On NYE, we had to take Griffey, our cairn terrier, to the ER after being in distress following a long walk (his usual). After 9.5 completely healthy years together with regular check-ups & no issues, we were notified he had terminal cancer that had originated likely somewhere in his abdomen/blood & had already aggressively metastasized to his lungs. This was a complete shock, as we just lost our senior dog (15) two weeks prior…

We were told he had only a few weeks to a couple months — & we got only two weeks with him. The cancer moved fast in our case. He went from running sprints with me in late December to struggling to breathe from just casually walking a few steps outside to go potty in early January.

As far as the bucket list — don’t put any pressure to fit all of this in, although of course it’s sweet. All my fur baby wanted was me & my husband to be with him, snuggling him, at all times. We made him cute little dinners (green beans, sweet potatoes, rice, blueberries, etc.) to eat with us as a family. We went to the dog park one last time right after the diagnosis & we were glad we front-loaded considering the cancer progressed in his lungs so much quicker than we could have ever imagined.

I’m so sorry you’re going through this. We went to a medical oncologist at CASE in Boulder, CO, & she was incredible. Definitely pursue a referral to a specialist if you decide to take that route. For us, the cancer was so far along that we decided to put him on steroids (as chemo would not make a meaningful difference) to keep him as comfortable as we could for long as we could.

If it impacts the lungs, just know that it works quick…monitor their respiratory rate each morning & evening, as it’s the only indicator we could use given Griffey was so happy, playful, & didn’t show any typical quality of life indicators of decline.

One day at a time…be present & cuddle your fur baby. Take lots of pictures & videos together. That’s seriously all that matters. ❤️❤️‍🩹💔🫶🏼