For over nine months Ozzie had been on a high protein, high fat diet, limiting sugars and carbs to try to ward off the cancer. Well, the flip side of all that protein going in him is that it makes his kidneys work even harder, and now they are full of toxins. Duh! So, at 1:20 PM I left Ozzie in the capable hands of the Vet School professionals for them to put him on fluids for at least 24 hours to flush out the toxins in his kidneys. Then we hope his body will let him eat and process the foods he eats. He's in the ICU for at least a day, and now the house is ever so quiet. Casey called in the early evening with a report that Ozzie is doing well, they're running some things through his GI tract in case he has ulcers. If Ozzie's kidneys continue to be a problem, I understand it can be managed with a change in diet. We'll have to balance the diet for cancer patients with those for renal failure patients and let Ozzie have as many good days he's able to have given his health situation. Casey said he'd call in the morning with an update. It would be nice to have Ozzie home tomorrow, but only if he's ready to come home.

Saturday was sure quiet without a dog around the house. Ozzie spent last night and most of today at the WSU Vet School's Intensive Care Unit getting flushed with fluids. For three days (starting Friday afternoon) he's also getting Famotidine to reduce the acid in his tummy and Sucralfate to prevent the progression and/or formation of ulcers. Oops, this isn't cancer related, so maybe I don't need all these details. At 4 PM we went over to visit Ozzie in the ICU to see how he was doing. Yea, his tail is wagging and there's a bounce back in his step. What a terrific sight that was. We stayed for almost two hours, taking him for a short walk to pee and poop, and then back inside to have fluids while we talked with Casey the vet student assigned to Ozzie and also Ozzie's cancer doctor. We left Ozzie to drip a little longer, and I returned at 7:30 PM to take him home.

Ozzie enjoyed the 10 mile ride home in the back seat of the car; lately he'd been lying down, uninterested in the view from the backseat; but tonight he sat up looking at the sights (road construction!). He's happy to be home. The diet will now change from high protein to a lower protein diet better suited to decreased kidney function. We left the veterinary hospital with samples of Hill's Prescription diet k/d and Purina NF (both in cans) and a bag of the dry Purina NF. Tonight he's eaten two small meals of the k/d and snacked on a few small handfuls of the dry NF. He is drinking and asking frequently to go outside for bathroom trips. I hope he'll wake me if he needs to go out during the night.

So, now Ozzie, the free dog from our local Humane Society, is undergoing chemo treatments for lymphosarcoma and also being treated for decreased kidney function. One point I am trying to make is that even if a dog has cancer, the dog may also have other ailments, which can be missed or disguised because of the chemo side effects or the effects of the cancer. I am hopeful we have things better under control now and Ozzie can have many more happy and interesting days.

Sunday was a normal day, how nice to have one again. Ozzie is eating very well; we've moved to a diet more kidney friendly than the high protein one for dogs with cancer. Ozzie seems happy, but he is sleeping a lot; his body is going through a lot, so I'm sure he needs his rest. We have a new set of pills for his kidney condition in addition to the prednisone he gets in the early rounds of chemo. The weather is still very hot (mid-90s), and once Ozzie is stronger we'll go for brief walks in the evening when it's cooler. It's still "one day at a time," and Ozzie had a good one today.

Monday was another good day; it's nice to have them. Ozzie is eating well, almost inhaling his food. He was kind of stinky, so this afternoon I gave him a bath; the good part is that he is now nice and clean, but with Ozzie's thin body he was very chilled when he came out of the tub. I dry him with a towel as much as I can, but I had to use a hair dryer to dry him and keep him warm. The weather here is still very hot, so the A/C in the house must have chilled him too much. If I bathe him in the hot weather I'll be more careful not to chill him. Tomorrow morning we're off to the WSU Vet School for the next chemo, assuming Ozzie's blood can handle the chemo injection (Cyclophosphamide) for the second week of the Wisconsin Protocol.

Tuesdays are now chemo days; Ozzie ate a good-sized breakfast. His blood test results showed he could have this week's chemo in the protocol: cyclophosphamide. I was given the option of pills to give Ozzie orally at home or an injection there. I took the pills, it got us home sooner. In the afternoon Ozzie wasn't up to eating, though he did eat quite a bit around five o'clock. As the evening progressed Ozzie still turned his nose up at the k/d food, both canned and dry. Maybe after I write today's entry he will decide he's hungry. He's still eating far more than he did last week, so that's an improvement.

Wednesday began with Ozzie still not eating; he didn't eat last evening since his five o'clock meal. He has a "I don't feel good" look on his face that was common after some chemo injections the first time he went through chemo. So, I hope he'll begin to eat as yesterday's drugs pass through. When Ozzie still refused any of his new kidney diet food by the afternoon, I found some cheese "Best Buddy Bits" that are very low protein (and kosher!); the round balls are mostly air, but Ozzie eagerly ate them. So, before I call the WSU Vet School tomorrow to say he's not eating, I cooked some rice at 10 PM and mixed a little chicken it; that he ate eagerly. Next I'll try some rice with the canned k/d. But this is getting to be a real test: is he not eating because he's sick or is he refusing food because it's not to his liking? I wish some things were clearer so I knew the right steps to take.

Thursday was not a good day for Ozzie; he's eaten very little today, much like his behavior of last week. I will call the WSU Vet School in the morning and see if I can bring him in. My guess is his kidneys are not functioning again. Last weekend he spent more than a day in their ICU getting fluids into him. Maybe this time I should learn how to give the subcutaneous fluids at home. Something has to be done to help his kidneys function; his cancer seems so minor in comparison now. Even though Ozzie initially ate the kidney diet food (low in protein, low in phosphorus), it didn't hold his interest for long. Nor is he drinking much water; he trembles, his body is not happy with what's happening.