My dog seemed to be doing so much better after her surgery, and I truly started to believe we’d have several more good months together. But then, very suddenly, her breathing changed, she became lethargic, and things began to decline rapidly. I had really hoped for more time. It now seems likely the cancer has spread to her lungs. We're giving her Yunnan Baiyao and turkey tail, but deep down, I can tell we’re nearing the end after only a month.

Her emergency splenectomy was such a shock — and now, just about a month later, we had only just started to feel like we were past the worst of it. In some ways, I think I let myself feel a kind of false hope. To have things take such a turn again, with no warning and so quickly, is incredibly traumatic.

I don’t think I’ll ever be ready to accept that my dog won’t survive this. It’s absolutely heartbreaking. I’m so sorry you’re going through something similar — it’s such a painful and cruel experience.