Neither my husband nor our doctor noticed the swelling. Besides, Twister didn’t indicate that he hurt when the doctor touched his foot and leg. Since I was very concerned about the swollen area, Dr. Doolittle decided to take some x-rays. When the x-rays were ready, he asked us if we wanted to look at them. “Of course!” I answered.

We went to another room where he showed us the x-rays on a computer monitor screen. As we saw the pictures roll by, Dr. Doolittle noticed the swollen area that I had been talking about. However, my heart sank to my stomach because I was right. There was a small mass in an inoperable area that could be a tumor.  I hoped it was benign. Twister could lose his leg if the tumor was malignant. As these thoughts rolled through my mind, I heard Dr. Doolittle say that we wouldn’t know anything about the swollen area until we got the results from the radiologist, and that he  would get in touch with us as soon as he received the results.

Dr. Doolittle was more than willing to answer any of our questions, especially mine. I apologized for taking so much of his time, but I told him that I was worried about Twister.  He understood because he has a dog. Incidentally, all the members of the staff at the VCA clinic love Twister. He gets along with everybody.

The detailed examination of Twister was over. As we took him to our SUV, I was discouraged, frightened, and worried. Could the small mass be cancer? That was my concern. I didn’t want Twister to lose his leg. Thoughts about surgery, radiation, cancer pills, and chemotherapy ran through my mind.

That afternoon, I pretended to be okay, but I wasn’t. I played with Twister and the cats, tried to write, ate supper, and eventually went to bed. I had a lot of trouble falling asleep and staying asleep. Waiting for the radiology reports wreaked havoc on my body that evening. I’m sure my husband was also worried about Twister, but he didn’t say anything. He’s the quiet type.

May 2, 2018. The following morning,  Dr. Doolittle called us early because the radiologist needed more information.  So, Bob took Twister to the clinic. I couldn’t go with him. My fibromyalgia pain was close to a 7.  With tears in my eyes, I watched Bob take Twister to the clinic for more x-rays. This time they also did a needle biopsy. Now we are waiting for the  results which will come in  1 to 3 days. In the meantime, my husband is giving Twister his pain medication and we are watching him carefully.