Spencer

Although you may not be able to adopt this dog, you can help us care for him while he is in foster care! Even a donation of $5 will help us with vet care, food, etc.

5/26 I wanted to give you an update on Spencer, he is up to almost 70 lbs. and had a good check up when he went to the vet's last week.

I took him to the beach this weekend and boy did he have a good time exploring, he was a little uneasy at first about how the rocks felt on his feet but he had his sea legs about him in no time. He did sample a little bit of "sea food" crab, and some sea weed..... yucchh!! He waded in ankle deep and decided that was far enough for him.

He had a fun afternoon playing with my daughter's tea-cup Chihuahua and the Bichon that lives next door.

He really enjoys sun bathing on the deck, but once is gets to warm he retreats indoors to the couch.

He helped me mow the lawn by following me the entire time I was in the backyard, and watching me from the front door while I mowed the front, I'm sure he was just making sure I was doing a good job.

He is such a loyal friend, when I am home I go nowhere without him, whether I choose to or not !! ,as I am writing this he is asleep at my feet.

He will make someone a wonderful companion.

4/20 Spencer gained 7 lbs. !!! The vet took out his stitches and looked at his neck. He got a clean bill of health, she did go over in detail his pathology report and told me what to look for in the event that his cancer spreads. The thyroid carcinoma has a very high spread and repeat rate. I will be taking him back in a month to check his weight. Over all good news, and a much better quality of life for Spencer.

4/16 Spencer is amazing, you would never know that he just under went major surgery. I picked him up Wednesday afternoon and by Thursday he was sleeping through the night and back on solid food. He is eating three meals a day and treats in between. He has started picking up the dog toys and bringing them to me when ever I come home. I have been letting him outside on his own in the back yard and yesterday I saw him> running !! He is getting a bit itchy where they shaved his neck and I have had to correct him a few times about scratching. He does not like getting in trouble, all though that's about the only thing I've had to reprimand him about. He is getting a little pushy when it comes to my attention, It's usually a game between him and Tonka as to who can get the closest to me. He is going to the Vet on Friday to get his stitches out.

4/8 Our vet called to let us know that Spencer's surgery went very well, no complications, and it was a "vascular" tumor, which means the jugular vein wasn't involved, nor were any other major vessels (that's one of the things we were concerned about). He said most dogs will do very well post-op, but his prognosis will have to wait until the pathology comes back. He may be able to go home as soon as tomorrow. And even MORE GOOD NEWS, He's gained FIVE pounds since he was there last week!

4/3 After consulting with a specialist it has been decided to proceed with surgery for Spencer. It was a tough decision for us but his quality of life right now is OK but without the surgery the cancer is going to reek havoc on his body and his quality of life will change very quickly. This surgery has a very high success rate and Spencer will have the chance to improve his quality of life, and gain back some weight.

Spencer will be spending the next few days relaxing at his foster home before surgery on Tuesday.

Spencer needs your prayers to get him through surgery but his surgery will also be a very costly one so any donations no matter how small or large are very gladly accepted.

Spencer's story is a very sad one, he has been living in a kennel for a couple of months now because his owner is hospitalized and unable to care for him. The stress of living in a kennel is starting to take its toll on Spencer and he really needs to be living in a home environment. In addition to this Spencer has recently being diagnosed with thyroid carcinoma, a likely fatal condition. He may only have a few months to live, medication can help treat this condition in some dogs and may help keep him comfortable for some time. However he is not being treated at the kennel and we really need to get him into a foster home so we can get him on treatment so that he does not die in the kennel.

We realize this is a very difficult situation for anyone to commit to as a foster or adoptive home but we don't want to see this senior boy live out his last days in a kennel environment. Please consider opening your home to this boy.

Spencer has lived with other dogs and cats in the past and if good with both. He is house broken and crate trained.